Archinect - Features

Faulkner Architects: 'The Site Will Tell Us What to Do. We Listen.'

2020-08-26T12:55:00-04:00

Should you ever have the pleasure of visiting the compact but growing portfolio of exquisite residential projects that Greg Faulkner and his small team have realized over the years, the drive would lead into picturesque and seemingly untouched landscapes of Northern California and the Lake Tahoe region of Western Nevada.

Nestled between pine trees, rocks, and steep cliffs, Faulkner Architects' residences and mountain retreats reflect the ruggedness of the embedding terrain with a bold material palette that makes confident use of weathered steel, reclaimed wood, and exposed concrete. Paired with a dedication to craft, regard to the vernacular, and careful site selection, the firm creates elegant, modernist jewels — one project at a time.

For this week's Studio Snapshot, Archinect connected with Greg Faulkner to learn about his design process, what drives material choices, and how he runs a team of seven from two locations.

Somewhere Studio Discuss Architecture and Practice as an Ongoing Process of Conversation and Investigation

2019-07-09T11:28:00-04:00

Enthusiasm and the freedom to create your own design framework lie at the heart of every emerging studio. For Jessica Colangelo and Charles Sharpless of Somewhere Studio, the inspiration for starting their practice is precisely that. With architectural interests in research and an understanding of "architecture as a conversation," the duo explores ways in which practice and academia provide new opportunities worth investigating. According to the duo, "setting up frameworks can both be a design method as well as an end goal for a project." With this in mind, the Arkansas-based practice thrives by approaching each new project with a scalable goal in mind that pushes new interventions and creativity.

For this week's Studio Snapshot, Archinect had a chance to connect with Colangelo and Sharpless. Together they discuss their goals for starting a practice and how working in academia influences their design framework. They also offer their take on research, intervention, and history's role...

San Francisco-based Design Firm SAW Tackles Architecture's Design Blindspots by Challenging Possible Outcomes

2019-06-13T13:34:00-04:00

Within architectural practice, navigating through blind spots in the design process is something many studios work through. In Dan Spiegel and Megumi Aihara's case, SAW's mission is to approach these moments of design obscurity by focusing on their passions for architecture, landscape architecture, and design. With their goal of designing both for the inside and outside, Spiegel and Aihara use object materiality and scale to produce potential outcomes in spatial design.

From their stunning residences to the integrative urban-scaled projects they design, SAW uses their interdisciplinary approach to develop highly technical yet subtlety beautiful landscape and architectural works. For this week's Studio Snapshot, Archinect chats with Spiegel and Aihara about their experience in running a practice and the strategic risks they take when designing for the ever-changing environment.

Building Trust as an Attentive Firm with Fleetwood Fernandez Architects

2019-06-05T12:00:00-04:00

Trust between an architecture firm and its clients is as important as it is difficult to foster. As the founders of Fleetwood Fernandez Architects can attest, one method of establishing trust is to keep their firm small, allowing their relationships with select clients to become familiar and consistent during the arduous process of building a piece of architecture together. Through their strong partnership, they have achieved some of the most striking buildings and interiors in the Los Angeles area, including a Santa Monica home for a construction magnate and an upscale donut shop in Del Mar.

For this week's Studio Snapshot, we spoke with Hunter Fleetwood and Mariapaz Fernandez of Fleetwood Fernandez Architects. We discussed the difficulties of the first year of running the office, imagining an ideal client as well as the pleasures and setbacks of remaining a small firm.

Geoffrey von Oeyen on Exploring Resilience at a Number of Scales

2019-04-29T13:32:00-04:00

From Pavilions in China to Horizons in Malibu, Geoffrey von Oeyen blurs boundaries and explores the means and methods of architectural exploration at both environmental and social scales.

For this week's Studio Snapshot, Geoffrey von Oeyen Design walks us through how their firm is pushing from conventional building substrate to conventional substrate of other construction methods from other industries.

A Conversation with TBA on How Speculative Work Goes Hand and Hand with Built Projects

2019-02-04T10:00:00-05:00

Montreal-based architect Tom Balaban founded his eponymous architecture firm, TBA in short, in 2009. Since, he and his small but growing studio have built up an impressive portfolio of built and speculative work. While Balaban oversees the firm's built projects, his partner Jennifer Thorogood helps to run the research-side of things, which the practice is constantly pushing. For this week's Studio Snapshot, the firm discusses how their plethora of research projects is vital to their design process.

A Carbon Neutral Practice, the Sydney-based Firm Luigi Rosselli Architects is a Beacon of Sustainability

2018-12-05T12:15:00-05:00

For the Sydney-based practice Luigi Rosselli Architects, sustainability isn't just about designing energy-efficient buildings. Even though they're known for their elegant residential work, often with a focus on off-form concrete, the environmentalism in their work is just as important as how they run their practice. Described as carbon-neutral, the firm addresses everything from how their employees travel to and from work to the amount of paper waste the office produces in order to reduce its own carbon footprint. Today, we talk with founder Luigi Rosselli about their unique approach.

Architect Michael Leckie, of Vancouver-Based Leckie Studio, Discusses his Intention and Craft-Driven Small Studio

2018-06-04T12:41:00-04:00

Architect Michael Leckie began his professional career working at top firms in Canada and Europe. But as the type of person who prefers to create things himself, it was only natural that he established his own practice Leckie Studio Architecture + Design. Since 2015, the interdisciplinary Vancouver firm has designed a fantastic variety of eye-popping interiors and residential projects, plus they have a growing roster of big clients and collaborators. Without a doubt, things are looking up for the young studio, who received the 2018 Emerging Firm Award from the Architectural Institute of British Columbia last month.

