Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 65
products
profile
zachary bitner
By Ashleigh VanHouten
Photography courtesy of Zachary Bitner
1
2
3
SOLID AS A ROCK
1+2. Two views of the
indoor/outdoor Slab
Dining Table.
A Chicago designer offers up the unexpected
Zachary Bitner was the kid in the school
playground puttering with a purpose,
sculpting clay he brought from home. By
high school, he knew he was going to be
“some kind of designer,” saying he was
always attracted to good furniture and
was inspired by the great early teachers of
general art theory. “I was always drawn to
3D more than 2D,” he says.
Today, Chicago-based Bitner designs
unique indoor/outdoor furniture with the
look of concrete but a much lighter weight.
With a BFA from the Savannah College
of Art and Design in furniture design, he
started his career in the outdoor accessories
market, developing products, finishes, and
brands for other companies for 10 years
before he struck out on his own in 2009.
The bulk of his pieces are for outdoor
settings, but increasingly his work is being
used indoors to complete an unfussy,
architectural, and somewhat masculine
aesthetic. “The cement look is so beautiful
inside. My pieces can make an interior
space so much more functional for cleaning
and rearranging.” Another surprise of his
creations: the comfort. “The seats must be
comfortable because of the initial perception
users have when they see them. The pieces
have a presence, becoming sculptures in
their own right.”
Bitner’s work appears in the Downtown
W Hotel in New York, where he created a
number of Saarinen-inspired custom coffee
tables for the terrace, and right now he’s
working on bench and planter installations
for a Starbucks in Chicago.
Bitner’s inspiration comes from
everywhere, or perhaps just one place: his
own imagination. His Wavebreaker piece,
for example, is an “Ultra-mod interpretation
of the Adirondack.” A dining table concept,
the Perennial Cypress, “is my most complex
3. Bitner’s sculpted,
lightweight Van
Dyke chairs have the
appearance of solid
concrete.
piece to date. I’m dealing with concepts
of faux bois, live edge, and organic lines
harkening back to fluted Greek columns.”
Soon, he hopes to offer more options for
his pieces in terms of size, color, and even
material—and establishing showrooms
throughout the country to showcase his
work. “My problem is I have too many
ideas,” he says.
Yet Bitner never gets tired of watching
the expression on people’s faces when they
experience the juxtaposition of his pieces
for the first time: what looks old is modern,
what looks heavy is actually light. As he
says, “I guess I like surprising people with
the unexpected.” hd
zacharyadesi gn.co m
hospitalitydesign.com August 2013
065
http://www.zacharyadesign.com
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Hospitality Design - August 2013
Hospitality Design - August 2013
Contents
Online TOC
From the Editor
From the Show Director
People
Perspectives
Sketchbook
Sustainable Studio
Trends: Custom Products
5 Questions for Stacy Garcia
Products
Profile: Alicia Adams
Profile: Rich Brilliant Willing
Profile: Judy Ross
Profile: Zachary Bitner
Profile: Jacco Maris
Trend: Collaborations
Textiles
Seating
Lighting
HD Americas
Conference Highlights
Products
Projects
Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
Fazenda Nova Country House
Christopher’s
Shàng-Xí Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Pudong
Ad Index
Back Space
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Intro
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Hospitality Design - August 2013
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Cover2
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 1
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 2
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 3
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 4
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 5
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 6
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 7
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 8
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 9
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 10
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 11
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 12
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 13
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 14
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 15
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 16
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Contents
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 18
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 19
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 20
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Online TOC
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 22
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 23
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 24
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 25
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 26
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 27
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 28
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 29
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - From the Editor
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 31
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 32
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 33
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - From the Show Director
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 35
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 36
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 37
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - People
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 39
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 40
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 41
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 42
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Perspectives
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 44
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Sketchbook
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 46
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 47
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 48
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Sustainable Studio
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 50
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Trends: Custom Products
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 52
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 53
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 5 Questions for Stacy Garcia
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 55
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 56
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Products
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 58
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Profile: Alicia Adams
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 60
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Profile: Rich Brilliant Willing
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 62
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Profile: Judy Ross
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 64
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Profile: Zachary Bitner
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 66
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Profile: Jacco Maris
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 68
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Trend: Collaborations
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 70
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 71
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 72
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Textiles
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 74
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 75
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 76
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Seating
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 78
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 79
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 80
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Lighting
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 82
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 83
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 84
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 85
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 86
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - HD Americas
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Conference Highlights
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 89
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Products
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 91
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 92
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Projects
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 95
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 96
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 97
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Fazenda Nova Country House
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 99
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 100
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 101
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Christopher’s
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 103
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 104
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 105
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Shàng-Xí Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Pudong
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 107
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 108
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 109
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - 110
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Ad Index
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Back Space
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Cover3
Hospitality Design - August 2013 - Cover4
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