McKinney York Architects / October 13, 2009
We’ve been wanting to work with architects for a while and we got our chance when McKinney York chose us to spearhead their new website. We love working with these guys and the website project was a collaboration through and through.They challenged us to design a site that featured lots of content in a minimalist design.
Your Name(s) and Title(s):
Heather McKinney President
Al York Vice President
Michelle Rossomando Vice President
Will Wood Associate
Brian Carlson Associate
Where are you located?
Just East of downtown, on 7th street.
Why Austin?
Heather was moving back to her home state of Texas after going to school and working in the Northeast, and was asked to design a house for two high school friends in Austin.
How many people does your company employ?
13
What does your company do?
We are a general practice architecture firm, doing everything from university campus work to single family residences.
Who are your clients/customers?
We have been around for 25 years, so there have been a lot. A short list of recent clients we have had the pleasure of working with include The University of Texas at Austin, Texas Tech University, McGarrah Jessee, Capital Metro, Lake Travis United Methodist Church, and many private residential clients.
What has been your greatest success?
Heather McKinney, the founding principal and president of the firm, was recently named a “Fellow” of the American Institute of Architects, which is a great honor in the profession. We also completed our largest project to date this year, a new chilling station in the heart of The University of Texas at Austin campus.
Where do you find inspiration?
Our goal on every project is to allow the specific conditions of the site, the desires of the owner, and the local context to shape the design. As a result, we don’t have a signature style. A few things that weigh heavily in almost everything we do is the climate, historical context, and local materials and skills.
Where do you want to be in five years?
We would like to be recognized among the top tier of architectural firms in the state, maintaining and improving the design quality and sustainability of the work we produce.
Why did you choose Creative Suitcase?
We interviewed about 6 companies for the project and were impressed with Rachel and Creative Suitcase from the start. Creative Suitcase had a good portfolio of work, which showed us they were smart designers. In addition to that, Rachel really listened to us in the interview and immediately proposed several interesting solutions for some of our biggest concerns.
How did you hear about us?
Internet research
What results have you experienced with us?
Our two biggest goals were to have an extremely well organized site and to present our projects in a great format. Both of these things were a success.
Top 5 items in your suitcase (your favorites): Answered by Will
Travel destination: Taipei
Take home souvenir: I like to travel lightly and I’m an amateur photographer so I don’t have many souvenirs. There are a few dusk shots of the Grand Canal in Venice that I’m proud of.
Website: Freakonomics
Logo/campaign/tagline: Whataburger’s “Flying W” logo
Austin original: Lambert’s
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Will Wood,
Associate, McKinney York Architects
