Gratitude for Eight Years of Collaboration
Variety is the Design of Life
Our recent 8-year milestone fills us with profound appreciation for our wide range of work, partnerships, and team we have built along the way. Our path has been paved with triumphs, challenges, and an unwavering commitment to the value of collaborative design. From banking to breweries, housing to museums - over the years we've expanded our work and portfolio in an extraordinarily diverse way. The variety of work keeps us motivated, inspired, and nimble. As we mark this milestone we wanted to share reflections and insights into our design life that we are so grateful for.
Why we love diverse design
Elisa: Early in my career, a course at the Harvard Graduate School of Design with Massimo Vignelli deeply inspired me. His principle “If you can design one thing, you can design everything” reinforced my belief in the boundless potential of design. Creating a multidisciplinary firm has always been my dream and the diversity of our backgrounds, skills, and perspectives fuels our design life.
Brandon: Elisa and I visited the Eames house when we were just starting our design careers and it created a lasting impression. Stepping into the Eames lifestyle where design permeated all aspects of their lives was inspirational. For me diversity of project types keeps me motivated as an architect. I never desired to spend my career within the repetitive confines of larger firms. Our life and firm are crafted to be flexible and adaptable to embrace any interesting project that comes our way.
What it's like working together
Elisa: The most rewarding aspect of our partnership is when a project is completed and we share in that excitement and pride together and with our entire family - especially non-profit projects where we contributed work and there is a positive community impact. I’m also constantly inspired by Brandon’s design skill and expertise. One of the challenges I face is the occasional misperception of my role. While Brandon's core expertise in architecture is widely acknowledged, I am sometimes stereotyped as an assistant rather than an equal partner and experience design leader.
Brandon: Collaborating with Elisa elevates the design of every project. The process is exciting and the end result is always better than it would have been without the collaboration. Balancing family life, designing, and running a business together is challenging, but we have a way of resolving these issues with fluidity. Our children are always a priority and they keep us grounded along the way with continued interest in the work we do.
Our aspirations for the future
Elisa: Recently, I've been enjoying leading the design strategy and direction for a series of boutique inn projects. Crafting a unique line of furnishings for the hospitality market – lighting, furniture, wall covering, etc. - would be really exciting. Additionally, expanding our work in the academic area to create integrated and flexible educational environments that cater to a variety of learning styles is something I've been focused on.
Brandon: I'm interested in forward-thinking urban developments that include a variety of uses with minimal environmental impact. Imagine spaces where hospitality, retail, museums, performance areas, housing and workplaces productively support each other. Looking ahead at opportunities to reimagine outdated malls and other underutilized buildings to become multipurpose, experience-focused environments designed to continually adapt for future uses is exciting.