Distinctive Details

aesthetics and the company’s commitment to craftsmanship. Will Zhang, Emtek’s director of design and product innovation, is passionate about reimagining the role hardware plays in residential design.

“Hardware has traditionally been an afterthought,” says Zhang, who believes it should be considered early in the design process. “We position hardware at the forefront of projects and believe that it’s an extension of your personal style … the ‘jewelry’ of the home.

“I consider trends while designing, but more important are adaptability and versatility.“

More critical than styles, Zhang suggests, are products crafted with a well-proportioned hand feel and weight, products as artistic as they are functional.

SOPHISTICATED DESIGNERS recognize that details can greatly enhance living spaces, and that hardware—items such as door handles, switch plates, even hinges or door stoppers—can have a disproportionate impact on a room’s aesthetics. In the right hands, those seemingly pedestrian products can be downright glamorous.

Hardware products from Emtek, manufactured-to-order locally, are favored by architects and interior designers because of their refined

“There’s a new shift towards making a big statement with your hardware,” the designer continues, noting current preferences for longer door and cabinet pulls as well as pivot doors.

“In recent years, people have been more willing to take risks with their hardware choices,” says Zhang. He insists that not everything needs to match and that traditional and modern styles can artistically coexist. “People want more unique options, more dimension and personality in their homes.“

Particularly compelling is Emtek’s Spoke series of door handles, contemporary wheel-shaped knobs with a single rung connected to a central rod. Though their minimalist, paredback presence is a natural for modern architectural environments, they also work well in vintage homes.

“I consider the Spoke knob to be sort of a deconstruction of the concept of hardware,” Zhang confides. A passionate cyclist, he sought a new way to apply the ancient wheel concept to contemporary design. Choice of finishes can transform Spoke products, Zhang explains. “A more traditional choice such as unlacquered brass, with a classic- style rosette like our new Watford, can warm up a modern design.”

The Galapagos Project, a limitededition series of handles with elegantly organic lines, represents Emtek’s foray into 3D printing technology. By creating its own algorithms, the company’s designers were able to produce a seemingly infinite number of patterns reflecting nature's random variations.

The experiment suggests that cutting-edge technology is not necessarily an anathema to artisanal craftsmanship.

“Customization is at the core of what we do and our design philosophy adheres to that principle,” says Zhang. Emtek allows clients to tailor hardware selections to other design elements, from lighting to wallpaper.

Local interior designers and architects, such as Silver Lake-based Swike Design, have discovered that Emtek provides an excellent way to express their visions.

“Emtek’s products are designed for the homeowner with a keen eye," Swike founder Sarah Weichel says, "yet built with quality materials you can depend on long term.”

“I actually like to think of the way I design to be very ‘L.A.,’” states Zhang, a native Angeleno who says he draws creative energy from his hometown.

“I’m constantly inspired by the city, and by all its unique details that come together to form a patchwork of amazing, cohesive diversity.”

Emtek 800.356.2741, emtek.com