Sparkflight Studios

Image Credit: NASA. Taken from Emergence Magazine : Ten Love Letters to the Earth by Thich Nhất Hanh. In honor of Earth Day this week, we would like to share with you our passion for creating healthy, equitable, and community-centered design. In our practice areas (Multifamily, Commercial, Interiors, and Public Art) we approach every project with this care and sensitivity. This stems from one of our core beliefs that a healthy, sustainable world is possible. As design professionals, it is our job to ensure that the spaces we live, work, and play support our health. Organizations like the  Healthy Building Network  are raising their voice and partnering with communities to advocate for a built environment in which all people are free of chemicals that harm us. To make spaces where we breathe easy, think clearly, and feel more creative requires research and community buy-in. According to the HBN, of roughly 85,000 chemicals available in the market, few are adequately tested fo...

(Left to Right) quantum (Sugar Land, TX), Through Her Eyes (Henderson, NV), "Typographical" Map (Henderson, NV). Imagery © Sparkflight Studios. Here at Sparkflight, one of our passions is public art. We believe in its power to delight, invite reflection, speak of cultural truths, and spark curiosity. Here are a few of our past proposals that we are excited to share with you. Though never constructed, they are a part of our never-ending investigations into creating compelling works of art that inspire. Imagery © Sparkflight Studios. quantum (2019) The City of Sugar Land, Texas requested proposals for an atrium public art piece that will be suspended in City Hall's atrium to commemorate the City's 60th Anniversary. Our proposal, called quantum , is inspired by the historical richness of Sugar Land and seeks to understand its history through the lens of memory, collective hope, and heritage. Every angle presents to the viewer a new dynamic between the elements, mirroring...

  The Nature Conservancy in Nevada. Image credit © Simon Williams. Wetlands: Hands On! (W.H.O.) is a stewardship program at the Clark County Wetlands Park involving more than 5,000 community volunteers since 2013. Volunteers participated in monthly projects including picking up trash and debris, removing graffiti, painting, removing invasive plants, trail maintenance, and restoration. Dozens of southern Nevada organizations, clubs, businesses, and agencies have participated. The next W.H.O. stewardship opportunity is this Saturday, 2/12/22, from 9 AM - 11 AM. Sign-up link here:  who.ccwetlandspark.com . Additional contact information :  7050 Wetlands Park Lane Las Vegas, NV 89122 (702) 455-7522 wetlands@clarkcountynv.gov More February programs may be found by clicking here .

  City Of Las Vegas Hosts Black History Month Events (Jan. 16-Feb. 26, 2022) Today we honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.. Let us take inspiration from that beloved man, and commit to nonviolence and always protect the dignity of others! "We cannot walk alone." City Of Las Vegas Hosts Black History Month Events Jan. 16-Feb. 26, 2022 Peace Week 2022: Extending the Dream Celebration “Inspiring the Movement through Change” Sunday, Jan. 16, 3 to 5 p.m. Free and open to the public. West Las Vegas Library Theatre, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd. Peace Week 2022 will honor, pay tribute and celebrate the life, legacy and contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. For more information, call the West Las Vegas Library at 702-507-3989 or the Doolittle Senior Center at 702-229-6125. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Youth League Basketball Tournament Thursday-Saturday, Jan. 20-22; 4 p.m. Thursday-Friday and 10 a.m. Saturday. Free and open to selected schools and youth programs. Doolittle Community Center...

Artist's rendering of the new LACMA designed by Atelier Peter Zumthor (set to open 2024). Fly-through video by Andrei Juradowitch © 2021.  http://andreiucop.com/ THE NEW YORKER published a thoughtful article on Peter Zumthor's newly (and controversially) designed LACMA in October 2020. The article touches on several nuances of the project: local and municipal politic, meaning of art within cultural milieu and institutional structures -- all in the context of conversations with Zumthor in his hermitage in Haldenstein, Switzerland. Read the full article, here . Below is the latest release from LACMA: New galleries. More art. For all of Los Angeles. A new way to encounter the world’s cultures—past, present, and future. Over the last two decades, LACMA has sought to find new ways to embrace all the communities of Los Angeles County and honor all the world’s artistic traditions. Our goal is to make the experience of our collection richer and more accessible than ever befo...

