Port Rhombus Design is an independent studio practice directed by Matt Kennedy. One face of the business is freelance design services and custom fabrication. I do everything from product ideation, computer aided drafting and prototyping to signage and retail environments. The other side of the business is a personalized cottage-industry interior furnishings product design studio.
*Small Batch / Craft items available on Etsy:
www.etsy.com/shop/portrhombus
We've moved into the fabrication sector!
*AFFORDABLE Custom Digital Fabrication available for Creatives:
www.digitalcraftpdx.com
Digital Craft is the keystone to my personal studio philosophy. The accessibility of digital manufacturing tools is leading a revival of the cottage industry craftsman-designer. It is my intention to embrace these processes where appropriate in hopes of ushering in a more responsible and innovative design culture by allowing small studios to compete with larger companies.
As should be expected, sustainability is also paramount. I use recycled materials at every opportunity, from modeling explorations all the way to packing materials. Woods are sourced locally from urban salvage lumber. I hope to create objects that are as beautiful in their function as they are in their aesthetics. I appreciate things that are simple in their genius, and they should be evocative or inspiring. More than just a way to get something done we hope to create something that will help you understand yourself a little more as well. My studio products are designed by me and built by me in Portland, Oregon.
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"I've always enjoyed working with my hands as much as I have been inspired by the potentials of digital fabrication. As such I have a distinct interest in the intersection of craft and computer aided design. I like to think of digital fabrication as a new craft, something which can be reinvented by creators and brought back into the workshop. The implications of manufacturing tools reaching the hands of DIY designers are immense for the design profession and I look forward to what I expect to be a very experimental and competitive period of design. I feel that the standards of manufacturers is becoming less and less a roadblock to creative minded designers who are interested in reinterpreting the meaning and methods of industrial production. Whether it’s finding potential in unintended use or the manipulation of existing process it's unquestionable that the richness of inquiry is expanding in manufacturing and I feel very excited to have found this area of study at this particular time. The borders between artist, craftsman and designer are becoming less distinct by the year and I hope to plant my practice at the axis of these approaches to creation." - Matt Kennedy
*Small Batch / Craft items available on Etsy:
www.etsy.com/shop/portrhombus
We've moved into the fabrication sector!
*AFFORDABLE Custom Digital Fabrication available for Creatives:
www.digitalcraftpdx.com
Digital Craft is the keystone to my personal studio philosophy. The accessibility of digital manufacturing tools is leading a revival of the cottage industry craftsman-designer. It is my intention to embrace these processes where appropriate in hopes of ushering in a more responsible and innovative design culture by allowing small studios to compete with larger companies.
As should be expected, sustainability is also paramount. I use recycled materials at every opportunity, from modeling explorations all the way to packing materials. Woods are sourced locally from urban salvage lumber. I hope to create objects that are as beautiful in their function as they are in their aesthetics. I appreciate things that are simple in their genius, and they should be evocative or inspiring. More than just a way to get something done we hope to create something that will help you understand yourself a little more as well. My studio products are designed by me and built by me in Portland, Oregon.
___________________________________
"I've always enjoyed working with my hands as much as I have been inspired by the potentials of digital fabrication. As such I have a distinct interest in the intersection of craft and computer aided design. I like to think of digital fabrication as a new craft, something which can be reinvented by creators and brought back into the workshop. The implications of manufacturing tools reaching the hands of DIY designers are immense for the design profession and I look forward to what I expect to be a very experimental and competitive period of design. I feel that the standards of manufacturers is becoming less and less a roadblock to creative minded designers who are interested in reinterpreting the meaning and methods of industrial production. Whether it’s finding potential in unintended use or the manipulation of existing process it's unquestionable that the richness of inquiry is expanding in manufacturing and I feel very excited to have found this area of study at this particular time. The borders between artist, craftsman and designer are becoming less distinct by the year and I hope to plant my practice at the axis of these approaches to creation." - Matt Kennedy
