Portland, situated in the Pacific Northwest, is known for its vast urban green space, parks, surrounding forests, and the breathtaking Mount Hood mountain backdrop. Locals enjoy living here for a variety of reasons. This remarkable city is about an hour’s drive east of Pacific beaches and west of the breathtaking Cascade Mountains. Portland is a great city to live and visit for its geography, ambiance, warmth, food, beer, and arts.
Portland is a thriving city with several opportunities for residents and business owners. If you want to build your dream home in Portland, Oregon, look no further than this list of the city’s top residential architects. These companies were chosen after thoroughly assessing the best contractors in the industry.
Bora Architecture & Interiors
720 SW Washington, Suite 800, Portland, OR 97205
Bora Architects has positioned itself in Oregon as a dependable architectural design partner. This company is built on a strong foundation of design, sustainability, and innovation and a strong commitment to positive social impact. Its sixty-year history attests to the quality of its work and consistent service, which has won acclaim from its network of customers, many of whom have been loyal repeat customers for decades. The AIA Northwest and Pacific Region, AIA Portland, and the Portland Business Journal have also recognized the studio.
Amy Donohue, John O’Toole, Jeanie Lai, Christopher Linn, Michael Tingley, Stephen Weeks, and Brad Demby are among Bora’s design and managing principals. These experienced professionals and AIA and FAIA members come equipped with the extensive industry background that has shaped the landscape of their studio’s design process.
Hennebery Eddy Architects
921 SW Washington St, Suite 250, Portland, OR 97205
Hennebery Eddy Architects is a firm that specializes in historic resources and net-positive design solutions. The firm aspires to develop environmental stewardship, be financially sustainable, and develop a feeling of place while maintaining a long-term vision and a net-positive mentality. The firm is a Certified Passive House Consultant, a Passive House Institute U.S. member, and a Living Future accredited practice.
The company has been named an Architect Magazine Top 50 Firm and a JUST Organization by the International Living Future Institute’s 2.0 program. Hennebery Eddy Architects is a recipient of the AIA Northwest and Pacific Region Firm Award and has offices in Portland, Bend, and Bozeman, serving clients throughout the Pacific Northwest and Intermountain West.
Nathan Good Architects
205 Liberty St. NE, Suite B, Salem, OR 97301
Nathan Good Architects provides its clients with thoughtful design solutions that enhance the lives of those who experience its spaces. The firm’s architecture reflects the unique nature of its clients and their land. Craftsmanship, durability, and pragmatic solutions are the characteristics of the studio’s designs. Its leadership in environmentally responsible design is also woven into all of its work.
Founded in 2005 by Nathan Good, Nathan Good Architects specializes in commercial, residential, and remodeling projects that have won multiple awards and recognition. Honors like The Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design Green Good Design Award (2019) and the Restore Oregon: Celebrating Preservation, Reuse, and Community Revitalization DeMuro Award attest to its client’s needs and aspirations.
The company has been featured by Statesman Journal, Portland Business Journal, Bend Magazine, HomeDSGN, DJC Oregon, and Oregon Live.
Guggenheim Architecture + Design Studio
915 NW 19th Ave. Studio C, Portland, OR 97209
Guggenheim Architecture + Design Studio is a multidisciplinary creative studio that integrates architecture, interiors, and brand direction. It is known for its highly-considered architectural spaces and rich interior environments. The firm produces custom details specific to each project and client with an eye for engaging, one-of-a-kind design elements.
Guggenheim Architecture + Design Studio is led by Jenny and Jeff Guggenheim and is licensed to perform architecture in Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii. Founded in 2009, it has partnered with a variety of local, national, and international clients in retail, hospitality, residential, medical, and exhibition design sectors. Its love for design, craft and tailored spaces led the studio to establish a practice that allows its journey to be both creative and vital.
Skylab
413 SW 13th Ave, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97205
Skylab, founded in Portland two decades ago, is inquisitive, lively, and experimental. It employs architects, designers, producers, and entrepreneurs collaborating across landscapes and locales. The firm provides one-of-a-kind and personalized services, but its biggest asset is its integrated approach to problem resolution across the disciplines and offerings of architecture, interior design, branded environments, and planning.
Skylab has garnered several honors, including the Woodworks Design Awards’ 2021 Commercial Wood Design Mid-Rise Award for Outpost and the American Architecture Award’s 2020 Commercial Award for Sideyard. Skylab’s work has also piqued the interest of some members of the press. Some of its projects have been published in ArchDaily, Architectural Record, Archinect, The Architect’s Newspaper, DJC Oregon, Designboom, Floornature, and Metropolis Magazine.
Waechter Architecture
3928 N Williams Ave. Portland, OR 97227
Waechter Architecture is a full-service architecture studio in Portland, Oregon, specializing in small to mid-sized civic, cultural, mixed-use, commercial, and residential projects. The firm was founded in 2008 and aspires to create spaces that amplify experiences and resonate in its client’s memory.
Inspired by experiential and clear, distilled design, Ben Waechter founded Waechter Architecture to pursue these concepts in his work. Before forming WA, he worked locally and internationally with leaders in architecture, including Allied Works Architecture and world-renowned architect Renzo Piano. Ben’s experience includes many building types, such as cultural, hospitality, commercial, multifamily, and single-family residential developments.
Waechter Architecture is affiliated with The Architectural League of New York and TallWood Design Institute. Some of its works are also seen in Archinect, Portland Tribune, Interior Design, and Modern Homes Portland.
