Dot Dash

Christopher Cheap
Christopher@dotdash.me

Brian Cheap
Brian@dotdash.me

Isa Sanchez Sevillano
Isa@dotdash.me

Fon Muangkeo
Fon@dotdash.me

Julie Cheap
Julie@dotdash.me

Profile

Dot Dash is a New York City based design firm concentrating on architectural lighting design. Light is the emissary between architecture and the eye and, at Dot Dash, is our medium to reveal form, material and texture - to exhibit the built environment and augment the human experience. Our approach begins with a comprehensive study of the architectural design, materials, liberties, constraints, and programmatic requirements. This analysis serves as the foundation for our design approach and proposals. Our diverse experience across all project types and architectural styles, allows us to bring innovative designs with the highest level of expertise to each project. We are passionate about the design process and believe that an intimate collaboration yields the best results.

In addition to our lighting experience, Dot Dash brings extensive knowledge of daylighting, control systems, LEED Certification, systems integration, and on-site construction administration. We understand that award winning projects begin in the studio but are realized with careful attention through project completion.

Principal

Dot Dash was founded by Christopher Cheap in 2014. His extensive experience across all project types, scales, budgets, and styles has included the Brooklyn Bridge Pier 6 Pavilion with BIG Architects, the Botswana Innovation Hub with SHoP Architects, the Lotte Tower with KPF, a renovation of artist Cai Quo-Qiang’s Studio with OMA, the transformation of Wardman Tower into Luxury Residences with Deborah Berke Partners, the new Columbia University Graduate and Medical Education Building with Diller Scofidio + Renfro, and the Corporate Offices for a private equity firm in New York City with Gensler. Christopher oversees all aspects of every project from concept through completion to ensure the highest standards of design and documentation.

Prior to forming Dot Dash, Christopher was a Principal with Tillotson Design Associates. His projects have won several awards including an IALD award of Excellence, an IES Lumen Citation, a GE award of Excellence, and an A|L Outstanding Achievement Award. Christopher is a professional member of the IALD. He lives in Brooklyn, NY with his wife and two daughters.

Contact

Profile

Principal

Má Pêche | Momofuku

New York, NY

Architect
Design Bureaux

Collectors Loft

New York, NY

Completion Date
Summer 2013

Red Bull Music Academy

New York, NY

Architect
Inaba Architects

Completion Date
April 2013

Photography
Greg Irikura

Project completed with Tillotson Design Associates

DBGB

New York, NY

Architect
Design Bureaux

LBI Headquarters

New York, NY

Architect
Rollmann Architecture

Completion Date
November 2013

Photography
Doug Romines

Play

Ona / Barclays Plaza

Brooklyn, NY

Architect
SHoP

Artist
Ursula von Rydingsvard

Project completed with Tillotson Design Associates

33rd Street Garden

New York, NY

Design Team
Giuliani Social

Completion Date
September 2015

The Illuminate Lower Manhattan Competition, completed in 2012, sought proposals to create a light/art installation that will draw New York City residents and visitors alike to Lower Manhattan. The concept explored the human need to create and be heard in a large, densely populated urban environment. The team envisioned an installation that blurred the notions of public vs. private by providing a platform for users to share their individual ideas in a forum that is dramatically public, with only the anonymity of the author preserving a sense of privacy. The installation is both thought provoking and beautiful-able to engage visitors in person through interactive sculpture and projection while accessible to a worldwide audience through the web-based, digital interface.

Illuminate Lower Manhattan

New York, NY

The installation radiates from the Processor, a luminous sphere of light created by the tangle of sculptural Light Cables hovering over Federal Hall. The Processor accepts input from the Interfaces, assesses it, amplifies it and then forwards it along the branch cables to the Monitors. The brightness, hue, and pulse of the Processor respond to the mood of the information from the Interfaces in real time. To activate the broader site, the Sculptural Light Cables between the Interfaces, Processor, and Monitors will whimsically mingle with the urban landscape and provide secondary experiences of exploration between each hub. As the cables traverse the streets, they draw attention to the infrastructure of the existing urban landscape.