MAY/JUNE 2012
An Artist's Path: DISD Grad Troy Zimmerman's Road To Success
You know you're going to have a good time when you walk into a designer's office and he is sitting back with his hands behind his head, wearing sneakers, jeans and a warm smile. That's what you'll find when you walk into Design Institute of San Diego graduate Troy Zimmerman's office. Troy is a true artist and always has been. As a kid he received scholarships and even an academic letter in art. He grew up in the desert and would "ooh and ahh" at all of the beautiful houses, but he never gave it any real thought until he went to a college fair and met a Design Institute representative. He applied on a whim and enrolled a month later. "It was a leap of faith. I just took one big step forward and went for it. But I knew nothing about interior design." That may explain why he had such a hard time his first year. But he didn't give up. "I was always a free hand artist so I was completely lost on the first couple of drafting projects. Once I got through the first year, the teachers started commending me on my drafting. I still hand draft now."
After graduating, Troy landed a great job working for a high end designer in Palm Springs. "I don't know if it was luck or not but I was designing stuff weeks after I got out of school." The designer took Troy under his wing and showed him the ropes. Though that was years ago, they still work and live only blocks apart. "We're good friends but technically he's my competition now," Troy says. Troy started a firm 6 years ago and keeps it small because he likes to have his hands in everything. "We'll take on a handful of projects a year and just pick and choose between all the nicest things we can find, and it's worked out." Troy believes in designing every element in a house. The majority of furniture in his designs is custom. "There's hardly ever anything off the rack and literally every piece is designed or at least thought out to where it's not just thrown together."
Troy has done hundreds of projects but one of his favorites was an apartment in L.A. He had previously done his clients' 12,000 sq.-ft. home with all custom pieces and they loved it, so when it came to their home in L.A., they told him to just go for it! "I didn't have any rules to go by. Nothing in the house was store bought. It was cool." Though having free reign on a house is not the norm for Troy, doing multiple projects for the same client is. "I have a client whose house I did here, I did his house in L.A., I've done two of his sons' houses, I've done his daughter's house and his best friend's house. And it's just because I did a good job for him the first time around." But, when asked, Troy is quick to admit to his mistakes. "One time I designed a sofa that didn't fit through the client's front door. That sofa was in my house up until about three years ago. I don't make a lot of mistakes though, which I know sounds weird because we all make mistakes, but when you're custom designing most pieces, things seem to fit because you control the scale of them."
Because of all the custom work he's done, Troy has developed a furniture line over the years that he's been waiting to launch. "I think it's time. I've leased a new space. I've already got the manufacturer. All of that stuff is in place." As if having a design firm, a furniture line and a family wasn't enough, Troy has also recently gotten back into sculpture. His large scale sculptures are showing in high end galleries, and if you happen to come into Palm Springs through the mountains you'll find his work front and center at the bottom by the 111 highway.
What keeps Troy going when he has so much on his plate? "I enjoy hand drawing....I believe in it...I like color...I really love hard core contemporary with organic elements...I enjoy my clients...I can't imagine doing anything else with my life."
Visit Troy's website: http://www.troyzid.com/