Hi Michelle, I’m delighted to talk with you. First, I have to ask, where does the name Atelier Drome come from?

Originally, my firm was named Atelier A+D. I began collaborating more and more on projects with my friend Henry Walters, whose own firm was named Drome Design Studio. When we merged our companies in 2012, we became Atelier Drome. Atelier is French for studio or workshop and Drome is a french root word for a specially created place (like a velodrome, aerodrome). We like to think our combined name means we’re a studio for specially created places, although we recognize we’re taking some liberties with the translation.
 

Tell me about your background. Where’d you grow up and how did this experience inform your sense of design?

I grew up in a small town just north of Boston (Gloucester, MA). My dad was a social worker and my mother had a variety of jobs including running social housing. I wasn’t really exposed to architects as a kid though. I really don’t know where the idea came from, maybe it was Mike Brady, maybe it was my friend who had a really cool collection of iconic building stamps. Whatever it was, I got it in my head really early, probably around fifth grade. My parents were super supportive, and in seventh grade, they found an architecture summer camp for girls through Girls Inc. After that, every decision I made was an attempt to bring me closer to becoming an architect. Of course, some moves were better than others… I’m not sure the summer job at the blueprint shop really did anything other than give me a serious aversion to ammonia. But what I really learned from my parents that informed my sense of design is the idea that real people with real problems use space. Architecture and design can solve problems just as much as it can exist purely for aesthetic enjoyment. And great design does both. 

​

What are your earliest memories of architecture and design?

For someone who always wanted to be an architect, it is shocking how little I knew about it until I went to college. I was fortunate to be exposed to great artwork during my childhood, we frequently went to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. I was particularly interested in the Egyptian Collections and the Modern Art exhibits though I don’t remember much about architecture beyond the New England puritan salt boxes. When I landed in Chicago for college, my mind was blown by both the architecture of the city and what we were exposed to in class. I was not at all prepared.

I’m glad you stuck with it! What led you then to establish your own firm and how did you meet cofounder Henry Walters?

I had always intended to have my own firm, but the 2008 recession gave me a little kickstart. Henry and I met when we were both working for Ben Trogdon back in 2004 or so. We kept in touch and when I started my own firm I reached out to him a lot for guidance as he had started his own a few years prior. 

​

Your office is located in Pioneer Square in downtown Seattle. Tell us about the neighborhood, what do you like about it, why did you choose this location?

The scale of Pioneer Square is really great due in large part to its historic nature, but it also has great energy. There is just a really great camaraderie here, everyone celebrating the wins together and also understanding the struggles.