Pamela Johnson has officially joined Evanston, IL-based DMAC Architecture as senior interior designer. Johnson brings a diverse and multidisciplinary background to the award-winning design team. She has a creative style that blends her passion for art with her extensive experience in the fields of architecture, civil engineering, and construction management across an array of project typologies. I recently spoke with Johnson about her thoughts on workplace design, balancing the creative and the technical, and her latest projects.
Anna Zappia (AZ): Pamela, tell me a bit about DMAC Architecture’s philosophy, and what appealed to you about the firm?
Pamela Johnson (PJ): I think one of the things that really drew me to DMAC was just a very unique approach. We’re very hands-on. If we have an idea we test it out, we mock things up. We literally have a huge workshop on the first floor of our building, and if we have an idea of how we want to light something, or want to use a different type of material, somebody will cut some pieces up, or we’ll build it, and find out if it works or doesn’t work. Whatever the thing is, we’re open to trying something new.
Coming from the workplace environment, where you are on tight deadlines and don’t always have the time or luxury to try things a little bit differently, that was one of the things that really excited me. I am also a more hands-on, artistic person. I like being able to get my hands dirty and try things out.
Photo courtesy of Pamela Johnson
AZ: You are a creative person but you also have extensive technical experience in civil engineering and construction management. How has that shaped your interior design work?
PJ: I definitely feel like it gives me a unique approach. I feel like once you understand all those parts and pieces, and how things are traditionally built, and once you have an understanding of those rules, it also gives you a little bit more freedom to break them, or push those boundaries. I do have that understanding of construction and materiality, and an engineering perspective. When I want to do something that hasn’t been done before, I understand those limitations, so I know what I can push and pull to do something different.
I think as a person, I just have two sides of my personality. There’s definitely a problem-solver aspect of me that wants to understand how things work, and wants to understand what happens when you do this, and to test it out. That’s where the engineering part of my background comes in—solving problems, being good at math and physics. But my other side is very creative, and that’s all about art and painting.
In engineering, it’s more about the calculations, but in art, it’s more about the creativity. I know they’re very different, but I think in my brain, they kind of work the same way. Analyzing those problems, breaking them apart, looking at all of the different perspectives, and then thinking of solutions.
AZ: Let’s talk about your artwork and your life as a painter. How does that influence your interior design projects?
PJ: I actually started a series many years ago, kind of taking the idea of the still life that’s been painted throughout art history, but looking at it from a more American, current culture lens. For the most part, they are six-foot paintings of piles of junk food. They’re very realistic. I use a lot of color and shadow to kind of create a mood that tends to be somewhere between temptation and a little bit disturbing. I like the idea of taking a still life of food and making it more playful in a way. It gives the viewer a thought-provoking experience, and my analysis of our culture.
Painting is so much about understanding light, it’s about understanding color. Art is not just the physical piece. Successful art makes you feel something, it makes you experience something. And you’re drawn to it. Not everyone has the word to describe it, but I think when people are connecting with art, it is actually an emotional experience. And I think in terms of connecting that with the physical space, that’s what designers do. We create experiences, something that you’re going to emotionally connect with, or have a feeling about. And every project’s different in terms of what that experience is that we’re trying to create. I think in many ways it’s similar to using all the tools in the paintbox to create something that people feel and experience.
AZ: Your portfolio includes numerous projects for the workplace sector. There’s been heightened interest in the future of the office because of the pandemic. How do you think workplace interiors will change?
PJ: I think we’ve definitely upended the workplace environment. So many people haven’t gone into the office in over a year now. But I do think there’s definitely a place for it. I think people miss the collaboration, they miss the interactions, they miss getting to know their coworkers. I think there’s a certain amount of work where you build off of each other’s ideas, and sometimes it’s not always a planned meeting so much as a serendipitous interaction. We’re missing some of that if we are at home, and I think people are craving that.
In terms of office design, I think there’s going to be a need for more collaboration-type spaces. One of the main reasons why people are going to be coming back to the office is to have formal meetings, but also the casual interactions. In a Zoom meeting you have communication with your colleagues, but it’s not the same as sitting across from somebody and having lunch or taking a quick break in between meetings. There’s just a different kind of conversation that stems from face-to-face meetings. I think offices are going to be designed in a way to support that.
People have the option of working from home or working in the office now, so I think you need to make the office a more desirable place to be, and people have kind of proven that they’re able to do their job from home. I think employers are recognizing that they get better solutions, and they get more collaboration when they have the right environment. I think we are going to continue to see more hospitality-inspired design, and people creating a better experience in the office.
AZ: You are now involved in a number of casino projects, and working on a luxury airport lounge. Can you tell me more about these projects?
PJ: I think the casino gaming world is definitely taking off. I think for a lot of casinos, it’s about creating this very immersive experience. Casino operators are implementing a lot of high-tech elements, but still want to have that luxury feel. The audience for casinos is also growing. There’s more branching out into other markets, so they want to differentiate themselves from competitors.
The airport lounge is exciting. I think we are going to be reimagining the entire airport though. For so long it has just kind of been a place to wait until you get on the plane, and not much more than that. It isn’t very pleasant for a lot of people. But I’m optimistic, because our clients are realizing that an enjoyable travel experience, whether it’s for work or vacation, can begin at the airport. It can actually be a place where you want to be. We’re looking to hospitality interiors for inspiration, and designing airport lounges that look more like the hotel lobbies and amenities spaces.
Photo courtesy of DMAC Architecture