# Designer Spotlight: Kevin Wei

January 25, 2012

New York based [Kevin Wei](http://shpws.me/3E9Z) is an architect turned jewelry designer who has been blowing us away with his new line of beautiful [bracelets](/content/model/446726/beraldo_silver_bangle.html?gid=sg120877/index.html) and [necklaces](/content/model/413095/drudo_silver_pendant.html?gid=sg120877/index.html). We had a chance to catch up with him at the [Shapeways Meetup](http://www.meetup.com/Shapeways/) last week and were inspired to share his story.

He’s a big thinker, who tries “to work like writers do, with the world as my muse, technology like a pen in hand, to discover the biography of things.”

**Cheat Sheet:**

- _Tech he couldn’t live without:_ Digital calipers, [DropBox](/content/blog/www.dropbox.com), and Shapeways _(his words, not ours!)_
- _Favorite material:_ Sugru
- _Favorite font:_ Any font, as long as the words are extraordinary
- _3D software of choice:_ Rhino, Grasshopper
- _Most prized object:_ The buckle on my backpack. It once saved me in a bike vs. taxi accident
- _Morning person / night owl:_ Sometimes neither

****

**How did you learn to design in 3D?**

I taught myself and learned from others, but that was easy.  I’m more interested in learning how to tell a story, how the art of storytelling resonates through acts of making.  It’s difficult, powerful, and I’m still learning how to do it.

**How would you describe your creative process?**

I root my work in the complex heritage of craft, design, and art, and then I execute it through techniques of architecture and engineering.  It’s all about equipping old ideas so they might flourish in a very different time and context.  I think the [Cosma Bangle](/content/model/413096/index.html) is my best example so far.  Its intricacy and construction absolutely require today’s technology, yet it has a historical and cultural story that goes back nearly 1000 years to the humble artisanship of mosaic workers. There’s something powerful about translating ideas and methods into stories for a new millennium.

****

**What do you do when you’re not designing?**

I have an incredible partner, Zach, and a ridiculously cute dog, Cowboy, who keep me very happy.  I also tinker with interactive, kinetic devices and teach students at Columbia University to do the same.  I once worked on a project about texting with fish in the East River. I’m always thinking about what’s next with my jewelry.

**Where do you do your best thinking?**

Queensboro Bridge, or wherever I can stare into the distance. It’s more a state of mind than a place.  Still, I think people need lots of space in order to contemplate and grow.  This can be hard to find in New York.

**What’s next on the design docket?**

Count on me to continue telling stories with intricate structures.  I can rattle off a few headlines that are on my mind: showdown diorama; grandiose miniatures; topographies of the flesh.  Who knows what all that means in the end, but I’m excited to show you when I have it all worked out.

**Who are your favorite designers or artists?**

[Jonathan Harris](http://www.number27.org/). His art is his life story, told in photography and interactive websites.  If you see his work, you can’t help but get inspired to remake your own life.

[Gerd Rothmann](http://www.ornamentumgallery.com/gallery/gallery.php?artistid=4).  He made simple jewelry with finger and body prints taken from his clients.  Genius, because the jewelry itself didn’t matter – what mattered most was the story of how the imprint got there.

**If you weren’t limited by current technologies, what would you want to make using 3D printing?**

Something that would create new limits.

**Check out Kevin Wei’s work on the interwebs:**

[Shapeways Shop](http://shpws.me/3E9Z)  |  [www.kevinwei.com](http://www.kevinwei.com/)  |  [www.kevinweinewyork.com](http://www.kevinweinewyork.com/)

_From the fish texting project for the ‘other life’, [Amphibious Architecture](http://www.kevinwei.com/projects/4101331#1)._