Photographer: Aaron Leitz | ArchDaily

Manhattan Beach Residence / Olson Kundig

Hadir Al Koshta — Sat, 27 Sep 2025 09:00:00 +0000

On a narrow sloping site just blocks from the ocean, the Manhattan Beach Residence draws inspiration from the honest expression of structure and utilitarian design approach characterized by California's mid-century modern architecture, mixed with the client's active outdoor lifestyle.

The Second Studio Podcast: Interview with Lou Maxon

The Second Studio Podcast — Sun, 23 Jul 2023 03:30:00 +0000

The Second Studio (formerly The Midnight Charette) is an explicit podcast about design, architecture, and the everyday. Hosted by Architects David Lee and Marina Bourderonnet, it features different creative professionals in unscripted conversations that allow for thoughtful takes and personal discussions.

The Second Studio Podcast: Interview with Tom Kundig

The Second Studio Podcast — Sun, 14 Aug 2022 03:30:00 +0000

Collywood House / Olson Kundig

Pilar Caballero — Fri, 26 Mar 2021 18:00:00 +0000

This high-tech West Hollywood retreat is located just above the Sunset Strip and overlooks Los Angeles with sweeping views that stretch from the San Gabriel Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. Maximizing access to these breathtaking views from all parts of the home was a key design directive. Other design goals were to blur the boundaries between inside and outside as much as possible – because the client comes from a background of outdoor adventures, he wanted the house to feel like an adventure to him and his many guests. Many custom-designed and automated elements throughout all three levels contribute to the home’s uniquely modern identity.

The Burke Museum / Olson Kundig

Pilar Caballero — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 19:00:00 +0000

The Burke Museum is the oldest public museum in Washington State with a collection of over 16 million artifacts and specimens, ranging from totem poles and gemstones to dinosaur fossils. Because the Burke’s collection is so wide-ranging and continues to grow – it is a collecting museum – the new building needed to serve as a coherent, effective container that would allow for flexibility over time. The building’s rational scheme holds the complexity of the Burke’s activities and collections, both now and into the future.

Gem State: Living with Nature in Idaho's Mountains and Valleys

Eric Baldwin — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 04:00:00 +0000

Idaho's nickname is "The Gem State" for its abundance of natural resources and scenic areas, from steep canyons and valleys to snow-capped mountains. It's no surprise that the state's architecture draws from this context, especially for remote housing projects. Reinterpreting building methods, materials, and spatial relationships, architects have designed a series of incredible homes across Idaho that are redefining how to live in nature.

Blakely Island Artist Studio / Olson Kundig

Andreas Luco — Sat, 08 Aug 2020 19:00:00 +0000

An intimate study in scale, this compact 450 square-foot cabin makes the most of its remote site on a forested bluff overlooking the water in the San Juan Islands. Consisting essentially of a single room, the wood-framed cabin offers flexible space as a painting studio or a guesthouse. The back of the structure gently nestles into the hillside bounded by existing trees and boulders, enclosing a micro kitchen and bathroom.

Canal Street Office Transformation in Fremont / Heliotrope Architects

Valeria Silva — Fri, 19 Jun 2020 02:00:00 +0000

The Canal Street project takes a narrow, commercially-zoned, urban-infill lot with a small, rundown 1950s-era house and transforms it into a new, forward-thinking, 5,233 square foot, commercial office building for Turnstyle (a graphic design firm) and Stoke (a branding firm). The 30-foot-wide x 100-foot-deep lot is situated along a shoreline greenbelt across the street from the ship canal in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle.

Wave House / Olson Kundig

Pilar Caballero — Fri, 12 Jun 2020 10:00:00 +0000

“The design of this home explores organic forms inspired by the topography, shoreline, and water to enhance the connections between interior and exterior, the built and the natural.” –Kirsten R. Murray, FAIA, Design Principal

Portola Valley House / SB Architects

Valeria Silva — Fri, 05 Jun 2020 17:00:00 +0000

Portola Valley House deals in contrasts: it’s a home for two with the flexibility to become a house for many. The design brief was to create an intimate space and a single-story home to age in place, with enough space for the couple’s children and grandchildren to visit, and to be able to entertain large groups.