Marble Manor Enhancement Project (2009), Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority. Image by Sparkflight Studios, © All Rights Reserved. Sparkflight Studios believes in the power of public art. From our experiences, we know art to be a vehicle for uplifting the human spirit. Over the years, we have refined our approach, which tends to be four-fold, ranging from the "small" to the "extra-large": Small: attention to detail, materiality, and scale. Medium: the concinnity of the "small" elements.  Large: sensitivity to the social, environmental, historical, and cultural milieu. Extra-Large: holding the past, living the present, and projecting art for future generations. In the past, we've posted organizations such as Artolution and Forecast , to whom we look towards for trustworthy guidance when it comes to making powerful art and positive change in communities. For us too, community participation is important. For instance, in our Canal Convergence scul...

Image by Spencer Platt/Getty Images , © All Rights Reserved. With joy and shared enthusiasm, Sparkflight Studios wishes you and your loved ones a blessed Fourth.   Let America be America again. Let it be the dream it used to be. Let it be the pioneer on the plain Seeking a home where he himself is free. ... We, the people, must redeem The land, the mines, the plants, the rivers. The mountains and the endless plain— All, all the stretch of these great green states— And make America again!  — Langston Hughes, July 1936 From The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes, published by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. Copyright © 1994 the Estate of Langston Hughes.

The Sankofa Village for the Arts drum and dance group performing during the Jubilee of Freemen Parade to celebrate Juneteenth at Point State Park last year in Pittsburgh. Credit: Alexandra Wimley/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, via Associated Press. On June 19, 1865, enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, were told they were free. A century and a half later, we hold that moment in collective joy, and listen to its resonance pass down to every generation. Happy Juneteenth Freedom Day! Follow this link for a list of tomorrow's celebrations in the Las Vegas valley, here .

Image credit: The annual 4th Avenue Fest in Austin, MN was imagined by city planner Holly Wallace, Cheryl Berglund of MacPhail Austin (pictured percussion experience), and multiple community artists and volunteers. Forecast is a non-profit arts organization founded in 1978 by and for artists working in public space. Based in Saint Paul, MN and working both locally and nationally, Forecast connects artists with cities, institutions and communities to courageously tackle the vital issues of our time. They partner with decision-makers and stakeholders on arts and cultural planning efforts, and support public artists with funding, training and opportunities to create partnerships and advance their public art careers. They also help others find, select, curate, fund and commission public artists. Forecast emphasizes access for artists of color, indigenous artists, and groups that are traditionally excluded. This blog post's headline image captures moments from a Forecast project which ...

  Our gratitude and reflection on the sacrifices by our armed services and their families.

Artolution imagines a brighter future for global refugees. Artolution began a decade ago with two nomadic artists, circling the globe to promote positive social change through one-off projects in crisis-affected locations; in places that few people would dare to travel on their own. They brought together groups of people who never knew that they could exist in the same room; only to discover their shared traditions and hopes for the future created the capacity to feel hope together. The communities where they worked repeatedly asked, “But, when will you be back?” Artolution believes that through the process of creating collaborative art, diverse communities can come together in times of conflict and social turmoil to address the challenges they face together.  Projects are organized and facilitated in partnership with local artists, grass-roots organizations, schools, and international organizations to ensure locally-led programs survivability and long-term, integrated presence wi...

Tonight is Family Promise of Las Vegas' "Share the Promise" Facebook Live event! Come learn more about the mission of Family Promise of Las Vegas from 4 - 6 PM; at showtime, follow the link here . Family Promise of Las Vegas has been empowering homeless families to achieve sustainable independence for over 30 years. They do this through support, education, and providing a safe place to land while a family re-stabilizes.  Their families experience a 70%+ success rate with establishing a permanent residence.  As more families are on the brink of homelessness following layoffs and shut-downs from the pandemic, Family Promise’s successful model is especially relevant—and needed. We’ve been fortunate to partner with them for about 3 years while developing a new 12,300 square feet Family Navigation Center where families receive residential and support services all in one site.  Family Promise has received a significant grant from the County and gifted land.  And now, they...

A country’s overshoot day is the date on which Earth Overshoot Day would fall if all of humanity consumed like the people in this country.  Humans use as much ecological resources as if we lived on 1.6 Earths. The Ecological Footprint is the only metric that compares the resource demand of individuals, governments, and businesses against Earth's capacity for biological regeneration. Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year. In 2020, Earth Overshoot Day lands on August 22. We maintain this deficit by liquidating stocks of ecological resources and accumulating waste, primarily carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Earth Overshoot Day is hosted and calculated by Global Footprint Network, an international research organization that provides decision-makers with a menu of tools to help the human economy operate within Earth’s ecological limits. More information may be found...

