Pictured, from left to right, Principals Brooks Walker, Greg Warner, Kathy Scott, and Mike McCabe. Image courtesy of Matthew Millman. 

Operating from a studio in bustling downtown San Francisco, Walker Warner Architects has maintained a unique ability to capture the essence of their clients' sites whether rural or urban, across the Western United States and Hawaii and create calming blends of space, context, materiality, light, and craft.

For our latest Studio Snapshot, Archinect connected with the firm's four Principals Brooks Walker, Greg Warner, Kathy Scott, and Mike McCabe to learn more about how the practice managed to grow into a 65-person team and if managing construction sites in two states divided by an ocean ever proved challenging.

Can you tell us how Walker Warner Architects was founded?

Brooks Walker: We started Walker Warner Architects in 1989 when my second cousin approached me with the prospect of building two speculative houses in Hillsborough, California. I was in the process of working on a design/build house in Tiburon while I was preparing to attend graduate school. The opportunity to work on these two new houses was compelling, and so I reached out to a college friend, Greg Warner, to help out with these projects. I never attended graduate school, and we never looked back. Our initial work was relatively modest, but we built up our reputation over time and were able to take on larger, more complex work. Now we have a studio of 65 talented individuals and diverse clients and projects in the western United States and Hawaii, including many single-family homes along with wineries and resorts.

How is your office structured?

Mike McCabe: As our leadership structure has expanded, our office has grown to 65 people over recent years. This growth has supported our continued focus on small, dedicated teams for each client. Rather than a pooled resource approach, our Project Managers, Job Captains, and Designers will stay with a project from beginning to end. This is the team structure that we ran our projects with 20 years ago, and we still believe it provides the highest level of deeply personal service and high-quality design to our clients.

Would you like to scale up and grow your team? What do you consider the ideal size for your practice?

Mike McCabe: We are not interested in growth for growth’s sake. The office has grown as our opportunities have grown in number, scale, and quality. The ideal size is the one that provides us with the ability to seize special opportunities like Kona Village, the restoration of a historic resort property in Hawaii, but not so big that we lose what makes our work special. In the case of Kona Village, we were able to put a 12-person team on that project, which was very unusual for us, but we still broke it down into multiple smaller projects similar to our traditional structure. We are curious by nature and the scale of the office now gives us the flexibility to consider new challenges on a highly selective basis. Ultimately though, even as we investigate other project types on a one-off basis, we won’t lose our focus on custom residential work as the central focus of our practice.

Describe your office culture. How do you nourish it?

Kathy Scott: We’ve had great luck attracting staff who are smart, talented, share our values, and seem to truly enjoy one another’s company. As a firm, we promote a positive office culture through things like an architect’s league softball team and weekly happy hours (we call them DFD...drinking follows design), but there’s so much informal community that’s built through collaboration on projects as well as organically outside the confines of the office.

We have quite a lot of people who’ve been with the firm for 10, 15, 20 years or more — I’m one of them! —, and I think this speaks to the feeling of community that we’ve built within the firm. We work hard to promote a culture of mentorship within teams — we base our model on the idea of a teaching hospital — where every member of the team is involved in all aspects of the project, pushed to contribute as much as they can based on their experience and capabilities, and spend some time on site during construction. For those working on remote projects, where site visits may be less frequent, we host visits at our local project sites so they can benefit from seeing a building come together over time.

What have been the biggest challenges starting and running your own practice?

Greg Warner: Pretty simple: find work, keep clients happy, and do good architecture. We’ve learned a great deal over the years, and I would say that the ultimate challenge is to continue to source those special clients that ultimately inspire us to do the kind of work that we do.

Our initial work was relatively modest, but we built up our reputation over time and were able to take on larger, more complex work.

Describe your work. How do you define your own unique style and approach?

Kathy Scott: We’ve become quite disciplined in our approach through the years and make sure to truly know the site and project constraints and opportunities before diving into the design. With a wide range of project sites, both on the mainland and in Hawaii, as well as situated in locations that might be rural or urban, on the coast or in the mountains, there’s a lot to inspire us. While each principal has a slightly different approach, our work consistently focuses on the connection of our building(s) to the immediate and distant landscape as well as the importance of materiality, attention to detail, and livability.

