Skylab Architecture used our Baldur sliding door hardware system in one of our favorite recent projects. Skylab is a Portland based design firm specializing in contemporary architecture and interior design. Founded in 1999 on the ideal of designing environments that create lasting effects on the natural and built worlds, Skylab continues to thrive today and has won awards from OCAPA, AIA, ASLA among others. The firm is behind a number of high-profile projects including the W Hotel in Seattle, Nike’s Camp Victory pop up in Eugene, and the Summit Village at Powder Mountain, Utah.
Skylab refit the Black Box Building, a 1916 historical building located at the corner of SW 13th Ave and Burnside, to be a boutique commercial hub of the neighborhood and serve as their new headquarters. Skylab, according to local architecture writer Brian Libby, was uniquely qualified to update the building for modern use.
"Skylab has a uniquely futuristic, sexy design style that feels part disco and part Stanley Kubrick. It applies particularly well, if counter-intuitively, to giving old buildings new life." Brian Libby, Portland Architecture Blog.
As a part of their work updating the building into a modern, flex-use space, Skylab used Krownlab’s Baldur sliding door hardware and Inger and Ebba door pulls.
“When you look at the market, Krownlab hardware rises above its competitors because of its uniquely minimal approach to engineering,” said Skylab Principal Architect, Jeff Kovel. “It is rare to find a product that is both technically elegant and restrained.”
Today, Skylab takes up the top floor while local fashion brands Solestruck and Tanner Goods among other boutiques occupy the ground floor retail space.
For more information on why Skylab chose Krownlab and the thinking behind the Black Box Building, read the case study.
