Profile: jonny.gotham
Related Focuses: Design, Anthropology, New York, Life
Related Sites: Portfolio, Interview, Twitter
Hello.
My name is Jonathan Lu, and I am a designer currently living in Southern California. I usually work under the moniker of jonny gotham, an identity I created as a nod to my roots and the home that I was never officially a resident of, New York City. Someday, I’ll move back there…
I graduated from Cornell University, majoring in Operations Research and Industrial Engineering, which is fancy-speak for business consulting and systems optimization, or just plain old making things work better. Halfway through my senior year though, I decided I couldn’t take any more formulas or live my life working on Wall Street, and thus started a focused study on design under Professor Jack Elliott. I owe that guy a lot, taking a chance on an engineer that wanted to do design, and I consider him a good friend/mentor/colleague to this day.
My design work is primarily related to the internet, creating websites and user experiences for various things. I use the broader term “Designer” as a title though, because it encompasses a lot more of my passion and abilities, having worked within the specialties of graphic design and print design. I hope to soon branch out even more, eventually doing things in fashion, industrial, and motion design.
I currently work independently as a specialist of sorts, typically working with corporate clients in efforts to fill gaps in their existing team’s skill set or to help streamline their operations to get a particular project completed. With my mishmash of experience, I can often be found writing code, designing with grids, coordinating teams, and liaising with vendors and managers throughout the day. Recently, my work with ditech.com led to its recognition as the second best mortgage lender website in the nation with special focus on usability (this was before the domino fall and the competition being wiped out!).
In my free time I like to watch dramatic movies and television shows, with House, M.D. being my favorite. I like to write, which led me to create this site so many years ago, but fell short of becoming a full time English Major my sophomore year because I feared bastardizing when the hobby became a job. I am currently trying to teach myself piano, read faster, and build an empire.
I hope you like the site and its contributors, the writings, and the content.
Previously Written
- All a Twitter
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It seemed that all of the sudden, droves of people have begun to use Twitter. While I know that Twitter has been around for quite a while now, I only knew tech–heads to be using it — writing short statuses, keeping in contact during conferences, etc. Now it seems to be the next cultural phenomenon, mentioned on the Today Show, popular websites, and I hear even Oprah is getting in the game. Seriously… Oprah? Twitter is now the third largest social network after Facebook and MySpace, and gaining more and more users every day.
Date: April 18, 2009, Written By: jonny.gotham
- The Return of the Lost Generation
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What is it to be a Lost Generation? Part victory, part defeat, and an expectation to achieve without outlet for inner passion. After the first World War, a group of notable expatriate writers and poets collected themselves in Europe, disenchanted by what the States had become in its post-war manifestation. In a way, they fled. They fled to foreign soil with notions of cosmopolitan culture to experience that “joie de vivre,” escaping a life void of art and meaning, and searching for something greater.
Date: April 11, 2009, Written By: jonny.gotham
- Things I Learned From Television
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As filled with clichés as they are, there is a lot to draw insight from if you’re looking hard enough. Television shows deal with reality in their own small ways, doing as best they can to highlight aspects we take for granted, and bringing excitement and wonder to the most menial of day to day tasks. We can be certain that most are not so naïve to believe that television is a mirror, but perhaps we’re willing to stretch enough to see it as a magnifying glass… The details are majestic, the imperfections glaring, and the view is so close that it’s hard to recognize the larger picture, the greater scheme… the reality of it all.
Date: December 05, 2007, Written By: jonny.gotham
- Sure, Why Not? The Art of Dave Kinsey
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I was lost. Wandering streets filled with villainous shadow, small glints of light catch my eye. Upon further inspection some light reveals miscellaneous debris, while others shine off of the eyes of hidden transients. The evening wind howled in the empty, and yet not–so–empty streets as I searched for the BLK/MRKT Gallery in Culver City. I’m finally greeted by lights and the low murmur of art patrons, a defiant guard sits at the door — part spook, part usher.
Date: October 24, 2007, Written By: jonny.gotham