Michael Simon Toon (born 12 March 1977) is an English photographer, filmmaker, designer and builder.

Short films

Toon has made two short films in the style of

cinéma vérité Cinéma vérité (, , ; "truthful cinema") is a style of documentary filmmaking developed by Edgar Morin and Jean Rouch, inspired by Dziga Vertov's theory about Kino-Pravda. It combines improvisation with use of the camera to unveil truth or high ...

which are globally recognised as serious inquiries into the nature of life: Toon self-produced '' Thought Moments'' (2004) which examines

microexpressions A microexpression is a facial expression that only lasts for a short moment. It is the innate result of a voluntary and an involuntary emotional response occurring simultaneously and conflicting with one another, and occurs when the amygdala respon ...

by slowing down footage of a wide range of individuals answering seemingly innocuous questions. Toon, a former

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

monk, titled ''Thought Moments'' after the Buddhist term for the mental states we experience when a physical or mental object enters the mind. The film is part of the British Film Council's library. It is also reproduced as coursework in

neurolinguistic programming Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) is a pseudoscientific approach to communication, personal development and psychotherapy, that first appeared in Richard Bandler and John Grinder's 1975 book ''The Structure of Magic I''. NLP claims that ther ...

by students of psychology in several languages across the world. Toon co-produced '' Protocell Circus'' (2010). He edited, treated, subtitled and scored footage of protocells synthesised and filmed by Dr. Rachel Armstrong, Senior

TED TED may refer to: Economics and finance * TED spread between U.S. Treasuries and Eurodollar Education * ''Türk Eğitim Derneği'', the Turkish Education Association ** TED Ankara College Foundation Schools, Turkey ** Transvaal Education Depa ...

Fellow and then

University College of London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = � ...

teaching fellow. The film appears in numerous discussions on the origin of life in terms of synthetic biology. It was exhibited in 2010 at ''Digital Art@Google NYC'' at the Chelsea Art Museum of Manhattan and at ''Synth-ethic: Art and Synthetic Biology Exhibition'' in 2011 at the Natural History Museum of Vienna, Austria.

Career

Toon demonstrates a

modernist Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

form follows function Form follows function is a principle of design associated with late 19th and early 20th century architecture and industrial design in general, which states that the shape of a building or object should primarily relate to its intended function ...

methodology of design and build with an 'ultra-modern' aesthetic and emphasis on

environmental design Environmental design is the process of addressing surrounding environmental parameters when devising plans, programs, policies, buildings, or products. It seeks to create spaces that will enhance the natural, social, cultural and physical environm ...

Angels' House

Toon designed Angels' House, a 4,337 square foot energy efficient concept home in

Weeford Weeford is a village and civil parish in the Lichfield district of Staffordshire, England. According to the 2011 Census, the parish had a population of 215, an increase from 202 in the 2001 Census. The name ''Weeford'' is believed to come from ...

village,

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of B ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

, England, which in 2008 sold for £2 million, a record high sales price for a

single family home A stand-alone house (also called a single-detached dwelling, detached residence or detached house) is a free-standing residential building. It is sometimes referred to as a single-family home, as opposed to a multi-family residential dwellin ...

in Staffordshire, more than 12 times the average home price in the county. Toon formed Case Study Construction, referencing the Case Study House Program of

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

, which from 1945 to 1966 commissioned and published plans for ideal homes by major designers of the day including

Charles Eames Charles Ormond Eames Jr. (June 17, 1907 – August 21, 1978) was an American designer, architect and filmmaker. In professional partnership with his spouse Ray Kaiser Eames, he was responsible for groundbreaking contributions in the field of a ...

and

Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. Along with Alvar Aalto, Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Frank Lloyd ...

. Angels' House sold while in construction based on computer generated images of the finished project.

Furniture

Toon has released four interior furnishing and architectural installation designs under the Si-Huis brand of the Los Angeles-based company California Design and Build, LLC. *Sofa (2012) *Bi-Plane Floor Lamp (2012) *Cannon Pendant Lamp Shade (2012) *Crane Light (2013)" Si-Huis Crane Lights, illuminated by other Si-Huis Crane Lights. Carbon fiber composite, polyester and rubber. Designed for the

Philips Hue Philips Hue is a line of color-changing LED lamps and white bulbs which can be controlled wirelessly. The Philips Hue line of bulbs was the first smart bulb of its kind on the market. The lamps are currently created and manufactured by Signify ...

bulb. Design and build by MST." California Design and Build. Facebook Page. Posted 17 Jan 2013 8:04. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=600259969989975&set=a.600222599993712.154333.120894934593150&type=1

References

External links

Michael Simon Toon official websiteFilms by Michael Simon Toon on YouTubePhotography by Michael Simon ToonCase Study ConstructionCalifornia Design and Build
{{DEFAULTSORT:Toon, Michael Simon British film producers British builders 1977 births Living people Synthetic biology artists