Jim Olson,

FAIA Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA) is a postnominal title or membership, designating an individual who has been named a fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). Fellowship is bestowed by the institute on AIA-member ...

(b. 1940) is the founding principal of the

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

-based firm

Olson Kundig Architects Olson Kundig, is an American architectural firm based in Seattle, run by architects Jim Olson and Tom Kundig. Founded by Olson in 1966, the firm’s work has grown to encompass museums, commercial and mixed-use design, exhibit design, interior de ...

. He is best known for residential design, often for art collectors, though his designs have also included

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

s, commercial spaces and places of worship. In 2006, William Stout Publishers released ''Art + Architecture: The Ebsworth Collection and Residence''. His honors include the 2007 Seattle AIA Medal of Honor, selection as the 1999

Bruce Goff Bruce Alonzo Goff (June 8, 1904 – August 4, 1982) was an American architect, distinguished by his organic, eclectic, and often flamboyant designs for houses and other buildings in Oklahoma and elsewhere. A 1951 ''Life Magazine'' article stat ...

Chair of Creative Architecture at the

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

, and his induction in 1990 as a Fellow of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

. He is an honorary trustee to the

Seattle Art Museum The Seattle Art Museum (commonly known as SAM) is an art museum located in Seattle, Washington, United States. It operates three major facilities: its main museum in downtown Seattle; the Seattle Asian Art Museum (SAAM) in Volunteer Park on Cap ...

, and a founding trustee of Artist Trust, and Center on Contemporary Art, both in Seattle. Olson received a bachelor of architecture degree from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattl ...

Notable works

*Noah’s Ark,

Skirball Cultural Center The Skirball Cultural Center, founded in 1996, is a Jewish educational institution in Los Angeles, California. The center, named after philanthropist-couple Jack H. Skirball and Audrey Skirball-Kenis, features a museum with regularly changing e ...

, Los Angeles (2007) *The Ebsworth Residence, Seattle (2004) *Red House, Denver (1999) * St. Mark's Cathedral Renovation, Seattle (1998) *The Gallery House, Washington (1987) *Hillclimb Court, Seattle (1985) *Pike & Virginia Building, Seattle (1978)
Earth House
Washington (1969)

References

''Jim Olson Houses''. New York: The Monacelli Press, 2009. Ngo, Dung. ''Art + Architecture: The Ebsworth Collection and Residence''. William Stout Publishers, 2006. Ojeda, Oscar Riera, ed. ''Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects: Architecture, Art, and Craft''. The Monacelli Press, 2001.

External links

Olson Kundig Architects website

Architectural Digest, AD 100
{{DEFAULTSORT:Olson, Jim 1940 births 20th-century American architects Living people Articles containing video clips University of Washington alumni 21st-century American architects