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Brooks Atwood

Design Consultant, Artist, Actor

photo by Morgan Demeter

“Design the way you make love.”

–Brooks Atwood

I’m not too expensive or too busy.

In my 25 year, multi-disciplinary career I have worked on 210 projects, over 10.3 million square feet totaling $2.1B. I have appeared in multiple TV shows on global networks like HGTV, Disney+ and most recently Netflix. As a result of the various roles I’ve played, tv host, architect, interior designer, people often assume I’m too expensive, busy or famous to work with. The fact is, I’m grateful to create with anyone excited about their own project. 

Let’s connect with one another based on our enthusiasm for design and innovation.

I work as a design consultant in a number of ways. Monthly retainer, project basis, day rate, it’s all possible. The array of projects match my diverse background. Some examples include: interior design, architecture, design reviews, project inceptions, concept design, reimagining XYZ (fill in the blank), user experience design, future forecasting/predicting, branding, think tanks, and brainstorming to name a few.

My work as a designer and educator earned me the distinction of being named one of the “world’s innovative creators” by Eyes In Magazine and one of six “Emerging US Designers” by the Museum of Arts & Design in New York City. Brooklyn Magazine named me “One of the Most Important Names In Brooklyn Design.”

I am also a TED alumni for my talk entitled “Collaborative Opportunities are Everywhere.”

I have received numerous awards. I have co-founded two companies, Berries Design (@berries.design) and POD Design. I have acted as Design Director at OfficeUntitled, where I oversaw project narratives, client pitches, client relations and brand partnerships for award-winning brands like Nike, Google, Virgin, Provenance Hotels and the Cayton Children’s Museum.

As a professor at Parsons, The New School for Design & the College of Architecture & Design at NJIT, I led collaborative teams that brought together technologies, designers, and business leaders into a common space of possibility. My early collaborative work – bridging advanced computation with traditional visual art – won the Gwangju Biennale in 2008 with Michal Joo and is represented in the permanent collection at the Samsung Museum of Art in Seoul, Korea. 

I’ve done a lot of stuff, let’s do some more.

BIO

Brooks Atwood actively bridges design, leadership, innovation and technology. His work as a designer, architect and educator earned him the distinction of being named one of the “world’s innovative creators” by Eyes In Magazine and one of six “Emerging US Designers” by the Museum of Arts & Design.  Brooks is also an alumni of the prestigious TED organization where he gave a talk entitled “Collaborative Opportunities are Everywhere.”

As a professor at Parsons, The New School for Design & the College of Architecture & Design at NJIT, Atwood led collaborative teams that brought together technologies, designers, and business leaders into a common space of possibility. Atwood’s early collaborative work – bridging advanced computation with tradition visual art – is represented in the permanent collection at the Samsung Museum of Art in Seoul, Korea as well as additional exhibits in Korea, Germany, England and New York City.

Atwood’s work as a designer listed him as “Brooklyn’s 20”, people who are making an impact on the city’s artistic and cultural landscape and Brooklyn Magazine considered him “One of the Most Important Names In Brooklyn Design.”

Brooks’s passion for design is only topped by the height of his hair. His current focus is on sharing his gifts with the world. Brooks is currently hosting a TV show on Netflix called “Hack My Home”, he is a judge on “Shop Class” on Disney+, he hosted a show called “Trashformers” about upcycling and has appeared on The Today Show with Kathie Lee & Hoda, BetterTV, DIY, Showtime, King5 NewDay, and was a finalist on season 8 of HGTV’s Design Star.

Brooks has gained media attention from publications such as The New York Times, Brooklyn Magazine, Esquire and many more. Atwood has also given numerous lectures, most notably, at the Museum of Arts & Design in New York City, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney, the Australian Centre of the Moving Image in Melbourne, the State Library of Queensland in Brisbane and CreativeMornings in NYC. Brooks’s work has also been featured during NYCxDesign, ICFF and WantedDesign in New York City.

Co-Founder, Berries Design
Host of “Hotel Crush” the Podcast
Host of “Hack My Home“on Netflix
Judge on “Shop Class“, Disney+
Design Director, OfficeUntitled
Founder, Brooks Atwood Design
Co-Founder, POD Design
Chief Design Officer, Nucleus.Vision (tech start-up in Silicon Valley)
TV Host of “Trashformers” on FYI,
Adjunct Professor of Design, Parsons School of Design, The New School
Co-founder & Co-creator, SWELL live music experience

Brooks Taliaferro Atwood, IIDA, ASID, IDSA
Columbia University / Masters of Science in Advanced Architectural Design / 2003
Illinois Institute of Technology / Bachelors of Architecture / 1999 – Valedictorian