William / Kaven Architecture
4075 N. Williams Ave. Studio 440, Portland, OR 97227
William/Kaven Architecture is a Portland, Oregon-based multidisciplinary design practice specializing in architecture and interior design. The studio was founded in 2004 by brothers Daniel Kaven and Trevor William Lewis, who had worked together since they were children in their home state of New Mexico.
Throughout their creative careers, the brothers have established an impressive portfolio that includes award-winning houses, energy-efficient high-rise structures, mixed-use buildings, and settings for corporate customers such as Nike, Converse, Microsoft, and Diamond Supply Co. The American Institute of Architects recently awarded William Kaven Architecture a Design Merit award for their Interchange project. It has also been featured by Archinect, Architectural Digest India, ArchDaily, Portland Tribune, and The Wall Street Journal.
communitecture ARCHITECTURE
1421 SE Division St, Portland, OR 97202
Communitecture Architecture designs beautiful and sustainable places that bring people together in a community. The firm is committed to sustainability while respecting the needs and priorities of all the individuals, families, and communities with whom it works and plays. With an approach that explores new creative territories, it remains as accessible as possible.
Communitecture is a full-service design firm for commercial and residential projects, typically leading projects from the conceptual design stage through construction. It believes in making its services accessible to projects which push the envelope in terms of ecological design or community building. The studio’s work often includes public processes to involve communities in the design and decision-making for public place-making projects and individual buildings. This process often involves public presentations and educational workshops.
Communitecture comprises members of the American Institute of Architects and LEED-accredited professionals. Its works have also piqued the interest of several press members and were featured by SOTOKOTO Japanese Magazine, Yes! Magazine, Portland Spaces Magazine, Sunset Magazine, Communities Magazine, Dwell, and Oregon Live.
Beebe Skidmore Architects
1500 SW 11th Ave. #2004, Portland, OR 97201
Heidi Beebe and Doug Skidmore formed Beebe Skidmore Architects to provide design leadership and experience to projects and clientele of all sizes. Among its completed projects are a 350-square-foot coastal sauna with a green roof, a 30,000-square-foot adaptive reuse workplace, multi-family housing in Boise, Idaho, and other dwellings around the Pacific Northwest. The firm is currently working on a co-living infill duplex, a two-tenant workspace conversion of an old grocery store, a net-zero mixed-use structure in St. Johns, a master plan for a phased wine-country inn, and a rural, multi-building art and environment residency program on the Oregon Coast.
Beebe Skidmore Architects’ work has been awarded at the local and regional levels of the AIA and has been published in the Wall Street Journal, Architectural Record, Dwell, Dezeen, Azure, and the New York Times. Beebe Skidmore is certified by the State of Oregon as a Women’s Business Enterprise.
Propel Studio Architecture, Inc.
422 NE 79th Ave, Portland, OR 97213
Propel Studio Architecture focuses on the design of classic and sustainable residential projects of all scales, unique commercial developments, retail spaces, and compelling community design. Its priority is to improve people’s lives, enrich the settings in which it works, and create striking places rather than focus on the size or type of project.
Under the supervision of co-owners Nick Mira and Tuan Vu, the studio begins each project with research to understand the site, context, and client needs. With this foundation, the design team carefully crafts concepts that respond to the context in which it builds, integrating its architecture into each unique community, responding to climate, culture, local materials, and the surrounding built environment.
Nick completes each project with a commitment to sustainable design principles and technical expertise. He is a certified architect in Oregon and Washington with eighteen years of experience working on technically complex projects. Nick’s portfolio includes high-performance houses and sustainable structures for commercial mixed-use, offices, research, and health care. Tuan, Propel Studio’s creative director, is dedicated to collaborating throughout the design process and creating a healthy team environment. He has fourteen years of project experience, including noteworthy buildings in Portland, Oregon, and outside the US, with several award-winning projects and competition entries among them.
Telford+Brown Studio Architecture
2132 NE Alberta St, Portland, OR 97211
Telford+Brown Studio Architecture, formerly Richard Brown Architect, AIA, provides thoughtful, modern architectural and interior design for wineries, homes, and sacred spaces. Telford+Brown Studio Architecture is renowned for creating simple, beautiful, and practical spaces emphasizing natural materials, comfort, usability, and energy efficiency. Led by Portland Architect Hope Telford and continuing the thirty-year practice of architect Richard Brown, the studio is known for its client-oriented and collaborative process.
With a Master’s in Architecture from the University of Pennsylvania, Richard has practiced in Oregon, Washington, and California since 1976. He opened Richard Brown Architect AIA after five years with ZGF Partnership. Much of his work has been with institutional, religious, and residential clients. With her trademark creativity and enthusiasm, Hope brings a wide range of design, leadership, and management expertise to Telford+Brown Studio. Her eighteen years of architecture experience include design and project management for wineries, homes, hospitality, universities, and community development in Portland, Vancouver, and Cape Town, South Africa.
Fieldwork Design and Architecture
1752 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97214
Fieldwork Design and Architecture was launched in 2011 in Portland, Oregon. Cornell Anderson, an architect, and Tonia Hein, an interior designer, lead a team of outstanding designers in a dynamic studio culture centered on well-detailed, concept-driven design. Throughout the design process, Fieldwork stays hands-on, frequently developing relevant architectural components and handmade furnishings for select projects.
The firm’s approach to a project is to create a design that embodies the client’s beliefs and philosophy, driven by the project site and history. This results in a forward-thinking, creative, and enduring architectural statement that offers a memorable and meaningful experience. The studio’s designs utilize sustainable and local materials, take advantage of the area and landscape views, and utilize natural ventilation and daylighting.
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