Boutique Design - April 2016 - 36

4 A concept rendering
of the Fan Pier
Boston functional
sculpture project, as
envisioned by ModVic
and Salmon Studios.

HOW DID THAT GO?

It wasn't the best business decision I've ever made. At the beginning of 2008,
the real estate market went through the floor, and even though we had over a
thousand people come to an open house we held (which appeared as the lead
story on the front page of the Boston Globe's real estate section), no one could
get a loan or sell their home to purchase this one. Three years later we had to
surrender the house back to the bank and declare personal bankruptcy.
But out of that darkness came light. I remade ModVic from a home restoration
business to a Steampunk art and design enterprise. I now work with homeowners,
museums, corporations and hospitality clients in the U.S. and internationally to
design one-of-a-kind pieces, creatively combining eras, ideas and technology to
transform the ordinary into incredible, meaningful Steampunk functional art.
WHEN AND WHY DID YOU FIRST SEE STEAMPUNK MAKING ITS WAY INTO
HOSPITALITY SETTINGS?

In the last 10-plus years, I've seen a lot more real estate developers, designers
and architects repurposing old buildings, mills and factories into hotels,
condominiums, mega malls and innovation centers. That helped set the stage
for Steampunk's growing prominence, with its emphasis on finding new uses
for existing objects.
During that same time, the millennial generation has emerged as a social
and cultural force that's interested in resetting their expectations on how to
measure their own success, as well as find happiness and meaning in life. There
36

boutiquedesign.com APRIL 2016

was an emerging sense that history, legacy and authenticity was the way for
millennials to connect with what was important and at the same time, give
them the inspiration to adapt and be resilient for an uncertain future.
For hospitality developers, that led to the realization that they need to make
their properties distinctive, one-of-a-kind experiences that would attract
millennials. That, in turn, has led to a growing number of Steampunk art installations, with their simultaneous focus on the past, present and future.
WHAT ARE SOME SPECIFIC PROJECTS YOU'VE DONE ALONG THOSE LINES?

Our first project was designing and fabricating a functioning Steampunk mechanical whale for the Nantucket Hotel + Resort on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts.
Working with an incredible metal sculptor, Sam Ostroff, and his team at [Florence,
Massachusetts-based] Salmon Studios, we came up with a "what-if " scenario: It's
the end of the whaling industry on Nantucket in the mid 1850s; what if we were
able to build mechanical whales for a new era of transport and tourism?
Our answer is a 6-ft.-long kinetic and interactive Steampunk mechanical
whale sculpture that was created for the lobby of the recently renovated
hotel/resort. The whale is activated by a hidden switch within a ship's
binnacle at the hotel's front desk. Its mouth and tail move, with windows to its
interior to see the mechanics of movement. A webcam in its blowhole monitors the front lobby.
Nantucket can be somewhat traditional and conservative. However, our
Steampunk mechanical whale, known as "Punky," has become the hit of the
island, and an iconic piece of functional artwork for the hotel.
On a grander scale, last September, ModVic and Salmon Studios unveiled
"Celeste," a 25-ft.-tall, 6,000-lb. animated armillary that now welcomes guests to
The Hotel Marlowe, a Kimpton property in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that's

S A M O S T R O F F, S A L M O N S T U D I O S

in major disrepair) 1877 Victorian Italianate in North Attleboro, Massachusetts,
and went to work giving it all-new functionality while keeping the quality,
beauty and charm of its original builder's vision.


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Boutique Design - April 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Boutique Design - April 2016

Boutique Design - April 2016
Contents
From The Editor
In This Issue
The Buzz
Wall Power
Q+A: Steam Punk Dynamo
Hit Refresh
White Paper
Products: Bath + Spa
Products: Textiles
Exit Interview
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Boutique Design - April 2016
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Cover2
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 1
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 2
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 3
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Contents
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 5
Boutique Design - April 2016 - From The Editor
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 7
Boutique Design - April 2016 - In This Issue
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 9
Boutique Design - April 2016 - The Buzz
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 11
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 12
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 13
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 14
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 15
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 16
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 17
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 18
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 19
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 20
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 21
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 22
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 23
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Wall Power
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 25
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 26
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 27
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 28
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 29
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 30
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 31
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Q+A: Steam Punk Dynamo
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 33
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 34
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 35
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 36
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 37
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 38
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 39
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 40
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 41
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 42
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 43
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 44
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 45
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Hit Refresh
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 47
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 48
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 49
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 50
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 51
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 52
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 53
Boutique Design - April 2016 - White Paper
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 55
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 56
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 57
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 58
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 59
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 60
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 61
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 62
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 63
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Products: Bath + Spa
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 65
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 66
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 67
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 68
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 69
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 70
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 71
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Products: Textiles
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 73
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 74
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 75
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 76
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 77
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 78
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 79
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 80
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 81
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 82
Boutique Design - April 2016 - 83
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Exit Interview
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Cover3
Boutique Design - April 2016 - Cover4
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