About David Thompson
David Thompson is a veteran architect with 25+ years of experience in Los Angeles and NYC. He does it all–design, management, production, construction coordination–and he founded his own firm, Assembledge+. I met David through a client and loved his design practices and style almost immediately. We both are committed to sustainability and are modern minimalist enthusiasts.
Q&A
Q.) What makes a good architect?
A.) A good architect is an artist capable of seeing the many parts that make up the architecture process. Suppose architecture is viewed as a circle with several points along that circle that represent the process–good architecture exists when it is successful on as many of those points as possible, and a good architect strives to succeed on as many of those points as possible.
Q.) How would you describe your/your firm’s style? What makes your firm different from the rest?
A.) We are modernists at heart, with a heavy influence from the early California modernists, i.e., Schindler, Neutra, and Lautner, etc. Our work can be defined as warm modernism, which we describe as a vocabulary favoring form, an embrace of the sunlight, and a core material palette of warm woods, concrete, glass, and terrazzo.
Q.) What are the architectural features you are using right now that you think are timeless? Are there any that are making a comeback recently?
A.) Indoor/Outdoor living is a timeless architectural feature that we make the most of in all our projects. Health and wellness continue to be top priorities in residential projects, emphasizing design solutions for changing lifestyles. We also see higher demands for sustainability and hope to see those stay.
Q.) What is the most important feature or area to spend your money on when building or remodeling a house?
A.) A good architect. Spending time in the design process with an architect can be a difference in the success of a project. Invest in timeless pieces rather than following trends that come and go.
Q.) What is the most memorable project you have worked on? What about it stood out to you?
A.) I’d say the houses I have built for my family. By having the opportunity to live in our designs, I get the firsthand experience to see how the project reacts to the daily cycles of the sun seasons, and most importantly, I get to learn how the inhabitants experience and interact with the space.
Q.) Are there any landscape or interior designers that you tend to work with that you would recommend to our audiences?
A.) There are so many talented people to collaborate with in Los Angeles. Some of our favorite landscape designers are Fiore Landscape Design and Environmental Design Studio. And we love collaborating with and Jamie Bush + Co. And Susan Mitnick design on our interiors.
Q.) What predictions can you make about what kinds of homes we will be building in the coming years?
A.) We will begin to see a reduction in overall house size, perhaps a subtle shift that less is more, especially if it is well designed.