Submitted by M.L. R. Grove on Tue, 04/12/2018 - 16:01
Seattle-based goCstudio, an architecture studio best known for its innovative work and collaborations with artists and craftsmen, has received the 2018 Emerging Firm Award from the Northwest and Pacific Region Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). The award recognizes emerging firms less than ten years old that are challenging traditional perceptions and methods of architecture. The AIA Northwest and Pacific Region (NWPR) includes the states of Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho and Hawaii, and the territory of Guam. The firm was previously recognized with a 2016 National AIA Small Projects Award for wa_sauna, one of a kind floating sauna that began as a conceptual installation project.
Since co-founding goCstudio in 2012, Jon Gentry and Aimée O’Carroll have been deeply involved in the design and management of every project at the firm. “We are honored to receive this recognition from the AIA following our first five years as a studio. We are fortunate to be a part of a great design community here in the Pacific Northwest and we aim to build on this recognition as our studio grows” noted Gentry. “It is exciting to see our projects come to fruition and for a wider audience to acknowledge the passion and hard work that goes into each one” added O’Carroll.
The firm’s work includes the design of custom residences, as well as bespoke commercial and public spaces. The firm works simultaneously on conceptual and client-driven projects, mixing art-inspired collaborations with real-world problem solving. “We strive to produce conceptually rich projects that act as partner to their community and site, where architecture and creativity are combined with philosophy and craftsmanship to create lasting human environments and experiences. It is our intent that the projects use our limited natural resources responsibly and that each design enriches its site and cultural landscape,” notes O’Carroll.
Mini Mart City Park is a project that exemplifies the goCstudio process and platform. A community-focused project owned-and-initiated by the artist collaborative SuttonBeresCuller and designed by goCstudio, Mini Mart City Park involves the transformation of a former gas station site into a public park and cultural center. “The project demonstrates our commitment to architecture as spatial, social, environmental, and artistic construct, engaging both the technical and the poetic” notes Gentry.
Sound House is a new custom residence in the heart of Seattle’s Magnolia neighborhood with panoramic views of the city and the Puget Sound. The program for the house is unusual in that it is a single family dwelling providing plentiful living space for a family of eight as well as access to the many exterior terraces and roof decks that maximize the site’s views.
COR Cellars is a winery located outside of Lyle, Washington in the heart of the Columbia River Gorge. The architecture responds with the use of a courtyard (the heart at the center) as a central organizing system that protects workers and visitors alike from the sometimes harsh conditions of the natural environment characteristic of the Gorge. The design is focused on creating shelter, both physical (from the winds and tough climate) and psychological (a place of refuge in which to enjoy the company of friends).
Substantial, a digital product studio, is an office designed to accommodate a company’s growing needs. The entire 14,000-square-foot project occupies a floor of a 100-year-old historic brick building in the heart of Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood.
“One of our first projects, wa_sauna, was primarily funded by our local art and design community with fundraising events hosted around the city and then built by our studio. The community outreach that this small project demonstrated has inspired us to establish a new design/build program (Hiatus), that our studio plans to initiate in the summer of 2020” notes O’Carroll.
“It’s important for us to design buildings that stand the test of time and bring a sense of wonder to their inhabitants. Our work aims to invoke a strong appreciation of the landscape and to express a thoughtful relationship between craftsmanship and the built form. We celebrate clients who want to actively participate in the design conversation. We love working with creatively minded individuals who are interested in uncovering the unique design opportunities that are inherent to each project” says Gentry.
