(Plinth Architects)
Brooklyn, NY — since 2009
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We build
buildings
people actually
like.
(no, really — ask our clients)
Plinth is a small, loud-ish architecture studio in Brooklyn. We design homes, libraries, schools and workshops with lots of light, honest materials and the occasional slide.
Gowanus Library — the reading pit
Marigold Elementary, day one
Red Hook Workshop (all bricks kept)
17 yrs of dust
Homes
Libraries
Schools
Workshops
Pavilions
Housing
Cabins
Arts centres
Homes
Libraries
Schools
Workshops
Pavilions
Housing
Cabins
Arts centres
(01) hello
hi, we’re Plinth!
We think buildings should make people happy — kids, neighbours, the person cleaning the windows. So we draw by hand, build lots of models, and never design a glass box.
142
buildings finished
17
years of sawdust
9
awards we’re weirdly proud of
0
glass boxes. ever.
(02) the work
Stuff we’ve built
(& a few we’re still building)
(03) what we do
Four things, done properly.
(plus making very good coffee for site meetings)
Architecture
New buildings from the ground up — homes, schools, libraries, studios.
Adaptive reuse
Old warehouses, churches and factories, given a second (or third) life.
Interiors
Colour, joinery, lighting and furniture that make a building feel lived-in.
Masterplanning
Streets, courtyards and neighbourhoods designed with the people who’ll use them.
(04) how it goes
From napkin to house keys.
4 steps, zero jargon
01
Napkin
We visit, listen, measure, and sketch a lot of bad ideas until a good one shows up.
3–4 weeks
02
Models
Cardboard, foam, then 3D. You’ll hold your building in your hands before it exists.
6–10 weeks
03
Build
We stay on site with the builders, answer every phone call and catch problems early.
6–18 months
04
Keys
Handover, snag list, a small party, and a check-in a year later to see how it’s living.
1 big day
“They turned our tired old library into the place every kid in Gowanus wants to be after school. Also: the slide was their idea.”
Dana Whitfield
Branch Manager, Gowanus Library