In this episode of The Three Bells, our host, Criena Gehrke sits down with Senior Architect Naseema Asif and Studio Director Peter Emerson, from international design collective RIOS. The two share their insights on what goes into making a project successful, from incorporating evolution to exploring unanticipated angles and embracing a touch of 'messiness' throughout the process.

External references:

• RIOS website
• The Music Center Plaza
• San Diego’s Balboa Park
• Houston’s Lynn Watt Square For Performing Arts
• Gold Coast Hi-Lights
• Lampposts of progress: Hi-Lights
• Gold Coast Council votes to remove public art installation 'Hi-Lights' from the M1 at Yatala

Naseema Asif Bio:

Naseema is a Senior Architect at RIOS. She has been the Project Architect on commercial and institutional projects ranging from a community center in Playa Vista to the transformation of a 1980s office park into creative office space.

She is a trusted architect and manager, orchestrating complex project teams and projects with a focused vision on the end result. These projects track an ongoing exploration into the integration of tools from architecture and landscape architecture to shape spaces that respond to the unique relationship between a proposed program and the site’s environment. She adeptly blends disciplines to create places that blur traditional boundaries and redefine our conceptions of place.

Naseema is inspired by the notion of craft and tectonics. Her personal interest in making manifests through construction as an art form, exploring the juxtaposition of materials and textures in projects which transcend disciplines.

Her expertise and experience with sustainability is evident in her work on the Resort at Playa Vista. The green building strategies she instituted for this project led to a LEED Platinum certification, the highest level of environmental recognition. Her current projects include Music Center Plaza Renovation, which will enhance the Center’s connection to the community by making it more accessible to the public, and The Park, a transformation of San Diego Tech Center into and amenity-filled active landscape to augment the workplace community.

Peter Emerson Bio:

Peter has built a career around complex projects and integrated design. Since joining RIOS in 2016, Peter has quickly contributed these skills to become an integral part of the practice. His wealth of experience designing and building campus landscapes, parks, and iconic public spaces have been an asset to some of our most complex projects. Peter melds landscape, planning, and architecture at all scales of design, while working closely with stakeholders, collaborators, and clients to create inspiring places for people to live, work, and play.

His experience spans levels of scale and expertise, from organic farming and systems all the way to international experience designing landscapes for U.S. embassies that promote ecological diplomacy and design excellence. His projects find balance, whether it be between security and accessibility like at the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool and grounds, or design and programming like at Jones Plaza in the Houston Theater District. He is a registered landscape architect and a 2009 Olmsted Scholar.