When architect Karl Wanaselja built his home in Berkeley, California the junkyard became his urban forest for materials. For months he visited one of three local yards looking for car roofs and Dodge Caravan side windows. The windows became awnings and the roofs became siding for the top floor of his home.
MISSION
Since its inception in 1991, Leger Wanaselja Architecture has been a leader in green design. The firm has won numerous awards and been featured in many books, periodicals and other media, highlighting our exploration of green architecture.
The goal for every project is to shrink the ecological footprint while creating lyrical and enduring buildings. Integrating our clients’ needs with the specifics of a site, our projects emerge naturally from their surroundings and use energy and material resources efficiently. Light filled indoor-outdoor spaces often figure prominently. To reinforce the relationship of project to place we incorporate local materials, reuse existing materials and mark sunlight’s patterns in our work. Nature is always carefully considered and celebrated, even in an urban setting.
We work closely with clients and builders in order to achieve the best possible design. Since we are also green builders and developers we bring a keen understanding of construction methods and budgets to all of our projects, as well as the hands-on ability to innovate and experiment. In addition, we regularly review new and alternative materials and construction methods to improve upon aesthetics and performance, and to reduce the ecological impacts of architecture. Our work includes ground-up construction, renovation, and interior design—commercial, residential and institutional.
Karl Wanaselja has been studying, teaching and practicing architecture since 1978. He received a Master of Architecture degree from U.C. Berkeley in 1991 and his California Architecture License in 1995. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Art History/Architectural History from Cornell.
Karl also has been building since 1982 and obtained his California General Contractor's License in 1992.
He has worked with concrete, wood, steel, aluminum, adobe, bamboo and straw structural systems. He also has extensive experience in the use of salvaged materials, including salvaged woods, street signs and car parts. The creative integration of reused materials into the fabric of a design is a particular passion.
Contact karl@greendwellings.com
Cate Leger has focused on green architecture since she began her graduate studies at U.C. Berkeley in 1991. She received her Master of Architecture in 1994 and her California Architecture License in 1999. She worked at William McDonough Architects and Sim Van Der Ryn Architects prior to joining her husband in their own firm in 1996.
Prior to graduate school, Cate spent five years in Washington, D.C. as an environmental advocate working for nonprofits, the Environmental Protection Agency, and Congress. Her expertise was in pollution prevention and water quality protection. She continues her environmental advocacy through her volunteer work with organizations such as Prospect Sierra School, the Green Science Policy Institute, the city of Berkeley Energy Commission, Architects Designers and Planners for Social Responsibility, and 350BayArea. She also lectures regularly on green building and her firms work.
Contact cate@greendwellings.com