Studio

Location
Portland, OR

Size
710 SF

We love our office.
It is steps from the house, yet a world different from home life.
The Christie Architecture Studio features a large, pivoting front door crafted from Iroko wood.

The Christie Architecture Studio resides in Marshall Park in Portland, Oregon.
The Christie Architecture Studio resides in Marshall Park in Portland, Oregon.

Carefully situated to be distinct once on site without being overly noticeable to the street, the studio is a quiet addition that complements the architecture of the 1954 ranch house without copying it. Gable roof, extended eaves, board and batten siding, single story. Similar but different. From the house, we often catch neighborhood walkers stopping to admire the studio. The landscape was expertly designed by our friends at Bothwell Landscape Studio.

A diagonal ipe boardwalk leads to the beautiful front door, an iroko pivot door shielded from the weather in a simple alcove.


The metal roof conceals eight inches of rigid insulation as well as the gutter, creating a sharp leading edge to the triangular shape of the building.

The Christie Architecture Studio features a large, pivoting front door crafted from Iroko wood.
The Christie Architecture Studio is clad with black-stained cedar board and batten siding.
The Christie Architecture Studio compliments the architecture of the existing 1950's home.
The Christie Architecture Studio has a metal standing seam roof.
The Christie Architecture Studio is clad with black-stained cedar siding.

The stained cedar changes color depending on the sun’s intensity and position: sometimes warm and light, sometimes dark and somber. Hidden beneath the cladding is an exterior insulated wall that improves the energy use in the building in all seasons.

The Christie Architecture Studio is clad with black-stained cedar siding and has a standing seam metal roof.

The cladding intentionally reconsidered the common pattern of board and batten siding. We varied the batten depths to create syncopated shadow lines on the facade and broke up the apparent boards as tongue and groove, adding a hairline to catch the light. The pattern is subtle but adds  complexity to the otherwise very simple detailing of the studio.

The Christie Architecture Studio is clad with black-stained cedar board and batten siding.
This is a floor plan drawing of the Christie Architecture Studio.

Few windows face the street or the forecourt; the building’s views open to the forest preserving privacy but allowing natural light. The desks surround the perimeter of the cathedralled studio space with the conference table centered in front of the big windows.

The Christie Architecture Studio houses a small workroom with storage space and a sink for making coffee or tea.
The Christie Architecture Studio has space for four workstations and a large conference table.

The interior is skylit and bright with much of the decoration and energy coming from the work that happens inside.

The interior of the Christie Architecture Studio is filled with natural light. Large windows face the forest outside.

See our Ideas page for more details about the Studio.
Up to Code and Continuous Insulation show how we used exterior insulation
and a rain screen to create a building that is better than code.