A Career and A Calling

As a proving ground for disruptive ideas in design, systems, and human impact, ADMCi has served as the incubator and accelerator for The Bienville Legacy (the most power, advanced, limited production luxury motorcycle in history), The School for Digital Craftsmanship (to teach design principles to non-designers), UX4Good (to apply design principles to seemingly intractable societal challenges), The Studio for Digital Craftsmanship (to launch new or transform legacy businesses)… and many more.

Bienville Legacy Motorcycle Commission

The Bienville Legacy Motorcycle was commissioned by The ADMCi as the world’s most powerful, limited production, luxury motorcycle after meeting with world-renowned designer JT Nesbitt during a UX4Good conference we sponsored in New Orleans.

I asked JT what he would design if he could design anything at all. He pulled out his notebook, lit a cigarette, and the rest, as they say, is history.

During production, his design earned 14 first-application patents with the USPTO, especially focused on innovations in steering and suspension. The bikes have thrilled and inspired audiences from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to the UK’s Goodwood Festival of Speed to heads of state in the Middle East and beyond. Today, the few bikes remaining in circulation are highly-sought-after UHNW collector’s pieces.

Bloomberg Business

Documentary

Inspiration

Selected Recognition

  • Academic/Museum: The Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD), The New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA), The Chicago MCA, ThrottleStop Museum, The Barber Motorsports Museum (Birmingham, AL)

  • Personal invitations

    • UK General Public: Personally invited by Lord March to Blenheim Palace for the Goodwood Festival of Speed world premier (and recognized as a Goodwood Great, permanently enshrining the bike in the canon of motorcycle design)

    • UK UHNW: Debut at Salon Privé, Installation @ Pagani Automobili (including a Pagani production consult in Italy), Collaboration w/ McClaren factory customs & Formula 1 Racing Team (including consult at UK headquarters)

    • Middle East Private: The Crown Prince of Bahrain, HRH Salman Khalifa for the Bahrain Formula 1 Grand Prix as a Head of State guest.

    • Middle East UHNW: Debut in Abu Dhabi BBT Conference.

    • US General Public: MotoGP at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

    • Local Launch for UHNW: Sean Cummings, owner of the International House Hotel (former World Trade Center) in New Orleans.

Long-Form Coverage

Coordinated extensive media exposure including a two-part series on Marketplace with Kai Rysdal on American Public Media and for Bloomberg Business at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Additional Accomplishments

  • Commissioned and designed an immersive museum exhibit to translate the experience of the Bienville Legacy Motorcycle as an ethos and language of craftsmanship.

  • Wrote, directed, and produced a short-form documentary on the designer, JT Nesbitt, and the reasoning behind the initiative.

UX4Good

Solving Intractable Social Challenges With Design Thinking

Led by the very best practitioners of user-centered design, this organization explored motivations, behaviors, and systems to help untangle social challenges, develop much more effective tools and make the world a better place.

New Orleans Highlights

The New Orleans conference partnered with the Grammy Foundation, MusiCares, and the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) to solve for making musicianship more sustainable in a tourist economy that flourished on it.

Results included a custom mobile application designed to return revenue to musicians through shared tipping. The full report and documentary received personal recognition from President Clinton for the realization of a commitment to the foundation.

International Conferences Held

  • Chicago

  • New Orleans

  • Vancouver

  • Rwanda

Working conferences driven by invitation-only participants created the energy and demand to attract the world’s greatest design thinkers.

Conference Documentary

Conference Findings Presented to the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI)

 

The School for Digital Craftsmanship

Design Thinking for ‘Non-Designers’

The School for Digital Craftsmanship (School4DC) was founded on the premise that teaching Design Thinking to ‘non-designers’ was critical to improving the work environment. If more people could participate actively in the design process, the process itself could take hold as a cultural shift within an organization.

Seasonal 10-week sessions sold out regularly in Chicago at the renowned 1871 incubator/workspace and in Saint Louis. Bespoke private offerings were also customized for commercial clients across the country (in industries from agriculture to retail to construction). A partnership with DePaul University was eventually contracted and material licensed for use internally. Ultimately, the projects and professionals launched by the independent school were all transferred to DePaul, allowing the Studio for Digital Craftsmanship to begin serving clients on an active consultative basis.

Introducing the School for Digital Craftsmanship

The Studio for Digital Craftsmanship (Studio4DC)

Craftsmanship as Consultancy

The Studio was born of necessity after clients of The School began requesting services to support the projects they were educating their staff to pursue. As a result, The Studio brought together an elite group of former colleagues and focused on digital transformation at enterprise scale. Focus remains on digital solutions that can be imbued with meaning and elevate the human condition.

A selection of clients and work are available for review.

Introducing the Studio for Digital Craftsmanship

 

Select Clients

Arbonne ● Avon ● Hytatt ● Northwest Bank
Exelon ● Forefront (NFP) ● Monsanto ● Narrative Science
Watts of Love (NFP) ● WJSFF ● XCor ● Beyond Advisors

Saint Emeric

Elevating Culinary and Performing Arts

Jim and his wife, Molly, have shared their home as a private, underground social club called Saint Emeric by transforming a church originally built in 1888 to answer a modern questions: How can a space like this continue to actively support its community in new ways?

In addition to becoming an internationally recognized prix fixe dining destination with renowned Chef Eric Brown, Saint Emeric has also been a venue for a rotation of guest chefs (including Julia Childs Challenge finalist, Dustin Hogue) and musical performers including Grammy nominees Mark Hubbard and Daniele Juhre.

As they’ve successfully concepted, launched, staffed and promoted this groundbreaking restaurant experience, Jim and Molly have happily blurred the lines between their professional and personal lives in profoundly rewarding ways.

The Premise

The Passion

The Place

For a full look behind the scenes, see the private website at www.saintemeric.com (password: barbara)

Highlights Include

  • Curated art collection with Johalla Projects (The Soho House, Ace Hotels, The Hoxton, St. Jane).

  • Private collection includes Chicago native Christopher Hefner and internationally renowned artist Nicolas Bruno.

  • Interior design in collaboration with Elizabeth Cronin.