The work of Frank Lloyd Wright has been a source of inspiration for me over the past few years, as I began to learn more about his design process and incomparable work ethic. The American Institute of Architects has named Wright as the “greatest American architect of all time,” having changed the way we build and live through his 1,114 architectural works - 532 of which were realized from his seven decade career.

As we began ideating around Kith for Columbia 2022, I found myself digging into Wright’s winter home/studio in Scottsdale, AZ - Taliesin West. The complex was built in 1937 and was inspired by its desert surroundings, from its silhouette to its fabrication. Wright sought to preserve the desert environment by using local materials as to embed the structure within the landscape. Everything from local sunburned rocks to wood were used in its construction, even mixing the sand with cement to bind the forms together. The different surfaces were patterned and colored to pay homage to nearby wildlife, like the rattlesnake and saguaro cactus trees.

The concept of building product that is inspired by a specific location, but has function past these borders has always been the foundation of my work with Columbia. Taliesin West is the epitome of this approach, which is why its colors served as inspiration for this collection and why we shot our campaign on-location.