Olson Kundig
Digital
Summary
Global design practice, Olson Kundig, is led by five owners—Jim Olson, Tom Kundig, Kirsten R. Murray, Alan Maskin, and Kevin Kudo-King. In many ways they represent five distinct practices. Together we developed a cohesive voice, which would be used throughout their digital presence.
Background
Olson Kundig was founded in 1966 with the architect Jim Olson, whose work at that time centered on explorations of the relationship between dwellings and the landscapes they inhabit. Olson started the firm based on the essential ideas that buildings can serve as a bridge between nature, culture, histories, and people, and that inspiring surroundings have a positive effect on people’s lives. Over the five decades of its existence, the firm has grown and broadened its expertise far beyond the residences for which it is still best known. The geographical scope of the work has grown to cover more than fifteen countries on five continents.
Organization Type
Architecture Firm
Assignment
Create a new mobile-first responsive website that reflects Olson Kundig’s culture, expansive expertise and offers opportunities to search and curate projects based on designers.
Client
Olson Kundig
Years
2018 — 2019
Location
Seattle, WA
Approach
We began our discovery by conducting interviews with each of the owners. We then toured their firm, went to their buildings and events, and read books by each of the partners.
We told their story through the filters on the site. Each staff member can order their related projects, with new project associations automatically updating their profiles. As you search throughout the site, uninvasive cookies or breadcrumbs lead you to the projects you seek.
The partners mentioned that the often use their phones to show images of their work to potential clients. So we created a presentation tool within the site, when project pages are pulled up on mobile and the phone is turned to landscape mode, text falls away and images go full bleed.
As the site is so image heavy, we programmed the site so that every image loads progressively, loading the most efficient image for your device, no matter the resolution or screen density.
Research
Firm partners design philosophies
URL
Components
Animation, Digital Collateral System, User Experience Design, User Interface Design and Development, CMS Customization
Technical Specs
HTML, CSS, JavaScript, AJAX, PHP, WordPress
Team
Principal: Michael Ellsworth
Principal: Corey Gutch
Creative Direction: Gabriel Stromberg
Design: Òscar Viñas
Web Development: Shaun Kardinal
Account Management: Raya Leary
Olson Kundig is a collaborative global design practice whose work expands the context of built and natural landscapes.