Projects such as Quintessa Pavilions in the Napa Valley and Hale Nukumoi in Hawaii demonstrate the range of materiality and form that we might employ, given the cues offered by each site. Both use concrete to anchor the building and expressive roof lines to draw one’s eye through to distant views, but their forms and what they’re made of vary based on the local context and project needs.

I also find our best work is shaped by a clear vision that guides decisions throughout the life of the project. For the Kara Creek project, currently under construction in Colorado, our clients wanted a home that felt comfortable for them as a couple but expandable for extended family without overwhelming the site. We used a series of concrete blade walls and a sunken courtyard to define zones for various activities and users and reduce the scale of the house. As a result, every space in the house, both inside and out, has a unique relationship with the surrounding landscape. It feels calm and dynamic at the same time.

Mike McCabe: We recognize that we have unbelievable opportunities that are brought to us by amazing clients. We are fortunate to work with clients who are highly creative leaders in their own right and expect a highly tailored, highly organized process. Our work starts with what the clients bring to us, their personal goals and the project site. The resulting architecture is not about us nor is it an ego piece meant to make a statement about Walker Warner Architects by dominating a site through predetermined stylistic forms and grand gestures. Our goal is to create stunning, inspiring, highly crafted architecture that lives well for our clients and feels appropriate and timeless for the site where it is located. This approach holds true whether we are working on a personal residence or a hospitality venue for a winery.

Brooks Walker: Our work is not based on a particular style but rather an approach that engages a deep understanding of the place and the client’s programmatic desires. The architectural aesthetics evolve from our response to context and client and craft.

While each principal has a slightly different approach, our work consistently focuses on the connection of our building(s) to the immediate and distant landscape as well as the importance of materiality, attention to detail, and livability.

Greg Warner: I’d have to say, although we’ve been at this for 30 years now, that we are still a work-in-progress in regard to defining what it is we do. Style is a word we desperately try to avoid, especially in regard to describing our work. Context, craft, and comfort are words we often use to describe consistent aspects in our work. Approach is a word that we actually like to use when talking about what it is we do, mostly to do with our process. We take our process very seriously, finding that a disciplined process ultimately benefits design.

You have a number of completed projects in Hawaii. Can you talk about your process of managing these remote projects from your San Francisco office?

Greg Warner: It’s not as challenging as you might think. First, I grew up in Hawaii and so look for any excuse to get back there — whether it be for work or play. In regard to work, I would say that assembling a good team (architectural team, consultants, builder, etc.) has as much to do with a successful process as anything. Proper technology and information-sharing techniques also help. It really isn’t that much more difficult working in Hawaii than it is on projects elsewhere on the West Coast or closer to San Francisco.

My favorite projects are the ones where my clients, years after completion, still comment on how much joy and satisfaction the project has given them.

What do you want your firm to be known for?

Kathy Scott: At Walker Warner, we’ve developed a relationship with the landscapes of the Western United States and Hawaii, understanding cues provided by the topography, climate, and culture that shape architecture that's well-suited to its location. I think we hope to continue to leverage that knowledge, adding to the built environment where we work in a way that’s respectful and long-lasting.

Where do you see WWA in 5 years?

Brooks Walker: I see Walker Warner Architects evolving into a practice that delves more deeply into projects with the disciplines of landscape and interiors while constantly evolving and refining our approach to design.

Do you have a favorite project? Completed or in progress.

Kathy Scott: My favorite project was one of my first after joining the firm 25 years ago. Brooks and I collaborated on a cabin for one of his good friends in a remote part of California. The cabin was a labor of love for us all, a jewel box made of wood, stone, and steel. The site was snowed in for seven months of every year, so we had time to evolve the design and craft while construction was on hiatus over several winters. This gave us the time and space to think through each detail and get it right.

Brooks Walker: Picking a favorite project is a bit like picking your favorite child. They’re all different, and some are more challenging. My favorite projects are the ones where my clients, years after completion, still comment on how much joy and satisfaction the project has given them.

Greg Warner: My answer for this question is always the same...my next one!

Mike McCabe: I’m going to cheat here and echo Greg’s statement because there is no other answer for me. Even after all of these years, we are hungry and anxious to see the next project come to life on paper and then realized on the site.

If you could describe your work/practice in three words, what would they be?

Brooks Walker: Exploration, communication, and execution.

Kathy Scott: Grounded, comfortable, and highly crafted.

Mike McCabe: Personal, bespoke, and responsible.

Greg Warner: We endeavor to do enduring architecture for inspired living.