Las Vegas is a city of two worlds, an image-based metropolis, transformed on a continual basis to delight and amaze. Relics from around the globe adorn the strip, creating a mirage for 40 million tourists. But it is the other side of this city that we have chosen to explore; one in which relevance, permanence, community, and belonging are desired. It is in this silence of the otherwise that our work is grounded.
The region is rich in inspiration. From the work of Michael Heizer at Double Negative and Nancy Holt’s Sun Tunnels, to the geological formations of Red Rock and Valley of Fire, we have formed a materialist’s viewpoint of the city: one in which materials are meant to last—materials physically formed from the earth and allowed to change with time. Through the ruins at Rhyolite and early mining and agricultural settlements in the region, we have begun to understand how these materials and forms create a way to live in the Mojave Desert. The inherent understanding of mass and deep recesses to shade and shield from the heat provide the foundation from which we’ve developed a modern interpretation of living in the desert today. Local history anchors our work, rooting it in place and establishing a sense of meaning and appreciation of this specific environment. We have maintained this ideology through a careful selection of the projects the firm has undertaken, choosing projects based on a mutual appreciation of modern, desert appropriate design with our clients.
Over the past twenty-three years, our work has embodied this objective, resulting in authentic, environmentally responsive projects rooted in the craftsmanship of place. Landscape and architecture are ingrained in design, melding together to create a coherent idea, embracing the desert rather than imposing on it, and establishing a sense of permanence and history in an otherwise ephemeral city.
