Archinect - News

Olson Kundig is expanding to New York City after six decades in Seattle

2022-04-29T14:04:00-04:00

The Big Apple is picking up a West Coast vibe after Olson Kundig’s announcement that it will be expanding its operation into New York City for the first time.

The award-winning firm has been in business since 1966, operating out of a renovated space in Seattle’s old Shoe Factory Building since the project’s completion in 2003.

Olson Kundig's new East Coast outpost will be located on the tenth floor of a historic Jazz Age building located in Midtown’s Bryant Park neighborhood. The office features a central collective space called The Living Room, which is anchored by a particularly PNW import personally designed by Tom Kundig with built-in turntables from Seattle icon Sub Pop Records.

Olson Kundig's Seattle headquarters. Image courtesy Olson Kundig.

“While Olson Kundig previously occupied a small workspace in New York, this new office represents a more significant investment in office space and participation with the design culture of the city,” CEO and principal Hemanshu Parwani expl...

Olson Kundig-designed Los Angeles residence captures panoramic views of L.A.

2020-02-17T12:00:00-05:00

This Olson Kundig-designed Hollywood Hills West retreat, called "Collywood," sits just over the Sunset Strip and overlooks Los Angeles, offering panoramic views stretching from the San Gabriel Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. A seamless connection between the interior and exterior of the home was an essential part of the design criteria provided by the client.

The main level of the residence contains the kitchen, dining and living areas, and a series of retractable window walls that give occupants unobstructed access to the outdoor terrace spaces that encircle the home. "Because the home is located in California, there’s a strong indoor/outdoor connection. Terraces become outdoor living areas and indoor rooms open up completely, almost erasing the line between inside and outside," said Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA in a statement.

The main terrace adjacent the dining and living areas lead to a swimming pool that overlooks the L.A. city skyline. As one moves to the upper levels, the master...

Olson Kundig's Vermont Cabin captures the essence of its surrounding landscape

2020-01-23T11:46:00-05:00

Situated within a rural Vermont landscape, amongst white pines and maple trees, this Olson Kundig-designed cabin seeks to bring a family into closer connection with one another and the surrounding forests. "This is an intentionally straightforward and economical cabin where the family can come together and take part in the adventure of engaging with the natural landscape just outside," said Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA about the project.

With a modest 750-square-foot footprint, the three level cabin combines economy and materiality with a fluid functionality. Steel, wood, and concrete articulate the structure's character and connectedness to the surrounding wilderness. The lowest level engages the site and holds the garage that also functions as a game room in addition to a bedroom and powder room; the middle level contains the main entry along with two small bedrooms and a bathroom; and the top level consists of one large living area.

"We embraced the client’s challenge of maintaining de...

Olson Kundig unveils new images of Seattle's Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture

2020-01-09T11:47:00-05:00

Seattle-based Olson Kundig has unveiled new images of the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture in Seattle. Opened late last fall, the project challenges the traditional approach to museum design. Instead of concealing back-of-house operations, the design team, led by Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA, exhibited these spaces before the public. Arrayed sections of floor-to-ceiling glazing allow visitors to witness the inner-workings of the museum as the design connects collections and research labs with traditionally designed gallery spaces.

"We wanted to create a simple, beautiful, rational and flexible building that will serve the Burke for hundreds of years. It is an inviting place not only for the public, but also for the scientists, researchers and curators of today and tomorrow," said Kundig about the project.

Tom Kundig interviewed by The Wall Street Journal: "he always starts with the idea of intimacy"

2015-10-29T15:17:00-04:00

[Kundig] builds houses that look like rustic jewels atop glacial rock in the Cascade Range of Washington state, or along the San Juan Islands waterfront or in the California high desert. Typically made of some combination of weathered wood, concrete and rusted steel, the structures also include generous stretches of glass [...] The son of Swiss émigrés, Mr. Kundig was strongly influenced by the rugged topography of the Pacific Northwest, where he was raised.

