AIA Portland | Center for Architecture

Situated in Portland’s bustling Pearl District, Holst transformed a former carriage house, one of the city’s oldest structures, into a hub for the region’s architecture and design community.

Project Details

Location

Portland, OR

Clients

AIA Oregon & AIA Portland

Year Completed

2007

Project Size

10,000 sq. ft.

Certification

LEED Platinum

Land Recognition

We have a responsibility to not only acknowledge but also elevate Native communities and their needs. This project sits in the area currently known as Portland, which encompasses the traditional village sites of the Multnomah, Wasco, Cowlitz, Kathlamet, Clackamas, Bands of Chinook, Tualatin Kalapuya, Molalla, and many other tribes who made their homes along the Columbia River.

Educating ourselves is an important action. We encourage you to explore the stories of these communities through Native-led resources like David G. Lewis, PhD’s The Quartux Journal and Leading with Tradition.

Awards

2008 Portland Spaces ROOT Design Award 1st Place, Conference Room

A New Hub for Architecture in Portland

Home to AIA Portland and AIA Oregon, the Center for Architecture houses administrative offices as well as galleries, education, and community gathering spaces. For the renovation, Holst embraced the structure’s historical elements, celebrating the past while showcasing the city’s future design possibilities. By situating core elements on the north side of the brick and timber shell, the open public spaces enjoy the light from the south-facing windows.

Chocolate Brick

Historically a billboard for a chocolate maker, a new garden wall decorates the chocolate-colored south façade.

From Stable to Studio

The old horse stable is split into three zones: the office, the gallery, and a flexible space coined the “sandbox.” The gallery cleverly utilizes the exterior walls of the steel storage cube in the center of the building. The sandbox hosts various events, educational classes, and film nights.