This mixed-use residential project in Seattle’s Uptown neighborhood is designed to celebrate the burgeoning Arts district surrounding Lower Queen Anne and Seattle Center. Recently Uptown was named as a third Arts & Cultural District in Seattle. This designation has created greater opportunities to integrate architecture into the neighborhood’s existing and emerging character.

The project includes 95 residences, flexible homes to offer a variety of living options to urban Seattleites. The primary façade along Second Avenue is composed of three vertically clad wooden boxes cantilevered 12 feet over a strong brick backdrop that anchors the building to the site. The pedestrian experience is reinforced by lush landscaping and an extremely transparent and inviting glass façade. Street-level retail spaces are designed to house an anchor restaurant and complementary bakery or coffee shop.

Besides flexible residences, Kirin includes a dramatic rooftop garden with spaces for intimate gatherings or larger parties. A community amenity space features a full kitchen, living room area, and large screen TV, perfect for neighbors to gather to watch the big game. A workout space and secure bike storage are also included.

Kirin integrates custom art installations in its architecture. A responsive, contoured, sculptural element floats above the public lobby. Composed of thousands of translucent fabric panels, it is lit from behind by a fully controllable LED grid. This ceiling piece can respond to the movement of visitors walking through the lobby, be programmed to create an abstracted representation of the clouds moving overhead, or even create its own designs using algorithms that mimic Heraclitean patterns.