Greenpoint at Work: Fabian Lorenz, Architect and Designer

Last year, we launched our ‘Greenpoint at Work’ series to highlight people living and working in the neighborhood. So far, we’ve spoken to a florist, an indie game designer, and a pelvic floor therapist, among a few others.

Our first profile this year is Fabian Lorenz, a Greenpoint resident and architect who owns the design firm Studio Fabian Lorenz. He recently completed work on a Greenpoint townhouse, which earned him a profile in Dwell.

We spoke to Lorenz about the project and local inspirations to his design process.

Check out our last ‘Greenpoint at Work’ interview here.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

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Tell us a little bit about you, and how you ended up in this field?

I’m from Europe, so I came to the United States in 2012 for an internship, originally at a small architecture firm. I didn’t really know many people, but I love music, so I ended up going to concerts a lot. 

The first thing essentially that I did when I arrived here, I got a bicycle, and I would ride to all these venues almost every night, like seeing other bands play. And so I realized most of those places I would go to would be in Greenpoint and Williamsburg. And I realized this is the place to be. I ended up moving here, and have lived here since 2012 now. But I had already gone through my architecture education. I came here right after I finished architectural school, essentially. 

I’ve been in the field for a long time now. I started architectural school in 2004. Maybe like a lot of European kids, but maybe also, you know, a lot of architects, I played with LEGO a lot growing up, and I always loved putting things together. I always loved creating my own little worlds out of little bricks and little pieces and piecing things together. I was always a little bit more on the creative side too, which I think is why I didn’t become an engineer, but an architect, because I always liked the castles and the knights and the space stations and stuff in LEGO. 

So, you know, I always had these two strands of things. I always had this sort of visionary or creative and even whimsical side. I always wanted to put things together, make something out of it, and put it into reality. 

What does a typical day on the job look like?

Well, there is no typical day. It can be really versatile. Every day comes with a new challenge, comes with a different task, and comes also with what the project at the stage requires. 

One day could be sketching ideas on paper or even just writing things, writing concepts. And another day could be 3D modeling or rendering something or drafting plans or talking with city authorities about permits. And then I could spend a whole day on site or traveling between different sites for site visits, to monitor construction progress or talking and coordinating with engineers about structure, about heating and cooling systems. And other days could be picking furniture or fabrics, tiles, fixtures, and ordering furniture. It’s really pretty versatile in that sense. And of course, always talking to clients about how they feel and what their ideas are. 

What is your favorite part of the job?

I really like all of it. My favorite part actually is that it’s not monotonous. My favorite part is that there is a design part where you can get really creative. There’s a visionary part to it. And then there’s also a part that gets a lot more technical. So you kind of get to play [with] a lot of different things.

Tell us about your most recent project, a townhouse renovation.

It’s a full gut renovation that I finished two months ago in Greenpoint.

Currently, it’s a two-family home. It’s a three-story residential building, and it was converted to a two-family home where the owners live on the two lower floors, and there’s a tenant unit on the top floor. But it’s created in a way so that in the future the two units can be linked and create essentially a big townhouse…I mean, even if you get a townhouse, space in New York City is really confined, and you can’t put all the stuff that you want in your house. And so you can’t have all these bedrooms and reading rooms and gathering spaces and offices.

I was interested in taking all those things as layers in time, so that the house could really function as one that would accompany the families as they’re growing. For instance, on the ground floor, there’s an entire section with a sliding wall and a Murphy bed that can sort of, it’s an open concept floor, but it can section off this small bedroom essentially. 

And then on the second floor, they wanted to have a common bedroom for the kids right now with a big play area. But in the future, when they’re teenagers, they need to separate it off. So we created this layout so we can very easily just section off this play area into a second bedroom in a few years from now. Also, we can link the tenants there with the owners there right now so that in the future it could become essentially a single family house where the parents, the owner’s parents, could live on the top floor, and it feels like a big family home. 

So there are all these ideas as to how to create a building or a residential home that doesn’t necessarily have to be fixed in place and in time, but that is really more flexible. That has the advantages that it can have several functions at the same time, but it also has advantages that you can really plan ahead. You can build a renovation for a foreseeable time and a change that will happen inevitably within the next, say, 5, 10, 20 years.

I really love the materials you used. I think the wood is a lovely touch.

It’s not the type of all-marble finish, glitzy luxury vibe. It really is a place that’s supposed to feel more homey and cozy, but at the same time simple, down-to-earth, minimalistic. There’s Scandinavian, Japanese influences going on a lot in this.  But what is also interesting is that the owner is a filmmaker. In the beginning when we were talking about the sensibilities and the design directions, we figured that it is the best connection to talk because she’s a creative, and I’m a creative but she has no background in construction or building anything or architecture. The way we ended up communicating our design sensibilities was through movie references of hers. 

What are some of your favorite spots in the neighborhood?

One of my all-time spots is Bakeri (105 Freeman St.). It’s just, I think, the coziest place in all of Greenpoint. And I’ve been going there for a long time. I love the Lot Radio (17 Nassau Ave.) on days where it’s not very busy, and it’s just living a nice summer hangout. There’s Old Poland Bakery (926 Manhattan Ave.) and Biedronka (854 Manhattan Ave.), old Polish places that I like because they have little snacks that remind me of the snacks that I get at home where I’m from in Europe, in the supermarket. So I go, although I’m not Polish, but I go there to pick up little things, you know, just little goodies and breads and so on and such. I love Acme Fish Fridays (30 Gem St.). I love Elder Greene (160 Franklin St.) or Brew Inn (924 Manhattan Ave.) for burgers or guilty pleasures. I go to [Taqueria] Ramirez (94 Franklin St.) for lunch sometimes. It’s such an easy, delicious snack. 

One of my favorite spots is Transmitter Park, for sure. I also like the Nature Walk, because I like exploring things and walking and being outside a lot, too. I love McGolrick Park. There’s unfortunately very few green spaces now, but they’re building new green spaces along the waterfront, so I’m also very excited for that.

Are there any places you go to for design inspiration?

For my own creative process, I like to go to coffee shops and just think. And I think they’re great places to, you know, we get into sort of like a meditative state of mind to come up with things.

I get inspiration from art and therefore Greenpoint’s studios, galleries, and art spaces are places I find very interesting. Apart from that, I believe good design doesn’t follow a specific style but rather captures the character of the use of the space. Places that do that very well are:

• The National Sawdust, a space that tries to break convention, not only in its curation of music, but also in its architecture. It is definitely a space that dares to be future forward in a neighborhood where loft vibes are paramount.
• Ilis, where the sophistication of their culinary process is reflected in how the restaurant and kitchen are structured, built out and on display. It is at the same time approachable and elaborate, and speaks to a kind of Nordic sensibility I was trained on.
• Rhythm Zero, they have very sharp taste and are one of only a handful of coffee shops in NYC that work well in a new-build. 
• And lastly, Goldies is just such a fun bar, and super unique in its own way, especially since they redid the space. And I love that they broke with the 1920s-French vibe that many bars and restaurants tried hard over the years, but really only Maison Premiere pulled off well!

Back then, I loved venues such as Glasslands, Death by Audio, 285 Kent St, and of course St. Vitus and Warsaw. Although most of these venues are closed today, they were integral for me and in many ways shaped my approach to design. Design cannot be just pasted onto a space, but requires deep connection, community, and an understanding of the people who use a space.