Skylab HQ Portland, Oregon office building, OR commercial property, Northwest USA architecture design photos

Skylab Headquarters in Portland

March 20, 2024

Design: Skylab

Location: Portland, Oregon, USA

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon office

Photos by Eric Fortier

Skylab HQ, Portland, Oregon office building

Longtime occupants of a historic building in downtown Portland, Skylab’s office space was vastly undersized and no longer met the needs of their evolving practice. The search for new space began with several questions, “How can our studio evolve from a dedicated workspace to a playground for the art and design community?

Where can we find a space to integrate gardens, an event venue, and a fabrication shop, as well as our studio?” A three-year search turned up a triangle-shaped corner lot in the city’s Northwest Industrial area consisting of two steel buildings and an adjacent storage/work yard. The resulting transformation reflects the firm’s design culture, which promotes experimentation, collaboration, and community, as well as an opportunity to share space with PDX Contemporary Art.

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon office

Originally built in the mid-1940s for the Titan Metal Products Corp., the 10,000-square-foot complex consists of two semi-cylindrical, prefabricated steel warehouse buildings, notable for their arching roof forms and connected via an enclosed walkway.

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon

While much of the existing structures remain intact, Skylab has reworked the layout and updated the buildings through a strategic set of insertions and modifications. Visual and physical connections to the surrounding landscape and urban environment are enhanced through expansive new glazing on the north and south facades and four large 10-foot-by-10-foot operable window walls along the east. An existing 40-foot-long zipper-like skylight running along the central ridge of the easternmost building was expanded to 60 feet to bring sunlight deep within the building to work areas.

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon

Inside, the venue features work spacers, a full kitchen and dining room, listening lounge, 3D print space, and enhanced meeting and workspaces.

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon office

The interiors feature an industrial aesthetic: exposed concrete floors, aluminum windows, and an exposed steel roof. Natural elements were introduced through the addition of conference rooms made with cross-laminated timber (CLT), wood cabinetry, and four 15-foot-tall trees in the large, open work area. Accessibility and energy systems were also part of the scope.

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon

Surrounding the warehouses is a complex of garden spaces, including outdoor meeting and lounge areas, a 300-person performance and event area, a cultivation garden, an outdoor cooking zone, fire pits, as well as sport courts for pickleball, table tennis, and basketball. It is Skylab’s goal to create a vibrant space for designers, artists, and the broader community to connect over events, performances, and critical discourse.

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon USA

Skylab HQ, Portland, Oregon offices – Building Information

Architecture and Interiors: Skylab – https://skylabarchitecture.com/
Skylab Architecture team
Jeff Kovel, Principal, Design Architect
Brent Grubb, Principal-in-charge
Jennifer Martin, Project Architect
Nita Posada, Principal, Interior Design
Amy DeVall, Interior Design

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon USA

Consultant team
Skylab Architecture (architecture and interior design)
2.ink Studio (landscape architecture)
Humber Design Group Inc. (civil engineering)
Valar Consulting Engineering (structural engineering)
Jacobs (mechanical design / build)
Lorentz Bruun (general contractor)

Skylab HQ Portland Oregon USA

Photography: Eric Fortier

Skylab HQ, Portland, Oregon office information / images received 200324 from Skylab

Location: Portland, Oregon, USA

Portland Buildings

Portland Building Designs on e-architect:

Fariborz Maseeh Hall, Portland State Universit
Design: Hacker
Fariborz Maseeh Hall at Portland State University Oregon
photography : Pete Eckert
Fariborz Maseeh Hall at Portland State University

University of Oregon Department of Architecture
University of Oregon Department of Architecture

Portland State University Events
Portland State University Architecture Events

Oregon Building Designs

Contemporary Oregon Architecture

Oregon Architecture

Serena Williams Building, Beaverton
Design: Skylab Architecture
Serena Williams Building Nike World HQ Beaverton Oregon
photos by Jeremy Bittermann, Stephen Miller and J.P. Paull, PLACE
Serena Williams Building Nike World Headquarters, Oregon

Rangers Ridge House, Portland
Design: Giulietti / Schouten Architects
Rangers Ridge House in Portland
photo : David Papazian
New Home in Portland

Panavista Hill House, West Hills, Portland
Design: Steelhead Architecture
Panavista Hill House in Portland
photo : Josh Partee
House in Portland

Original Restaurant Portland

New American Architecture

American Architects Studios

American Building Designs

American Architecture Designs – key selection:

Academic Center at College of Marin, Kentfield, San Francisco
Design: TLCD Architecture + Mark Cavagnero Associates
College of Marin Academic Center Building - American University Buildings
photo : Tim Griffith
College of Marin Academic Center Building

Roberts Pavilion, Claremont McKenna College, Los Angeles, California
Design: John Friedman Alice Kimm Architects (JFAK)
Roberts Pavilion American University Buildings
photography : Benny Chan
Roberts Pavilion at Claremont McKenna College

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