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Reimagining an Icon: Seattle’s U.S. Bank Center Revival - Project Profile | Ann Sacks

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photography: andrew giammarco photography

photography: hannah rankin photography

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custom penny mosaic in kiwi (walls, ceiling); photography: hannah rankin photography

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made elements custom 6&quot; x 12&quot; field in vert gloss (archway) photography: hannah rankin photography

made elements 3&quot; x 9&quot; in custom jasper matte (pillars) photography: andrew giammarco photography

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<p>Discover how SkB Architects turned a retail landmark into a vibrant neighborhood hub.</p>
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<p>Written by Juno DeMelo<br>
Design by SkB Architects</p>


reimagining an icon: seattle’s u.s. bank center revival

<h1>Reimagining an Icon: Seattle’s U.S. Bank Center Revival</h1>


<p>Shannon says that throughout the design process, she and Kyle kept asking themselves, “‘What are the connotations with certain materials, and what are you trying to foster?’ We wound up saying, ‘Everything has got to have this textured quality and artist-ceramicist style of approach so it feels like it has grit and it’s tactile, not that it’s sanitary and standoffish.’ Everything has this smaller-module, textured, colorful—but not color-heavy—feel. And so even though it’s this big place, it has a kind of coziness to it. It feels so nice and natural to be in there.” </p>


<p>From there, “everything responded to that green penny tile,” says Kyle. Drawn to colors that complemented the depth of the penny tile’s glaze and the brown rim around its edge, SkB Architects chose Ann Sacks MADE tile in <a href="https://techcomm.kohler.com/techcomm/pdf/AS_Literature_MADEbyAnnSacksPalette.pdf" target="_blank">glossy green Vert, sandy Flannel, New Spiced Ginger</a>, and a custom matte sage called Jasper that’s “kind of an ambiguous color,” says Shannon. “I think ambiguous colors are really nice because they allow people to see different things.” They also framed one of the archways with marble Ann Sacks slabs, which “have such dramatic movement and veining,” says Shannon. “We drew every piece as we went around the radiuses to dimension so that the installers at least had a road map, but it was a nice combination of the architect documenting to the 16th of an inch and then working with artisan craftspeople to showcase their craft.”</p>


<p>Whereas many designers would use groupings of furniture to highlight architectural elements, anchor intimate spaces, and create focal points within the open layout, “that always has a temporary feel, and the space doesn’t really have a soul,” says Kyle Gaffney. “You’ll see these moments with these different tiles—these are built-in pieces,” he continues. “The architects and the developer saw the value in building something permanent, in having places to bring your laptop and buy your lunch.” With two garage-style doors that open up in the summer, the space is so conducive to connection, Kyle says that someone caught up in a conversation on the sidewalk could find themselves in Cedar Hall without even realizing it. </p>


<p>“If you think about the model of an office tower, most build right to the sidewalk and try to lease the tower, and the lobbies are stone with a couple of Barcelona chairs. When the tower shuts down at 6pm, you have these black holes in the city,” explains Kyle. SkB Architects’ aim: To enliven the neighborhood by creating a human-scale space that would be both an amenity to its tenants and a street-level experience that would serve residents and visitors alike. </p>


<p>“When we found this green, it was just the perfect color,” says Shannon. “It has an earthy tone; it’s not overly garish; and when we showed it to the client, they loved it.” There was just one small problem: They needed more than 3 million of the tiles to cover the walls and ceiling, and the tiles were produced by a small team of artisans in Japan who weren’t sure they could manufacture enough of them in time. “We were devastated. We looked at every green penny tile made on the planet, and they just weren’t providing what this tile was,” says Kyle. But it turned out that while the artisans couldn’t create all 3.6 million tiles at once, they could hand-glaze and hand-net them over the course of a year, shipping them as they were completed and holding back a few loose penny tiles from each round of glazing to blend with the new lot. </p>


<p>SkB Architects was also intentional about asymmetry as a way to right-size the monumental feel of the light-filled space. “The more symmetrical something is, the more formal it is,” says Shannon. She and Kyle landed on the idea of a soft barrel-vault wall for the building’s three-story atrium, aptly named Cedar Hall. (There’s also the Spruce Room, a haven within Cedar Hall that has lounge seating and workspaces.)</p>
<p>Inspired by the nearby Rainier Tower, designed by famed architect Minoru Yamasaki, SkB Architects realized that penny tiles were the key to unlocking the ceiling they envisioned. “They made perfect sense because for something to be shaped and in curved form, you need very small elements,” says Shannon. “And being netted, we could cover more ground quicker.” They fell in love with a custom Penny mosaic in Kiwi from Ann Sacks—which set the palette for the whole project.</p>


<p>When Kyle Gaffney worked in downtown Seattle’s 44-story <a href="https://usbcseattle.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">U.S. Bank Center</a> years ago, “it resembled a shopping mall,” says the founding partner of <a href="https://www.skbarchitects.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">SkB Architects</a>, which is based in Seattle. Think precast concrete, hidden ADA ramps, and escalators everywhere. “It was all about heavy architecture with a capital A and not about the users,” says Kyle. “There was no real tactility, no changes of scale. It was polished and slick, and it lacked a lot of soul.”</p>
<p>But he knew that the postmodern structure, built in the 1980s, had potential. So when he and Shannon Gaffney, SkB Architects’ other founding partner and a former U.S. Bank Center tenant herself, were asked to reposition the building’s first three floors, they jumped on the opportunity.</p>


<p>Inspired by Washington’s evergreen trees, they &quot;embraced the moniker ‘The Evergreen State,’ drawing inspiration from the lush hills and the city's unique setting, surrounded by water,” says Shannon. “Rather than conforming to the typical postmodern or international styles—where a building could feel at home anywhere—we chose to celebrate Seattle’s strong natural character. After all, we were 'green' long before it became a trend.”</p>
