Executive Profiles
Coffee with Guppy: Seeking Authenticity with Tom Kundig
A chat with the celebrated Seattle architect.
By Nancy Guppy February 2, 2017
This article originally appeared in the February 2017 issue of Seattle magazine.
Tom Kundig is a principal and owner at Olson Kundig, the Seattle architecture firm and design practice founded on the idea that buildings can serve as a bridge between nature, culture and people.
Nancy: What does an architect do?
Tom: An architect solves problems. We observe whats going on culturally, both historically and currently, and try to make buildings that resolve a situation, whatever it might be.
Did you always want to be an architect?
Oh, no. My dads an architect, I grew up with architects around me and there was a certain culture about architecture that I didnt particularly appreciate, but what I did appreciate were the artists in that environment. Eventually, against all sanity, I wound up in architecture and couldnt be happier.
How important is the budget when you take on a project?
Its critical because a budget gives context and, from my perspective, the tighter the budget (within reason), the better the building because it makes you edit. When the budget is loose, the building can become overindulged.
Are you a different designer now than you were when you started out?
Oh, yes. I understand a lot more about the human condition and I understand the technical drivers much more completely. Architecture is a profession of wisdom, and its rare when you see that wisdom in a young architect.
Do you have a favorite building in Seattle?
Its a toss-up between the Pike & Virginia Building, designed by Olson Walker in the late 70s/early 80s, and St. Ignatius Chapel on the Seattle University campus.
Is there a building you wish you had designed?
Nope. There are so many conspiring forces to make mediocre buildings that when a good building happens, no matter who did it, we should just stand back and applaud!
Tom Kundig says his main driver is “to make as much as I can out of life.”
Are there signature elements of a Tom Kundig design?
My desire is for an authenticity, both in cultural function and in the way that the natural materials whether brick, steel or wood age and get better with time.
In every project youve done, is there always at least one thing that you hate?
Uh, yeah, on virtually every project, but I never admit it! (Laughs)
What gets you excited about a project?
A client whos curious about the world because that person is going to engage and ask questions in a way that may take me out of the way I typically answer.
What has to be there in order for you to take on a client?
Trust. If you hire me, then Ive got to trust you as a client and youve got to trust me as your architect, that Im going to be doing my best work working for you.
Have you ever had to walk away from a project?
Yeah. Its difficult but its not about me. Its about the situation. Im not the right architect for you, youre not the right client for me and we are wasting our time.
When do you know if something youve made is good?
When Im drawing and things are happening and fitting together, its like listening to music inside my head. It flows.
Is there a Tom Kundig Life Statement?
I put a quote in my first book: Only common things happen when common sense prevails. I dont know who came up with it, but it always makes me smile and its kind of true. If youre looking for adventure, or something new or something worth living for, youre looking for the edge, whatever that might be.
How do you balance your creative mind with your business mind?
I think a creative mind is a business mind because business is creative. Youre dealing with a set of issues and youre trying to find a pathway, trying to resolve the issues, into a success.
What piece of advice would you give to your younger self, when you were just starting out?
Be more secure about your abilities and less insecure about your existence so that you can do things with a well-placed confidence.
What song would you like played at your funeral?
(Laughs) I dont know! I wont be hearing it so I dont really care.
Youre stuck on a desert island and can have one book, one record, one food and one person.
My wife, Jeannie. Beethovens Ninth. A hamburger. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.
Who or what is your worst enemy?
Noncritical thinking. People who dont think about what theyre saying.
Beatles or Rolling Stones?
Beatles. I share a birthday with John Lennon and sympathy with his larger musical and political agendas.
What four guests would make for the perfect dinner party?
Kurt Vonnegut, Richard Feynman, Indira Gandhi, Muhammad Ali.
Do you have a spiritual practice and if yes, how does that practice manifest?
I was raised a Unitarian, so it is a very personal spiritual practice and certainly influenced by both Buddhist teachings and Jesuit friends.
For more on artists, entertainers and entrepreneurs, tune in Art Zone with Nancy Guppy on the Seattle Channel (seattlechannel.org/artzone).