Amanda Harkness (AH): Tell us about your background and your first experience of architecture.

Kate Glasson (KG): 

AH: You’re currently with Cheshire Architects in Wellington. How would you describe your approach to design and your work there?

KG: My work at Cheshire crosses a broad range of architectural and interior disciplines – from site coordination and planning to bespoke door hardware. Some recent project collaborations include a home and garden on the wild southern coast of Ireland, a home in Golden Bay formed as a clustering of humble buildings, and a master plan for the residential care of persons with disabilities. In addition to — and often for — these projects I enjoy working at a finer scale developing bespoke lighting, joinery, hardware, and fragrances.

One of the absolute joys of working in architecture and design truly is working in collaboration. I have already had the privilege of working together with some truly engaged designers who I am both sheltered and sharpened by. The mentorship I have experienced has been genuinely — and unironically — life-altering, and the sense of comradery amongst my industry friends has been a salve.

AH: What is it about architecture and design in this capacity that appeals to you personally?

KG: I see design as a vessel through which my dreams can flow into reality. I’m drawn to and captivated by totally immersive design, the possibility of crafting whole experiences, of scheming whole worlds. I seek to create spaces as complete as they are compelling.

By working across disciplines, we channel a more fluid, seamless creativity, and can build interesting (and cohesive) spaces drawing on various — and sometimes contradicting — inspirations and design inputs. I’d like to work in this playful way so that architecture is not only the building but also the fragrance, the stationery, the textiles, the glassware and so on.

AH: Do you have a special interest or design focus that informs your design perspective?

KG: To attempt to say that I have a personal philosophy so early on in my career feels naive and foolhardy. Having said that there are themes and threads of interconnected ideas that have persisted in my mind throughout my life. In parts and in different ways, these are the reason(s) I got into architecture, the questions I investigated with my Master’s thesis, and the driving force in my work now.

For many people, it is reasonable to say that working in design — or being a ‘designer’ — changes the way you see the world. Design is a practice. To be a designer is to be continuously weaving.  It is the act of engaging that alters your perception of environments and in response to trying to understand how people inhabit these environments so to alters your perception of people themselves (compassion).

AH: What are some components that you like to see in spaces and by space-makers that you think are important that architects foster into the future?

KG: Space-making (and experiential space itself) is an act of care and generosity. Creation is not only a giving of care, time, and intention — it is also a generosity of openness, of vulnerability. When we create spaces we are essentially sharing stories. Space-making is storytelling in three dimensions — each design decision whispers, ‘This is how I see it, this is what I feel.’ Space making builds these stories together. 

As designers, we are together asking: what story could/should this space tell? What experience can be created? Space is a gift formed with warm hands to be passed to those who experience it. 

Building experiential spaces is about uniting not just physical elements but also ideas, memories, hopes, and people. It’s a process that celebrates how layers and abundance ofmeaning can enrich our world.

Good space is beautiful —  in that way that beauty is empowering. To be clear: I do not believe that beauty is a fixed and definable concept. Beauty is shifting and dynamic — beauty is different to each of us. Good space, or beautiful space, should be true and intuitive; it should be authentic for its people and purpose. It might be soft, refined, and deep — but it could also be raw, rough, honest, and organic.

In good space there is an intuitive experience of understanding: this is where I am supposed to be, and therefore who I am. Good design is a form of hospitality; it’s compassionate.

I’ve on a few occasions experienced the euphoria of that. And it’s chasing and hopefully(!) creating that feeling that I pursue when I scheme/dream/iterate designed spaces.

AH: What are your aspirations in terms of professional development?

KG: I’m currently in a position of exciting tension in the industry. I’m fresh enough still to have more paper projects than buildings realised but also experienced enough to be running with both feet on the ground — fast. Through the challenge of sitting in this space of connective tissue, I am able to both work on flexibility and strength — a stretching. The practice of design relies upon a process of testing and adjusting. An aim in my career is to retain that sense of elasticity.

Looking forward I hope to broaden and intensify my architectural experience, as well as expand opportunities for creative collaboration and experience into new fields. These might include new spatial typologies, product design, events, and experiences.

I would also love to be involved with students of architecture, and future students of architecture. I have previously had the privilege of leading a presentation on “what architecture is” to high-school students. I’d like to be engaged with the industry in different ways.

AH: Finally, tell us about your mood board colours. What inspired these choices and what qualities do they convey to you?

KG: Text here…

See more from the On the Rise series here.