“As architects, we can forget how much more there is to buildings than the structure of what’s built. What we really live in are the interiors, their materiality, light, and form, the things we touch and feel.”
Oda Olafsrud wants to shine a light on the interdisciplinary heart of her architectural practice. For the CEO of the architectural design agency, House of Creation, inspiration comes from where architecture merges with the forms and textures of design, fashion, art, and even dance, a discipline in which she’s trained.
That training is partly why Oda describes her current work as “choreographing atmospheres”. Yet, that’s also a mission statement that helps her attend to the movements, rhythms, textures, and moods of the spaces she creates, not just the four walls. “Architecture always makes us feel something,” she explains, “and as an architectural designer, I’m interested in how we can curate spaces and ambiences that are healing, that make people feel differently.”
The Oslo-based architect had her first opportunity to put her ideas into action in New York, when, straight out of university, she was commissioned to fully renovate the Germanotta Residence in Manhattan. The result was a dreamy, sophisticated space with a tangible Scandinavian influence. But, as Oda admits, it was quite a risk for a new graduate.
“It was much less safe than just joining an architectural firm,” she says. But it did give her the chance to handle a whole project alone, “from the macro to the micro,” from the concept to the practicalities of managing subcontractors and leaky facades. “I wouldn’t change it for anything. That experience, merging disciplines and practices, gave me what I needed to start my own architectural practice.”
Part of Oda’s success during that project was a commitment to collaboration, a value that inspired House of Creation. Oda used the Germanotta Residence to showcase design works by female creators. As she explains, “I didn’t want the project to be just about what I could contribute. Instead, I really value enabling other women to showcase their design. There’s a beauty in using your opportunities to highlight other people’s work.”
This spirit of collaboration will be central to House of Creation’s next steps. “As well as working with designers in the UK, Germany, and Scandinavia and the US, I’m opening a showroom in Oslo where clients can come to see my work, alongside vintage items and bespoke pieces from collaborators,” Oda tells us.
Yet, in supporting female talent, Oda is also aiming for something bigger—to shake up a system still largely dominated by men. “I’d love to break down this ‘norm’, for the benefit of architecture. With so many techniques and cultures out there, if we want spaces to be different and unique, diversity has to come first.”
