Since its founding in 1998 Johnston Marklee's diverse portfolio has been unified by a singular conceptual approach to each project where the relationship between design and building technology are explored to create unique works of architecture. Principals Sharon Johnston and Mark Lee’s approach to projects, varying in scale from master plans to buildings and temporary installations, distills the inherent complexity of each project into coherent solutions. Johnston Marklee has a substantial architectural portfolio including residential, commercial, institutional, and exhibition environments with a particular focus on the arts.
While maintaining a deep commitment to architecture history and the discipline’s ongoing discourse, Johnston Marklee draws upon an extensive network of collaborators in related fields, engaging the expertise of contemporary artists, graphic designers, and writers to broaden the breadth of design research. Johnston Marklee ascribes to the model of collaboration in which the expertise of joining disciplines are sharpened, rather than blurred, maintaining permeable boundaries for greater results.
Current projects include a new studio campus for the UCLA Graduate Art Program in Culver City, California; DEPART Foundation’s Grand Traiano Art Complex in Grottaferrata, Italy and Poggio Golo winery in Montepulciano, Italy; Vault House, a private beachside residence in Oxnard, California; and Chile House/META, a community arts center in Penco, Chile, for the Chilean government.
The firm has garnered many notable awards including Progressive Architecture Design Awards, AIA Los Angeles & AIA California Council Honor Awards, American Architecture Award, and an AR Award for Emerging Architecture.
