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May 19, 1999
By SAM BENNETT
Journal Staff reporter
Firm: Donald King Architects
Office: 2107 Elliott Ave.
Year founded: 1985
Staff size: 14
Recent local project: The Casey Family Program office
Q: What is your firm's specialty?
Donald I. King, A.I.A. |
A: We specialize in community facilities. We probably have more experience on community facility projects than any firm in the region. Community work is 75 percent of the projects we do, and 25 percent would be corporate and public agency work, such as health care centers.
Q: What is your background?
A: I have 20 years of experience working in community design centers. Community design centers are pretty much a community service that grew out of urban revolts of the '60s. They were about rebuilding central city communities. So I grew up working with these community-based organizations of the '60s that are now more mainstream non-profits that are the basis of our practice.
Q: What are the demands of the organizations you work with?
The Sea Mar Community Health Center in Seattle houses 100 long-term care residents. |
Q: Is it important to understand the cultural background of the groups you design for?
A: I hate to say I know enough about all these cultures to represent them in their architecture. We have found that, working with them, they actually give us the input to provide the kind of finishes and materials to create environments that are comfortable for them. They have a different set of values as to what's important to them, and it's not always Eurocentric. It's fun and challenging. The best preparation we find is just listening to the client, which has really given us the edge because we do put our egos aside. We're not building jewel boxes. We don't build to win design awards. We build to provide the best facility for our clients.
Q: At the same time, working with non-profits must present financial challenges.
King's firm was given only a few weeks to design the Seattle Seahawks Endzone store and customer service offices. |
Q: How did you get interested in architecture?
A: I grew up in Detroit. I began working in architecture when I was 17 and I have worked consistently since then. I worked my way through school. I began to connect with the central city African American neighborhoods, and felt what I wanted to offer was quality professional service to those communities. I thought it was a terrific aspiration.
Q: What are some of your current projects?
A: We are having our busiest year ever. We have eight projects under construction now. One of the largest is the Casey Family Program, a 15,000-square-foot Seattle division office. The two-story building will have a community commons which will be available to the community to use for events. It will have an adjoining conference training room to hold 200 people.
The Mount Zion Baptist Church Gideon Bell Tower is a 26-year dream project for the church. |
Q: Which architects have influenced you, and what local buildings do you like?
A: Lewis Kahn is one of my favorites. He had this other-than-European influence. So did [Frank Lloyd] Wright. He had an Asian influence in his work and some Mayan. I really appreciate seeing other forms of architecture that can be reinterpreted. One of the best Afrocentric buildings is the Seattle Art Museum, which has African form and decorativeness.
Q: What is your dream project?
A: An African American museum and cultural center. I think it would be an excellent way to continue to explore what could be an African American architecture and what does it look like and how is it different. We haven't been able to explore that.
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