John began his career in interior design in the 1970s, and has been partners with Cary Frank since 1980,
when they founded Cannon Frank. Previously, John had worked for two designers before he decided to begin his
own company. He attended the Ray Vogue School of Design (now the Illinois Institute of Art) and has been
designing homes, offices, restaurants, furniture, terraces, carpets, gardens and pools (both locally and
nationally) ever since. By designing residences up to 25,000 square feet and office buildings up to 150,000
square feet, John is able to realize his design philosophy of "first giving the clients what they want, and
then taking them ten paces beyond their goal."
John has regularly volunteered with DIFFA Chicago (Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS) since its
1984 inception, serving on the board for six years, chairing the designer garage sale for two and once charing
the DIFFA Ball. Other non-profit involvement includes Lambda Legal, Lakefront Supportive Housing, Heartland
Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights, and Dunebrook, a center for abused children in Laporte County,
Indiana which John designed.
Cary leads the business side of Cannon Frank, primarily supervising the other staff members, manufacturers
and vendors, and attending to the requests of clients. Before joining John to create Cannon Frank, Cary was a
partner in another interior design firm, which he also managed. Giving back to the community, for more than a
decade, Cary has chaired the house and garden tour for Lakefront Supportive Housing and the Heartland Alliance
for Human Needs and Human Rights, two foundations which strive to alleviate poverty and homelessness. Both John
and Cary are actively involved with Lambda Legal for which they hosted an event for 450 people at their home.
Cary's design philosophy is "you can never redecorate too often." |