In the latest Small Studio Snapshot, Michael Leckie talks about the significance of keeping his practice small, the democratic nature of Canadian design, and some of the exciting plans his firm has in store.

2017 Young Architects Winner Kevin Hirth Opens Up About the Challenges of Working Alone

2018-02-21T09:15:00-05:00

Kevin Hirth is a Clinical Assistant Professor at University of Colorado Denver's College of Architecture and Planning. He holds a Master's of Architecture with distinction from the Harvard Graduate School of Design (2011) and a Bachelor's of Science in Architecture from the University of Virginia. Last year, Kevin was awarded the 2017 Young Architects + Designers Prize from The Architectural League of New York.

As part of Archinect's Small Studio Snapshot series, I met up with Kevin in Denver to talk about his teaching and his work; the importance of licensure; the challenges of working alone; and his experience with the Architectural League.

What the Future Has in Store for Brooklyn-Based Firm, Future Expansion

2018-01-29T09:00:00-05:00

Future Expansion is a Brooklyn based architecture-and-design firm founded in 2011 by Deirdre and Nicholas McDermott. Shortly after starting, the practice won an open RFP from the Brooklyn Academy of Music for a large-scale public art installation. Since, the two have gone on to carry out projects for both private and public clients. They recently completed another winning installation, "Flatiron Reflection," for the fourth annual Flatiron Public Plaza Holiday Design Competition commissioned by the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership and Van Alen Institute.

For this week's Small Studio Snapshots, Archinect caught up with the firm to hear about some recent projects they are working on and find out what the future has in store.

Portuguese-firm Brandão Costa Arquitectos Shows Off Their Library for the Village of Caminha

2017-11-28T09:00:00-05:00

Small Studio Snapshots is one of Archinect’s regular recurring series. In it, we take a look at the ins and outs of running a small-scale practice. What hurdles do you come across? Do you want to grow or stay small and flexible? What motivates your practice in the first place?

In this excerpt from a special iteration for Ed, we talk with the Portuguese practice Brandão Costa Arquitectos led by Nuna Brandão Costa.

Ate Atema Reveals Upscaling Goals for His Small NYC-Based Studio

2017-11-13T12:14:00-05:00

Atema Architecture is an innovative studio based in New York City focused on commercial and residential projects with an emphasis on collaboration between clients, consultants and builders.

As part of our Small Studio Snapshots, we talk with Ate, the principal of the firm, about developing a structure early on allowing for adaptability, his upscaling goals, and the agility of a small firm.

STITCH design shop embraces North Carolina's rich history of progressive architecture

2017-07-10T12:00:00-04:00

For this iteration of Small Studio Snapshots, we are venturing to North Carolina to talk with STITCH design shop about what it is like to grow an architectural practice in a small city. Read on to hear how the team of seven is making a name for themselves in Winston-Salem, the city of Art and Innovation.

Trying Something New with Matter Design

2017-04-10T09:00:00-04:00

This week on, Small Studio Snapshots, we talk with Brandon Clifford and Wes McGee of Matter Design - an interdisciplinary studio founded in 2008. Recent finalists of the 2017 AZ Awards, the duo discuss their love of taking on experimental projects, merging the design and making process, and even give us a little background on the history of the architecture studio.

Small Studio Snapshots: Superjacent

2017-01-30T12:48:00-05:00

Archinect's newest series, Small Studio Snapshots, takes a look behind the curtain of small architecture practices. What motivates them? What difficulties do they come across? What are the advantages of keeping trim?

This week, we're talking to Superjacent, an LA-based studio comprised of "landscape protagonists, urban dreamers and strategic thinkers".

Small Studio Snapshots: Peter Zellner of ZELLNERandCompany

2017-01-16T12:15:00-05:00

Chances are, when you first considered pursuing architecture, you imagined forging your own path. But, of course, the realities of practicing architecture in the 21st century make that easier said than done. Starting your own small practice is no small feat. We’re interviewing a variety of different, small-scale practices about the difficulties they’ve encountered and the rewards they’ve reaped. For this installment, we talk with Peter Zellner of ZELLNERandCompany, an award-winning design firm based out of Los Angeles.

Small Studio Snapshots: Safura Salek of Mass Studio

2017-01-09T12:51:00-05:00

In this new series, Small Studio Snapshots, we're taking a look at the ups and downs, ins and outs of running a small architecture studio. For this installment, we're talking with Safura Salek of MASS STUDIO, a bicoastal design collective based out of New York and Los Angeles. Run by two sisters, their work focuses on developing high-end residential, commercial, and hospitality projects.

Growing Up by Scaling Down

2016-12-20T11:53:00-05:00

While working in a large, hundred-plus person firm certainly has its benefits, boutique practices offer the partners the chance to create their own designs in their own way. I spoke to two firms: r+d studio, a firm started by a married couple who used to work for Frank Gehry, and Studio Hillier, a practice that was initially started in 1966 by J. Robert Hillier, merged with the enormous U.K.-based firm RMJM, and then was purposefully relaunched by the founding partners as a small studio in 2011. I asked each set of partners about the challenges of scaling down after having worked in the big leagues.