Interview with Marilyn Frank of F2 - Part I » Curbly | DIY Design Community

Interview with Marilyn Frank of F2 - Part I

By benmoore

Hello fellow Curbliers. I had the chance to interview Marilyn Frank of F2. We covered so much that I'm breaking it into two parts. The first part covers their own DIY mentality, and then we move to what inspires them to create.

Your motto is "we make it", right? Sounds DIY.

Yes it is. whenever Peter and I come up with an idea, "We Make It" refers to the fact that we figure out a way to make that happen and don't let ourselves be limited to the medium, perceived constraints, etc. It implies a certain amount of resourcefulness and unwillingness to allow restrictions stop us from realizing a vision or seeing an idea come to fruition.

When you "make it", what is that process like?

well, first we start with the idea, a sort of "final product" that we'd like to work towards. then we figure out what it will take to make it happen, what materials are accessible to us, and if we don't have the right materials, doing the research in finding it.

when it comes to glass, peter's 18 years of experience permits him to be able to execute whatever glass ideas we come up with, no matter how simple or complex the technique may be. however, we usually opt for the simple designs because the work we do is minimal and clean, and if there is any influence at all, it's the work of the Scandinavian glass designers (as opposed to the Venetian styles).

glassblowing is an expensive art to do. we don't own a studio--we rent time at a public space, and pay hourly. so it adds up to quite an investment every time we go in and work.

What makes a good DIY'er?

i guess it just amounts to being able to see what's around and coming up with a way to execute it. resourcefulness is one of the most important qualities to have. that, and being able to see the potential in everything around you. having a mentality of "no, that's not gonna work," is probably not the mindset of a DIY'er! you have to have a sense of optimism and open-mindedness before you're gonna get anywhere, right?

Without a doubt. About your own creative work - how is it changing, where is it heading? What are your inspirations?

creatively we've been doing a lot of painting. simple, abstract, minimal. using spray paint, acrylic, wood. and we've been doing lots of video work too--the visuals are simple, slow, minimal, graceful. no exploding cars and fistfights here!

we are definitely inspired by what we see in nature--the science channel is one of our favorite things to watch. whenever we go hiking we take our cameras and always come back with something cool. also, having cameraphones is great because you never know when you'll capture something interesting.

i think i will always be inspired by the video work of bill viola and the graphic video work of jeremy blake; the sculptures of donald judd and richard serra. viola and blake both capture the simple beauty of life and people and technology. their work never punches you in the face, it creeps up slowly--through the back door, in a way--that the overall effect is so powerful. they don't make any huge statements to me, i just intuitively respond to their vision and how it visually comes together.

judd and serra's work has always struck me because of the quietness of their work. i don't think i will ever forget the first time i saw a donald judd sculpture. it made me realize that he was showing us the "most important thing," and that was it. no ornamentation, no busy-ness, no noise. and i like that.