Coalesse, Massaud Hoody
Strategy, Prototyping & Product Development
The Canopy or, “hoody” was a provocative concept put forward by Jean Marie Massaud and Bob Arko to challenge the notion that work has to happen at a desk. I was tasked to explore and prototype the work/lounge application possibilities of the hoody; to easily host technology, enable enhanced remote communication, all from within a comfortable micro-architecture environment.
Circa 2012 and long before selfie-sticks, these were the most common phone and tablets on the market, which represent the dimensional constraints I had to prototype under.
Device Holding
The hoody was an experiment in micro-architecture, exploring perceptions of user-controlled privacy and remote communication. Initial prototypes were very rough and intended to quickly get to an experiential model. I wanted to feel what it was like to make a video call inside the canopy (it turned out to be pretty awesome).
Lighting & Sound Mockups
Lighting became a crucial aspect of the micro-environment as nobody wants to look bad on screen. I experimented with various types of lighting, temperatures, and most critically, location/direction. Top down lighting created hard shadows, contrast, and sunken eyes. LEDs positioned on the side sat off camera and created soft indirect light. An off-the-shelf bluetooth speaker created a cinematic audio experience inside the canopy.
Final Prototype
Wire EDM’d and CNC machined from billet aluminum, the final prototype had precision friction hinges and tension springs installed.
The Massaud Work Lounge with Canopy was presented as a speculative concept at Neocon 2013.