Second only to the work itself here is the story of how we met this client. It was early Sunday morning Memorial Day Weekend 2009, ROLU partner Matt Olson was deathly sick with a cold and on his way to work on a fence the firm designed for a New York Times article. Passing by the Modern in Northeast Minneapolis, Matt noticed a man sitting alone at the sidewalk cafe wearing pink pants and a light green shirt. The man was typing on an iPhone and appeared to be the owner of a vintage silver Porsche 911 parked before him. It occurred to Matt that though he was sick and miserable, the man at the cafe seemed to be on top of the world. Matt stopped and asked if he could take his picture, trying to use the moment as a reminder for himself that surely his health would return and life would get back to being good.

The man's house is very traditional but he and his wife are creative people who are interested in art. They asked us to design something that was appropriate but progressive. They wanted to have usable space in the front of their home and hoped to achieve something that felt more like a formal entrance.

A design was drawn up and built and we love how it turned out. We played with the slope of the site by creating planes that connect to the structure's facade like drawers being pulled out through the yard. We used steel to create a raised platform/patio area just outside the front door. Steel is used throughout the design for planters that contain native flowers, a birch tree, and existing bushes. We removed the bulky support structure from their hammock and installed removable posts to make the space uncluttered and more adaptable.


Looking back at the begining, we can't help but think the hands of fate were are work here. To the question 'What is fate?' Borges responds: It is that 'name we give [to] the infinite, ceaseless chain of thousands of intertwined causes.'