During this uncertain time, the staff and community associated with Midtown’s Detroit Center for Design + Technology is looking for ways to keep us all connected. One way we’re doing that is a new feature we call @Home with… And today we’re catching up with the center’s associate director and recent Crain’s Detroit Business 2020 20 in their Twenties recipient, Chris Stefani.

@Home with Chris Stefan

We’re headed @Home with… Andrea Bogart, manager of Midtown’s Detroit Center for Design + Technology and founder of Embrace Creatives, an online network/marketplace that connects qualified artists and interior designers. We caught up with the fine artist and mother of three @ Home and here’s what we learned:
 
@Home with Andrea Bogart
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​Those who have visited us at the DCDT might recognize Andrea Bogart right away. She curates our galleries and is a driving force behind the summer symposium and exhibition, Yeah, What Lester Said, which explores the impact of climate change within our architectural industry and the built environment. The events will include a gallery show, artist talks and so much more. It will be completely virtual, free to attend and events begin June 1 at Detroit.design/Lester. Here’s how she’s putting this event together – and being creative at home.
 
DCDT: Where are working from these days?
AB: “My husband and I share our home office space so I’m either flirting with him or throwing spitballs at the back of his head (kidding). Sometimes we take turns working on the bed. On nice days I’ll move outside with my lap top. Other than that, I’m in the kitchen cooking or cleaning.”

Welcome to @Home with… this is the spot to check out every week as we’ve been highlighting community members and staff associated with Midtown’s Detroit Center for Design + Technology. Today we’re talking with Bulgarian Designer and Lawrence Technological University student Gergana Gocheva.
 
@Home with Gergana Gochev

Bulgarian Designer Gergana Gocheva. She specializes in brand building and visual identity development. While she works in advertising, Gocheva says she’s most passionate about beautiful typography and publication design. That’s what led her to S. Ayers Art where she creates print pieces that highlight the work of local Detroit artists. We caught up with her @ Home and here’s what we found out:
 
DCDT: Where are working from these days?
GG: “Weather-permitting, I am trying to spend as much time as possible outside either in my backyard or front porch. Unfortunately, it’s been raining lately so most of my days are spent isolating myself in the attic, haha! I have created a nice working area for myself which is quiet and open enough to allow my creativity to flow as normally as possible. Having a big open area to myself allowed me to create a small workshop area where I can still experiment with new book binding techniques even without an immediate access to a printer.”

DCDT: What’s the best part about working from home? The hardest?
GG: “Honestly, that I can wake up 10 minutes before I start work! Before we transitioned into working from home I was spending 2-3 hours a day commuting between my home, university in Southfield, our Detroit campus, and my two jobs. I had never realized how much time I am spending on the road that now I can put towards my work! I like staying at home so for me it hasn’t been as rough as I know it is for many other people. In this regard, I feel blessed. The hardest part is because my bed is so close to ‘my work’  there are some days that are hard to get into a work-mode since it just feels like I’m doing work during the weekend, and not, in fact, on a Tuesday! I’m glad that I have very few of those days, thankfully.”

As we continue to stay home and make safe choices, we at the Detroit Center for Design + Technology are checking in with Detroit’s creative professionals to get a glimpse of life in quarantine. This week we head @Home with… Artists Steve and Dorota Coy of Hygienic Dress League.  

@Home with The Coys

Steve, Dorota and Luca Coy are a creative Detroit family making their way through the concerns we all face through the COVID-19 pandemic. Dorota and Steve are visual and conceptual artists and Steve also works as an associate professor of graphic design at Lawrence Technological University. Luca is the couple’s 5 year old son. They currently have an exhibition at Wasserman Projects which is temporarily closed to the public until restrictions lift. The Coys are donating 10 percent of sales from this project to Gleaners Food Bank in an effort to help support those affected by Covid-19.
 
Here’s what we learned from Steve Coy:
 
DCDT: Where are working from these days?
SC: “We currently spend a lot of time in the backyard when weather permits. We really use most of our house though so there is a pretty even distribution of time spent in most rooms. We have several locations in the house for Luca’s school. We have a room were the light is best and we can draw and paint.”

​DCDT: What’s the best part about working from home? The hardest?
SC: “The best part about working from home is the commute and the hardest part is the distractions. As artists we work project to project, often in various locations around the world. In some ways this feels like another project, a residency in which we are confined to our home.”