On the Road: Travel & Architecture Beyond the Studio

Robby and his wife traveled through Germany, absorbing historic cities and contemporary interventions layered into centuries-old urban fabric.

Their journey continued through the Austrian Alps, where a chance encounter became a highlight: a giant alpine slide spotted from the road, a three-second decision to pull over, and an unforgettable ride that was as exhilarating as it was thoughtfully engineered. 

Equal parts infrastructure, landscape, and play, it was a reminder that architecture doesn’t always announce itself, it often surprises you when you’re paying attention.

Olivia traveled with her family to Spain, where a visit to the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao offered a powerful, in-person experience of Frank Gehry’s iconic work. Moving through the building revealed its true scale, materiality, and relationship to the city, an example of how architecture can redefine place while remaining deeply connected to its surroundings.

Loryn visited the Farnsworth House in Plano, Illinois, experiencing Mies van der Rohe’s modernist masterpiece firsthand. Set delicately within the landscape, the home’s clarity of structure, restraint, and transparency offered a timeless lesson in proportion, precision, and the quiet dialogue between architecture and nature.

Conor and his girlfriend explored the Northern Alps, encountering high-alpine architecture shaped by extreme climate, rugged terrain, and material honesty. 

Standing alongside a modern mountain refuge embedded into the landscape, the experience echoed many of the values central to our work, purpose-driven design, structural clarity, and a deep respect for place.