• Featured,  Print Edition

    Mike Shively, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP

    Founding Partner, Architect En Masse | Chicago, Illinois   To Mike Shively, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP, whose mission in life is to make life better through architecture, design is a personal exploration. But it is less about putting his own stamp or personal architectural mark on the work he co-creates with his studio team and clients, and more about the…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured,  Print Edition

    Richly textured

    When Mary Tolan, founder and managing partner of Chicago Pacific Founders of Chicago, Illinois, looked to expand the firm’s existing square footage at their headquarters along Michigan Avenue, the investment leader tapped the creative expertise of long-time design partner Yvette Cusack of BJC Designs LLC to bring the dynamic, full floor workplace to life. Located at 980 North Michigan Avenue,…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured

    Virginia Tile partners with Marazzi Tile

    Virginia Tile Company, a leading provider of porcelain, ceramic, stone, glass, metal, and mosaic design solutions headquartered in Livonia, Michigan, recently announced a strategic partnership with Marazzi Tile to expand its distribution responsibilities to Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Western Pennsylvania. The territory expansion and collaboration with the U.S.-based, Italian-owned ceramic manufacturer became effective as of August 1, 2023. “We are…

  • Design Spotlight,  Featured,  Print Edition

    The Euclid model

    The Great Lakes ecoregion has stood witness to the passage of time as marsh, dune, and forest habitats expanded and contracted, economic engines of industry rose and fell, and the growth of city populations surged and declined in cyclic fashion. While stalwart, its composition of freshwater sand dunes, sandstone cliffs, pebble beaches, limestone bedrock, and wetland basins have felt that…

  • Featured,  Form

    New space to thrive

    Ghafari Associates LLC, a global architecture and engineering firm, announced Nov. 3, 2022 it will hold an official grand opening of its new space in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022. The private event is a celebration of the newly renovated 8,500-square-foot office space overlooking Rosa Parks Circle in downtown Grand Rapids, featuring design inspiration from the firm’s…

  • Design Spotlight,  Featured,  Form,  Print Edition

    Jackie Koo, AIA, IIDA, LEED AP, NOMA

    Founder, Owner, Principal KOO | Chicago, Illinois   In architecture, as in literature, arts, and other social sciences, there is a wealth of traditions, movements, applications, and analyses—avant-garde, thought-provoking, and otherwise—that have shaped their respective fields throughout time and have challenged scholars and practitioners alike to consider the world and communication around them anew. For many, architecture is a form…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured

    Freshwater future

    As a collective of fresh water that houses more than 20 percent of North America’s freshwater volume, the Great Lakes hold a unique status among American waterways. They require special consideration and treatment, especially in the face of climate change’s adverse effects. While the Great Lakes have a long, natural history of water level fluctuation, recent levels signal a decidedly…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured

    Energy strategies

    At its 7th Annual Michigan Energy Summit, the Michigan Battle of the Buildings program announced 2020’s award winning sustainable organizations and businesses. The awards and recognition program highlights energy-use reduction and efficient practices across Michigan’s commercial, industrial, and multi-family buildings each year. Since the start of pandemic, especially, commercial building owners and managers have needed to adapt with significant changes…

  • Featured,  Form

    Ford Airport’s operations center

    On June 30, 2021, the Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids, Michigan broke ground on a new $7.7 million operations center that will house key teams such as operations and communications, dispatch, and a new emergency operations center, or EOC. The 11,600-square-foot facility will streamline daily activities and day-to-day management at the airport, as well as serve as…