Waechter Architecture News (12.22.2022)
NEW CONVERSATIONS
In March, Ben Waechter was elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects, becoming one of the youngest architects in our region to receive the FAIA designation. Ben lectured widely in 2022, and was involved in numerous regional awards juries and peer review programs. Earlier this month, Ben joined Landscape Architect Walter Hood, Architect David Baker and former LA Times Critic Christopher Hawthorne in San Diego for the annual architecture week at Miller Hull, looking holistically at the firm’s work and the state of the profession overall. In 2023, his critical contributions will continue as a reviewer for the General Services Administration Peer program, helping to ensure design excellence and innovation in our nation’s public works.
MULTIPLYING OUR IMPACT
This Autumn, WA’s Alexis Coir, William Smith and Judson Moore led a graduate architecture studio at the University of Oregon which focused on the design and detailing of new mass timber / all-wood construction prototypes. The studio began with research into historical precedents and modern day mass timber fabrication, and looked to reveal a range of new applications and expressive potential of all-wood / CLT buildings. Collectively, this work dovetails with Waechter’s USDA / US Forest Service Wood Innovation Grant, which will measure the performance of our all-wood Mississippi Workshop, and alongside builders, fabricators and developers, provide both the methods and metrics for widespread adoption of this technology.
Waechter’s projects also received significant recognition in 2022, with awards for the Meadow House and Mississippi from AIA Northwest & Pacific Region, citations for Mississippi and Rockwood Village affordable housing from AIA Oregon, and two finalist designations for Mississippi and Rockwood at the sixth annual Gray Awards. Mississippi took home the Gray Magazine Design for Good Award earlier this month, and most recently received a Silver Medal from The Architect’s Newspaper Best of Design Awards program. Overall, Waechter Architecture also received the 2022 Firm Award from AIA Northwest, which is a turning point and testament to all those who have helped grow the studio over our first fifteen years.
EXPANDED HORIZONS
As we look ahead to 2023, we’re hoping to build on our accomplishments and find applications for our growing base of expertise in commercial, housing, hospitality, infill projects and mass timber construction. We’ll also be opening new cultural space on Portland’s Eastside with the launch of Hopscotch PDX, and we’ll continue to host a range of new events and conversations (and tastings!) in the heart of our Mississippi HQ. We hope you’ll join us, and from everyone at Waechter, we hope you all have a safe and prosperous new year.
Onward! — WA