Law breakers, prize winners, bird flippers: Weekly News Round-Up for October 20, 2014

2014-10-27T17:53:00-04:00

Friday, October 24:

Architecture in Flux: Reporting from ACADIA Conference, Day 1: The Association for Computer-Aided Design in Architecture has changed a lot since its inception in the early 1980s; the conference takes a look at the present moment of "digital design" practice, while that term still exists.

Thursday, October 23:

Frank Gehry gives the crowd a piece of his mind (and his middle finger): At a press conference in Oviedo, Spain, in response to a reporter's insinuation that his architecture was "showy". Frank Gehry is 85 years old.
Keep Portland Architecture Weird!: Episode 3 of Archinect Sessions out now: Feat. special guest Brian Libby, we discuss the trials and tribulations of Michael Graves' Portland Building, and The Guardian's speculations on Obama's presidential library.
Denver's Union Station is lacking diversity and local critic places the blame on the architecture: The Denver Post's fine arts critic sees a lack of diversity at Union Station's multi-use redesign, and...

Tom Kundig loses lawsuit against his Washington valley cabin

2014-10-21T13:48:00-04:00

The steel structure looms large from Midge Cross and Scott Johnston's back porch. And from the beginning they say Architect Tom Kundig and his partners ignored land covenants meant to prevent any ridgeline buildings that would be visible from below. "To me it was the extended third finger," said Cross. "Like, 'Up yours, Mazama, we can put this here and the heck with you guys.'"

In the fall of 2012, Tom Kundig of Olson Kundig Architects built a private cabin on the picturesque ridge of the Methow Valley in Washington. Prior residents of the valley's Mazama community were miffed by the ruined view, and claimed that the cabin violated "protective covenants for visual consideration", established in 1987. They were joined by current property owners and sued Kundig last year. Kundig has now been ordered by the court to move the hut away from the ridgeline.

Kundig is no stranger to Washington, or off-grid cabin architecture – a native of Spokane, Kundig was educated and practices as an architect in Washington with Olson Kundig Architects, and his "Rolling Huts" offer modest camping lodges near Mazama. While Kundig hasn't offered any official comments on the case, his office did state that "Tom Kundig designed this cabin with the valley's natural elements and history as a priority. His aim has been to create a building that embodies the Pacific Northwest spirit of ...

Editor's Picks #325

2013-07-23T12:34:00-04:00

For the latest edition of the Working out of the Box series, Archinect spoke with Spain-based Brazilian Creative Director/Creative Consultant Gustavo Almeida-Santos of studiogaas.

Therein, we learn Mr. Almeida-Santos is currently attending ETSAM in Madrid, where he is enrolled in a Master in Advanced Architecture Projects. For his studies he is "interested in research on the architecture of fashion catwalks".

News
Over at the NYT Patricia Cohen reported the news Hirshhorn Museum Drops Plan for an Inflatable Garden Roof. Achinector Andrew Davis noted "In the words of Woody Allen, ‘What we have on our hands is a dead shark.’ As has been previously reported, the DS+R project for the Hirshhorn Museum in D.C. will not be moving forward. The reason for this failure is purportedly due to fundraising deficiencies and not aesthetics as the Smithsonian's dense bureaucracy continually reiterates. However, as thisTimes articles suggests, the impermanent nature of this design is not only ...

Lawsuit Filed Against Architect Tom Kundig

2013-07-15T17:08:00-04:00

We never would have expected Tom Kundig to be embroiled in legal battle with a community of conservationists, but the characteristically eco-minded architect was slapped with a lawsuit a few weeks ago by residents of Methow Valley, WA. As it turns out, one of Kundig’s newest construction, dubbed the Flagg Mountain Hut, protrudes into the viewshed of a pristine ridge in the valley... the community is not happy with the project and they’ve launched a campaign asking the owners to move the hut.

Tom Kundig on the Frey House II

2012-03-16T18:09:00-04:00

Mr. Kundig first visited Frey House II about 25 years ago. "The design is a bit strange, but it completely resonated with me," he said. "I'm influenced by architecture that toes the line between rugged and beautiful, that demonstrates how they can be the same thing." He notes that Mr. Frey's simple design nodded to the local vernacular of humble miners' shacks.