Portage Bay House / Heliotrope Architects

Andreas Luco — Sat, 16 May 2020 13:00:00 +0000

Tucked into a small city lot along the water’s edge, the house was designed to live like a studio loft for a bachelor who values privacy, a central location to reside in the city, and a convenient spot to park the floatplane. Hidden from the street, the building is a protective shell of zinc and aluminum – a refined version of the maritime industrial sheds found throughout the waterfronts of Seattle.

Best Houses of 2019

Paula Pintos — Wed, 11 Dec 2019 04:00:00 +0000

More than 5.000 architecture projects were published in ArchDaily this year. Year after year, we curate hundreds of residential projects, and as we know our readers love houses, we compiled a selection of the most visited residential projects published on the site.

Stirrup House / Olson Kundig

Daniel Tapia — Mon, 11 Nov 2019 17:00:00 +0000

This 6,500-square-foot home, which sits on a quiet cul-de-sac in Ketchum, Idaho between Bald Mountain and Dollar Mountain, was designed around the client’s collection of contemporary art alongside commanding mountain views. Throughout the home, windows frame views of exterior artworks against the forested landscape beyond.

Dallas Apartment / Olson Kundig

Daniel Tapia — Sat, 24 Aug 2019 18:00:00 +0000

“An exciting challenge for me was bringing the tectonic spirit of my work to this sophisticated, refined residence in an urban center.” –Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA, Design Principal Perched high above downtown Dallas, this 8,870-square-foot apartment occupies the eighteenth floor of the Museum Tower building, where intimate rooms and corridors in the center of the oval-shaped apartment radiate out to open spaces and views on the perimeter. The space functions as a private urban refuge as well as a gathering place for family and friends.

Tillamook Creamery / Olson Kundig

Andreas Luco — Mon, 24 Jun 2019 17:00:00 +0000

“It is a deep honor to be trusted by the farmers of the Tillamook Cooperative to design their new visitor experience. Our hope is that the new building and the experiences visitors have within will become part of the Tillamook story – a story that is about high-quality products, but also about the Tillamook farmers and employees themselves. We could not be more excited to be part of Tillamook’s future.” –Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA, Design Principal – Architecture

Willmott’s Ghost / Heliotrope Architects

Daniel Tapia — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 18:00:00 +0000

James Beard Award-winning chef Renee Erickson and partners launched Willmott’s Ghost, which occupies the ground floor of The Spheres, in the fall of 2018. Architecture is by Heliotrope Architects, interior design is by Price Erickson, and construction is by Dovetail. The Spheres are the centerpiece of Amazon’s Seattle campus: glass-enclosed domes containing workplaces and cloud forest conservatories with thousands of flora from throughout the world.

City Cabin / Olson Kundig

Pilar Caballero — Mon, 22 Oct 2018 12:00:00 +0000

Located in one of Seattle’s most established residential areas, City Cabin’s design answers the client’s desire for a private urban retreat that would connect her to nature. Siting the 2,400-square-foot house on the northwest corner of the lot maximizes garden areas on the south and east sides. The home’s staggered footprint allows for more glazing, which increases sun exposure and garden views from every room. With the goal of net-zero energy use, the home’s design incorporates key sustainability features such as photovoltaic panels and an air-to-water heat pump. Planting mature trees and dense greenery onto the site helped transform an ordinary urban infill lot into a private refuge.

Northwest Art House / Olson Kundig

Pilar Caballero — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 17:00:00 +0000

“The owners were quite generous with the design of their home – they built it for themselves, but also to support the larger art community of which they are a part.” –Jim Olson, Design Principal