Our Team
We want to light little fires
in the pleasure centers of your brain.
[ Principal / “Big Honcho” ]
Stephan Jones
For Stephan, great design is grounded in great storytelling.
A proud Iowa native, his Midwestern sensibility, affable & positive attitude, and practical approach to projects have been celebrated by clients and colleagues alike. (He’s just plain nice!)
Stephan earned a degree in History at The American University, in Washington, D.C, before returning to the Midwest to study graphic design, painting, figure drawing, interior design, and interior architecture at Drake, then the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
While in Chicago, he learned from the greats at prominent design firms such as the Environments Group, Jack Lenor Larsen, and Bruce Gregga Interiors. Then, he branched out on his own.
In 2007, he opened Stephan Jones Interiors in Chicago. Five years later, his firm found a new home in Los Angeles.
Over his 30 year design career, Stephan has built up a diverse portfolio of projects including luxury apartments, stylish townhouses, and expansive country residences in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Napa, Pebble Beach, Santa Barbara, San Francisco, and Portland.
His sophisticated style and progressive design haven’t gone unnoticed either, as his work has been published in Elle Decor, California Homes, Spaces, Art + Design, San Francisco Cottages and Gardens, the Wall Street Journal and DOM. His own home was recently highlighted in Milieu (!).
Outside of his design talents, his commitment to nurturing trust and communication with clients and his ability to manage projects and budgets have resulted in perfectly executed environments that reflect the unique desires and needs of his clients. (One of his clients actually refers to him as their “Design Yoda.”)
He’d also like you to know that if you have any questions about working with STOCK, to shoot him a note at [email protected]!
[ Project Manager / “Chief Razzle Dazzle” ]
Kerby Solognier
“I have distant, hazy memories of visiting my grandmother’s garden in Venezuela when I was a child – there was a mango tree, beautifully patterned tiles on the veranda, and a wrought iron railing that I used to run my fingers over – these memories still inspire me. I suspect my love of design can be traced back to my grandmother’s garden.”
Early inspirations in his grandmother’s garden have propelled Kerby Solognier since childhood, but he first cut his designer’s teeth in the annual Carnaval celebration in his home country of Aruba. At the early age of 13, he began getting involved in the months of preparation leading to the festivities – working through his school and with friends to fashion the finery for the month-long celebration. It’s that involvement that set him on the course that led him to Stock Studio today.
Originally hailing from Venezuela, Kerby moved to the island nation of Aruba at 4 years old. This diversity of cultural inputs is reflected in Kerby’s fluency in 4 different languages; Spanish, Papiamento (the official language of Aruba), Dutch (Aruba is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands), and English. (Soon that number will be 7, since Portuguese, French, and Italian are on the wish list).
In the years since, Kerby moved to the U.S. to pursue a degree in Interior Architecture at the Design Institute of San Diego. From there, he moved on to Mesa College to study theater production, where he focused on costume design, lighting design, and set design. His first professional experiences post-college were in the entertainment industry, where he was a scenic artist at the La Jolla Playhouse and practiced art direction in film and TV in Los Angeles.
Kerby moved from entertainment to interiors when he followed an opportunity to work for an established residential and commercial design firm in Los Angeles. While there, he demonstrated his design and project management skills spearheading hospitality projects for the Ritz-Carlton Waikiki, Four Seasons Resort Los Cabos, and the Kimpton Seafire Resort in the Cayman Islands. His residential interiors work in Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, and Aspen fully round out his design vitae.
All the details of a project receive focused attention when Kerby is involved, to the advantage of his clients and co-workers. His ease at choosing the right combination of fabrics or finishes is mirrored in his fascination with the French craft of straw marquetry, or his ability to exquisitely wrap a package. He’s also your go-to guy for planning a party or event - he did plan and execute awards season professional parties when he was in the entertainment industry.
Kerby can’t wait to work with you and dazzle you and your guests with a “Kerby piece,” or if you’re really lucky, a “Kerby event” co-hosted with his husband Samuel!
[ Studio Manager / “Mini Boss” ]
Ivanka Stipicevic
“Potential clients want to know that if they choose to work with us, that they’ll be well taken care of.
If it were a one person design firm, where the designer is doing everything, they might think ‘will they be able to service all my needs?’
Knowing that I’m here as the ‘mini-boss,’ making things happen, gives them peace of mind to trust us with their project.”
Ivanka is many things at STOCK. She’s the air traffic controller, muscle fiber, client liaison, and first face you see when you walk in. In other words, she’s the anchor. (Although her unofficial title is ‘mini-boss’).
Born in California and raised in Chile, she was immersed at the confluence of architecture, design, and construction at a young age. The daughter of a general contractor, Ivanka was actively involved in many of his projects–not in some observational role, but actually working in the office and running the jobs themselves.
