HEDGE design collective was established in the spring of 1995 as an alternative model of practice for recent graduates entering the design professions. Comprised of independent designers from Canada, Japan and the US, HEDGE seeks to extend the critical and creative working environment that the founding members experienced during their graduate studies at SCI-Arc. Building on a diverse range of backgrounds and interests, the studio encourages a critique of professional specialization by engaging in a wide variety of pursuits, including architectural and interior design, landscape and urban projects, as well as graphic, website, clothing and floral design.

Housed in industrial space in mid-city Los Angeles, HEDGE includes 10 members running multiple design entities. Dave Maynard Architecture, Deegan-Day Design LLC, Dry Design, Space International, makotheflowergirl.com, smallideas.com and dayware.com realize projects ranging in scale from floral design to the construction of 13,000 sf commercial projects. In 5 years of practice, a number of overlapping design priorities have emerged repeatedly in dialogue between members and in the execution of work. Direct engagement in construction and manufacturing, new material research and experimentation, and the re-adaptation of ready-made technologies all factor into many HEDGE projects, as do our interests in branding, identity, signage and street dynamics. The phenomena we examine and respond to are more often empirically discovered than theoretically generated. Through our practices, we track, and then try to orchestrate, processes as diverse as traffic flows, seasonal planting, shopping routes, work ergonomics, garment drape, fire paths, construction phasing, wedding planning, animal rescue, seismic loads, advertising campaigns, drainage systems. Though diverse, our inquiries are almost all into areas of specific human and environmental interaction, and the tensions and possibilities that these exchanges generate.

Collective projects and exhibitions including "HEDGE 2000 - Return of Utopia" and "HEDGE: deep plastic emotion > fantastic architecture 100ft.", as well as competition entries, sustain the momentum of the studio, as well as our sense of humor. In addition, HEDGE actively participates in architectural discourse by exhibiting, publishing, teaching and lecturing among the schools and cultural institutions of Los Angeles.

HEDGE Design Collective:
Anabelle ADLER
Mickey BOITEL
Joe DEEGAN DAY
Michael FERGUSON
John HIRSCH
John JENNINGS
Dave MAYNARD
Mako OTAKI
Sasha TARNOPOLSKY

HEDGE Alumni:
Philippe BOMPAS
Jackson BUTLER
Andrew DAVIES
Heather DONAGHY
Jackie GREENBERG
Kirsten GOTTSCHALK
Emily JAGODA
Elizabeth LENELL
Ante LIU
Greg ROTH
Chris WEGSCHIED
Arden YANG
Stephanie ZIEGLER