First Lamp@first_lamp
First Lamp is an architecture and construction firm based in Seattle, Washington. First Lamp believes one's journey through life produces a story that can manifest itself in the way one builds his or her surroundings. These stories are spoken through the details, materials, and volumes of the buildings in which one lives, learns, and plays. These elements, when arranged in a meaningful way with their context, are what help buildings enrich the lives of their inhabitants. First Lamp is in search of that story.
The firm's attraction to this way of working has both practical and philosophical roots. Residential architecture is unique from the remainder of the building industry in that it allows those who conceive the plan to build as well, allowing projects to mature through construction with the same creative focus that began their conception. Not only does First Lamp's working knowledge of construction increase the efficiency with which its projects are built, but it also increases the depth of their meaning. When the hands that hold the pencil also drive the nails, everything changes. The physical acts of building (touching, climbing, holding) open otherwise untouched avenues of creative thought and thicken the bond between body and building. Ideas become more practically and philosophically relevant to the project.