HONORS AND AWARDS
Cultural Space of the Year* (long listed) – Frame Awards 2020
Creative Spark Award* – 2019 Top World Hotel News
World’s Greatest Places of 2019* – TIME Magazine
Most Innovative Hotel* – 2019 Indie Awards Independent Lodging Congress
Best Guestroom Upper Mid-scale Finalist* – 2019 Gold Key Awards
Luxury, Upscale, and Lifestyle Guestrooms Finalist* – 2019 Hospitality Design Awards
2019 Interior Design Competition Finalists* – 2019 Interior Design Competition
Top 15 Hotels in the USA* – Fodors Travel
Historic Preservation Excellence Restore Oregon Winner* – 2019 DeMuro Awards
TED speaker “Collaborative Opportunities are Everywhere” / 2016
“One of the Most Important Names in Brooklyn Design” / Brooklyn Magazine / 2015
“First Things First” / Fab.com / 2014
Finalist for Ceramiche Refin spa “Create Your Tile” design competition (top 10 shortlisted) / 2014
“Emerging US Design Practice” / Museum of Arts & Design with WantedDesign / 2013
“World’s Creative Innovators” / Eyes In Magazine / 2013
HGTV Design Star finalist and runner-up / 2013
“The Brooklyn 20” list / Brooklyn Magazine / 2013
Portable Talks / keynote lectures on design in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane / 2013
IDEA Award / finalist, Sylki chair / 2013
Metropolis Magazine / Silverair / 2013
Yanko Design ranked Silverair #2 Most Creative Cutlery / 2009
Shortlist Beyond Silver Design Competition by Designboom / 2008
Permanent Collection, “Objectified2 (Landscape)”, Samsung Museum of Art (with M. Joo) / 2007
Grand Prize, 6th Gwangju Biennale, “Bodhi Obfuscatus (Space-Baby)” (with M.Joo) / 2006
Kinne Fellowship, Columbia University / 2003
Valedictorian, Illinois Institute of Technology / 1999
American Institute of Architects Certificate of Merit / 1997

SELECTED COLLECTIONS (collaborations with Michael Joo)
Samsung Museum of Art Permanent Collection / Seoul, South Korea / 2006
6th Gwangju Biennale Grand Prize / Gwangju, South Korea / 2006

EXHIBITIONS
Fab.com for NYCxDesign, New York, NY / 2014
Salone del Mobile, Fuorisalone at Ceramiche Refin, Milan, Italy / 2014
WantedDesign, New York, NY / 2013
Men In Cities, New York, NY / 2013
Esquire’s Ultimate Bachelor Pad, Brooklyn, NY / 2012
Rouge 58, Brooklyn, NY / 2011
WantedDesign, New York, NY / 2011
239 Collective, Newark, NJ / 2010
Showtime SHO House, New York, NY / 2010
Newark Art Museum, Newark, NJ / 2009
The New Art Gallery, Walsall, England / 2009
Chelsea Art Museum, New York, NY / 2009
Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, Germany /2008
Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, Germany / 2007
Leeum Samsung Museum of Art, Rodin Gallery, Seoul Korea / 2006
6th Annual Gwangju Biennale, Gwangju, South Korea / 2006
Buell Hall, New York, NY / 2003
White Space, Chicago, IL / 2002

LECTURES & SYMPOSIUMS
Speaker / Duncan Anderson Design Lecture Series @ CSULB 2024
Speaker / Public Art Talk / 2024
Speaker / ALIS Design+ / 2024
Speaker / Independent Lodging Congress / 2020
TED speaker / TEDxBushwick / 2016
Moderator, Panel Discussion on Upcycling for Pivot TV’s “Human Resources” at The Maker Faire / 2015
Host/MC and Judge, Fifth Annual Creative Climate Awards by Human Impacts Institute / 2015
Unilever NYC / 2015
Parsons, The New School, SCE, / 2014
AIA & ALNNJ Emerging Professionals Showcase keynote / 2013
Portable Talks, keynote: Australian Centre of the Moving Image, Melbourne / 2013
Portable Talks, keynote: State Library of Queensland, Edge Auditorium, Brisbane / 2013
Portable Talks, keynote: Museum of Contemporary Art (part of Vivid Festival), Sydney / 2013
Museum of Arts & Design, US Emerging Design Practices / 2013
Creative Mornings / 2013
AIAS NE Quad Conference / 2013
IDSA International Conference / 2012
Dwell, Architizer & Cool Hunting panel / 2012
New Jersey Institute of Technology / 2011
New Jersey Institute of Technology / 2010
Newark Art Museum / 2009
Haus der Kulturen der Welt / 2008

TV, PODCAST & RADIO APPEARANCES
Group Text with Melissa Rivers 2023
Netflix series “Hack My Home”, host, complete season (8 episodes) / 2023
KTLA News 2023
KXFM Radio 2023
Disney+ (Disney Plus) series “Shop Class”, judge, complete season (8 episodes) / 2020
The Daily Talk Show, episode #519 / 2019
TV Host (TV Series) of “Trashformers” on FYI / 2015
• Episode 01 “Fight or Flight”
• Episode 02 “The Bus Stops Here!”
• Episode 03 “Ferris Wheel of Fortune”
FOX Inside Edition / Expert Architect / 2014
NBC The Today Show with Kathie Lee & Hoda / Featured Guest, 5 minute segment / 2013
Hallmark / BetterTV / Featured Guest, 4 minute segment / 2013
CBS The Talk / Featured Guest, 2 minute segment / 2013
HGTV Star / Season 8 / 2013
• Episode 01 “A Brand New Season”
• Episode 02 “Lofty Ideas”
• Episode 03 “One Client, Four Apartments”
• Episode 04 “Real People, Real Kitchens”
• Episode 05 “Sorority vs. Fraternity”
• Episode 06 “School Bus Makeover”
• Episode 07 “Palm Springs Finale” / Finalist and Runner-up
NBC King5 New Day / Featured Guest, 10 minute segment / 2013
NBC King5 New Day / Special Guest for Fitness Segment, 4 minutes / 2013
DIY Network / Featured Designer, “Esquire’s Ultimate Bachelor Pad”, 1 hour / 2011
Sixpoint Brewery / Commercial “Berserker Bock” / 2011
Showtime Network / Featured Designer, “Showtime’s SHO House”, 1 hour 2010

*while employed as a Design Director at OfficeUntitled