From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

I remember not knowing what to expect the first time I met Richard Chai. Going into the meeting I had no reason to think anything bad, but with designers you never know. That was way back in 2005, and while I sit here now I can’t think of a nicer designer, let alone person than Richard. Soft spoken and and almost shy, Richard was one of the first people I asked for my From the Desk of… series. Crickets. Eventually with a little help from Molly at KCD, Richard agreed to let ACL into his office.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

Graphic designer, hardcore music lover and American patriot, the stylish Mr. Jeremy Dean graciously agreed to allow our prying eyes on his desk at Urban Outfitters. Mr. Dean has been a long time ACL reader and was the impetus behind my recent field trip to Philadelphia. He, along with the other gentlemen on the men’s team, have really impressed me with the direction they are taking the store. Okay, enough chit chat. Take a few minutes and poke through Jeremy’s desk, I’m sure he won’t mind.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

This past week Mr. Frank Muytjens, J.Crew’s VP of men’s design, took some time out of his busy schedule to open up his office to ACL’s prying eyes.  After talking to Frank for a few minutes it was clear that we have a lot of the same interests. Everything from workwear to Japan and all sorts of other stylish things. If beer was involved we could have probably talked each other to death.

It was exciting to see the J.Crew offices and some of the work that goes into putting a collection together. Frank even touched on a few of the exciting things that are in the works for what is unofficially being called  “The Newsstand,”  J.Crew’s interesting new men’s store on Broadway. More on that soon enough. Desk details after the jump.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

Cultural polymath and sartorial savant, it is safe to say that David Coggins has refined taste. When not fly fishing in Idaho or curating his exquisite blogue Exit Lines, Mr. Coggins can be found writing for Art in America, Men’s Vogue and Interview Magazine.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

Aside from being the first woman featured in this space, Brett Lally is a talented designer, artist, muscle car enthusiast and all around great gal. Ms. Lally spends her days working in design at Supreme.

From the Desk of… (Bonus Edition)

I found this beautiful picture of English artist and designer Anthony Burrill’s desk on the Creative Review while I was combing the internets this past weekend. I figured I would bend the From the Desk of… rules slightly to feature Mr. Burrill’s awesome little office. If you want to learn more about Anthony, Cool Hunting has a good post on Burrill and his work. His workspace kind of reminds me of one of my all time favorites, Marc Newson. Maybe it is just the yellow bucket shades that are stirring that up in me. Either way, well done sir!

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

Details Market Editor Eugene Tong (pictured at left with fellow Details Market Editor Matthew Marden) took some time out of his busy day scouring the fashion landscape to break down his desk from deep within the inner-workings of Details HQ. The fine print after the break.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

Aside from being a painfully nice guy, Josh Peskowitz is one of the gentlemen behind the stylish and popular Men.Style.com. Much like last week’s subject Alexander Olch, Mr. Peskowitz prefers the less is more approach to organization.

Mr. Peskowitz’s description:

My desk is usually a mess, it used to bother me but now I am at peace with it. I know it’s a tired excuse to some when they hear people like me say they can’t find anything when the desk is clean, but in my case it happens true. The way my memory works, it’s much easier to remember where I saw something last than to have a “filing” system or “whatever”. Except for stamps, I can never find those damn things.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

In addition to being a talented filmmaker, designer, artist and bespoke clipboard maker, Alexander Olch is the subject of this week’s From the Desk of… column.

Mr. Olch’s description

This is the first studio I ever rented – and have been working here now for seven years. It was proudly furnished at low-budget: Desk – 1 inch thick MDF board on 2 steel sawhorses, chair from the old Chelsea flea market, long pine wood shelves with two coats of Red Devil glossy white enamel paint, Steel shelves at right from B & Z Steel Shelving in SoHo, with the same paint. Computer is still the same – Mac OS 9.2.2. Electronics all old and borrowed – Pioneer SX-737 tuner, Panasonic Easa-Phone, pro VHS deck, and speakers all from 1990. Black framed photograph (center top) is the first I ever took – in 1983 of the waves in Ogunquit, Maine.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

In addition to being a really nice guy, Men’s Vogue Fashion Director Stephen Watson is one of the most stylish and tasteful gentlemen in the business. Pictured and described below is Mr. Watson’s desk – from high atop the Condé Nast tower.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

The second entry in the series is Ben Ferencz, the founder and creative director of The Design Cooperative and the man behind Freeman Transport. Born and raised in New York, the saying holds true, you can take the kid out of the city but you can’t take the city out of the kid. Ben now lives on a 70 acre organic farm outside Missoula, Montana with his wife Julie and daughter Evelyn. Details after the jump.

Click to enlarge.

From the Desk of…

From the Desk of… is a window into the world and workspace of some of ACL’s most stylish friends.

First up in the series is Michael Macko, Saks Fifth Avenue vice president and all around good guy. Details after the jump.