oslund.and.assoc.

Profile of oslund.and.assoc.

Business Name

oslund.and.assoc.

Location

United States

Services

Architecture

Website

http://www.oaala.com

Thomas Oslund

Words from the company

"We began our journey in 1998, choosing to locate our studio in the historic warehouse district of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Our decision to work in a studio environment is crucial for our culture. A studio, by definition, is a space for the study of an art; a space that is infused with an enthusiasm and devotion to a particular subject - in our case - the thoughtful and innovative act of making place. For us that enthusiasm spills over and is visible, not only in our work, but also in our participation in academia, our neighborhoods and our region. The Midwest is known for its open expanses of sky and prairie, the horizon - and for that matter, the cold. It is a place that not only limits our actions, but also compels us to delve deeper into our creative psyches for solutions. Our decision to remain a tactile practice helps to provide a relevant and memorable working environment that demands excellence and responsibility of our associates, and pushes them to greater heights of design and cultural experience.

At oslund.and.assoc., the idea of shaping a landscape entails not only providing a place for social, physical, and intellectual interaction, but it is also about sculpting open space into an artful form that acts as a breath within its given context. We feel that through design, there exists the possibility of discovery - a discovery that comes from gracefully combining an attuned observation of contextual considerations, cultural understandings and economic realities within a deliberate programmatic focus. This is the basis for all creative expression, and the cornerstone of our design philosophy.

Because our work and process tends toward non-traditional forms, it could be said that the creative expression present in places we create resonates more strongly with art than with the traditional ideologies of landscape architecture. But for us, there has never been a distinction. We consciously practice landscape architecture as an art form. The creation of simple, artistic and profoundly beautiful spaces is a very complex process. It is more than graphic patterns; rather, it's about creating simplicity through spatial means. This multi-faceted process entails making exterior rooms and defining place, engaging the idea of movement, of compression and release, proportion and scale, light and horizon. It's about the pure physicality of shaping the land to create engaging space. We are inspired by the possibilities and are motivated by the challenge of transforming indifferent space into simple places that will shape our collective memories and emotions.

Each project offers us a new opportunity to define "place." Our intent is to affect each place in expressing the values and impressions of what it inherently possesses and encouraging what it can become in the future."