After earning her degree in Interior Design at FIDM Los Angeles, she continued to build on her interiors & construction experience as an Assistant Designer, then Project Manager at Geometrix Interiors, Environments Design Group, and Ventura Builders, Inc. After hearing about STOCK from a colleague in the design space, she was introduced to Stephan. The next day, he offered her the job. (Sometimes, you just know!)
In her last five years with STOCK, she’s helped build the operational side of the business–from running the storefront, to managing the team, to being the point person for client projects. Stephan says “I need you to find X, Y, and Z,” and she makes it happen.
Ivanka loves the high-growth nature of the business, the common thread of sophistication shared by the clients, and Stephan’s timeless & versatile design.
Ivanka says hello & is excited to dig into your next project.
[ Special Projects / “Archivist” ]
Arthur Redman
“It’s unlike anything I’ve ever done, and that’s what’s exciting for me.”
Funny enough, Art is concurrently the newest and longest tenured member of the STOCK team. Having met Stephan 31 years ago as across-the-hall neighbors in Chicago, they coincidentally and serendipitously found themselves in a lifelong partnership.
Originally hailing from the great state of Wisconsin, Art earned his B.A. from the University of Wisconsin, before pursuing and earning an M.A. and Ph.D. in Sociology from University of Massachusetts-Amherst. He went on to teach Sociology as a Professor at Chicago State University for 32 years before recently retiring (Congrats, Art!).
Instead of simply hanging up the spurs, Art will continue to teach, as well as be a helping hand at STOCK in a variety of aspects of the business–namely tackling special projects for the team, managing STOCK’s archive of curated pieces, and demonstrating his cooking talents for artist showcases at the storefront and luncheons at his & Stephan’s home.
Art is happy you’re here & is looking forward to meeting you over a nice meal!
[ Extended family ]
[ Ambition Architect / “Guru” ]
Ginna Christiansen
“My mission statement is ‘to help creatives step into their fullest potential.’”
Ginna's critical role at STOCK eludes a title, as her day-to-day evolves and shifts around the ever-changing needs of this growing team.
She’s simultaneously STOCK’s ambition architect, sounding board, coach, consultant, and the person in the room to say “I have a crazy idea.”
Ginna met Stephan at Mercanteinfiera in Parma, Italy and the bond was almost instantaneous. In the years since, she’s been an ally to Stephan in growing his business–from the day one nuts and bolts of social media strategy, to establishing the storefront, to bringing STOCK to market.
Her current focus is on being a conduit and amplifier for the team, improving the team’s cohesion, direction, and flow.
As a client, you may not work directly with her, but, rest assured, her presence will be felt at almost every juncture of your STOCK experience.
Should you want to work directly with Ginna, as well as hear more about her story, stop by ginnachristiansen.com and say hello.
[ Art + Community / “Culturist” ]
Kali Nikitas
“We curate artwork that’s approachable and inspiring, not intimidating. We introduce our clients to the artists and their practice, which makes the acquisition of a piece more than a purchase–it’s a cultural experience.”
When it comes to advancing and enriching communities through art, you’d be hard pressed to find anyone more dedicated to the cause than Kali. She has walked the walk.
For the last 30+ years, she has been on the bleeding edge of helping artists and designers define their vision, serving in roles from Professor to Chairperson of venerable programs such as the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and Otis College of Art and Design. She has served on a number of boards for art organizations and is currently the Co-Chair of the Alumni Council at CalArts. She has curated content for international conferences, as well as hosted and curated international exhibitions and events. Her career has morphed from a traditional graphic design practice to being a Curator of Moments, forging relationships through art and connecting talent to opportunity.
At STOCK, she is a celebrated liaison and ambassador between us and the ever-evolving community beyond our doors.
Kali met Stephan at SAIC while he was a student and she was a faculty member. In a way, they grew up together. After Stephan moved his studio out to Los Angeles, Kali began curating studio visits, gallery outings, and museum trips for Stephan and his clients. They quickly realized that creating bold and exciting programming was a must for the business.
What started out as “Saturday coffees around Grandma’s kitchen” at the showroom has become a true blossoming community. Now, Kali & Stephan scour the city, selecting compelling talent for exhibitions, pop-ups, artist talks, & more. Artists who have exhibited return for other’s showings. People who attended one or two events are coming back for their fifth…
Kali aims to feed the symbiotic relationship between Stephan’s dynamic talent for curation, and the artwork’s driving of his curation. Each new exhibition causes the showroom to feel different. The aim is to make our visitors feel special, to feel seen, and to ultimately make their space feel better.
Kali is happy you’re here and hopes to see you in the showroom soon.
