Flight 93 National Memorial, Paul Murdoch Architects, illustration by Aleksander Novak-Zemplinski
Pioneer Courthouse Square. The new US Embassy in London. The Flight 93 National Memorial near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The Wayne Morse US Courthouse in Eugene. The Oklahoma City Memorial.
StastnyBrun Architects didn't design these projects, but the Portland firm, now celebrating its 35th anniversary, played a role in all of them.
“StastnyBrun Architects, Inc: A Retrospective 1975-2010, on display this in June and July at AIA/Portland's Center for Architecture (403 NW 11th Ave), features the collaborative work of StastnyBrun Architects, its project partners and communities in which it has worked during the past 35 years. A celebration will also be held from 6-9 PM this Friday, June 11.
Founded in 1975 as Architects Atelier/Northwest, StastnyBrun's portfolio includes architectural projects such as Portland State University’s Native American Student and Community Center and several other projects for Native American communities such as the Warm Springs Museum, the Klamath Tribes Cultural Learning Center, and the Glacier Bay Longhouse in Alaska.
Sir Winston Churchill Square, Edmonton, StastnyBrun/HIP Architects/Carlyle + Associates
The firm has also provided urban design and planning for numerous towns and cities in the Western United States and Canada from Portland, Tigard and Tualatin locally to municipal governments in Nevada, Washington, California and Alberta. But the firm is best known for managing a host of high-profile design competitions.
“The Retrospective is really about a history of collaboration and contributions by many people, both inside and outside the firm,” says firm Principal Don Stastny, FAIA. “We’ve had the great honor of collectively solving problems and identifying opportunities in a way that respects everyone’s voices.”
“I learned of Don Stastny’s passion for design excellence in the public realm with his leadership for the design competition of Pioneer Courthouse Square,” said Bob Hastings, FAIA, agency architect for TriMet. “This seminal effort of championing excellence through a public process helped put Portland and Oregon on the international stage. It’s impossible to overstate the ripple effect of this project. It marked a turning point in American architecture and urban design.”
The Museum at Warm Springs, rendering courtesy StastnyBrun
“He’s an architect and urban designer who seeks out opportunities to bring all people into the design process," Hastings adds. "He’s truly a teacher who strives to bring the best out of his ‘students.’ The mark of his greatness is when his students, clients, colleagues and stakeholders become active participants and leaders for design excellence.”
The Retrospective also marks an end and a beginning. After 35 years, StastnyBrun is ending as we know it and a new consultancy, led by Stastny, is being formed.
And I know just the project that could desperately use Don Stastny's expertise: the disastrous Columbia Crossing bridge.
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