The mission of the Henderson Arts and Cultural Council is to enrich the quality of life for those who live, work, and play in Henderson through the advancement of arts and culture.  Under the direction of the City of Henderson, Evolution Art in collaboration with Sparkflight Studios, designed, fabricated, and installed five life-sized hockey puck benches at the new Lifeguard Arena in Henderson, Nevada. Find these fun public art pieces at the south building entrance adjacent to the pair of 25-foot tall chromed hockey sticks! The hockey sticks also seen in the video are designed by TSK Architects and fabricated and installed by Evolution Art and Blaque Metal Works in collaboration with Sparkflight Studios. Evolution Art - https://www.evoartnv.com/​ TSK Architects -  https://www.tska.com/​ Sparkflight Studios - https://sparkflightstudios.com/​ Blaque Metal Works - https://blaquemetalworks.com/

Sparkflight Studios is now certified for WBE and WOSB under the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), which means we have an advocate for access, capacity development, recognition, and community support to facilitate real-time business opportunities. WBENC also offers training that helps grow our capacity. WBENC is the largest certifier of women-owned businesses in the U.S. and a leading advocate for women business owners and entrepreneurs. The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) has approved WBENC as a Third Party Certifier for Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) certification as part of the SBA's WOSB Federal Contracting Program.  WBENC President and CEO, Pamela Prince-Eason, explains the importance of WBENC and WOSB certification to women's business growth in this short video; link here .

Viewing south at our Wardelle Street Townhouses project as buildings near completion. Affordable housing is needed now more than ever due to the impact of COVID-19. Our Wardelle Street Townhouses project for the Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority provides 57 affordable units to a market in need. Access to stable, decent, affordable, and accessible housing is essential for one's wellbeing. Late afternoon light illuminates the west facade of Building 1. Landscaping is in place along parts of Wardelle Street.

430 Pico Affordable Housing, Brooks + Scarpa The impact of COVID-19 has been especially severe on low-income and those of modest economic means, and the lack of affordable housing places additional pressure on house prices and rent rates, further eroding affordability. Attaining a vibrant housing market depends heavily on whether the market can provide a broader and more affordable range of housing options for tomorrow’s households. As reported on Habitat for Humanity’s website , based on a 2019 report: “The latest data shows that nearly 38 million households nationwide — 31.5% of all households — are paying more than 30% of their incomes on housing. That’s 20.5 million renters and 17.3 million homeowners. This is just a slight half-percentage point drop from the previous year. Homeowners saw nearly all of the modest improvement, while a near-record share of renters — 47.4% — still face unaffordable rents. In the nation’s hottest housing market areas, those struggling with unaffordabil...

The Big Draw Festival 2020 The Big Draw is a visual literacy charity that promotes the universal language of drawing as a tool for learning, expression and invention. It’s an annual event that is held between the 1st to 31st of October. The charity leads a diverse program of advocacy, empowerment and engagement, and is the founder and driving force behind The Big Draw Festival – the world’s biggest celebration of drawing. The Big Draw manages collaborative research projects, campaigns and educational conferences on visual literacy, digital technology, and STEAM.  The types of organizations that hold the event include museums, schools, galleries, community centers, or simply people who are enthusiastic about drawing. Follow the link here to register for an event near you! See The Big Draw 2020 MINIMAG for full details.

Sparkflight Studios is open for business and committed to our community and team! Through this challenging time, we continue to use our creative resources, attention to detail, and space planning expertise to provide our clients with exceptional project delivery and thoughtful spaces. As architects, we are always looking for tools to streamline the design process and communicate our ideas. In our current situation, we’ve turned to cyberspace for real-time client feedback, where we can share three-dimensional models and create annotated sketch overlays. Look for future posts on our digital toolkit and unique design capabilities.  The pandemic has changed the way we conduct business. It has also had a profound impact on our physical environment and public health. At Sparkflight Studios, we can consult and create solutions for evolving business practices in your restaurant or office space. Our space planning expertise is a useful tool to reevaluate floor plans through an epidemiologic...

Sparkflight’s Q2 community giving wrapped up with two local organizations that have been in operation for 20 years and more. These proven non-profits are part of our City’s economic recovery solution as we all find our way through recession and pandemic’s impact. Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth (NPHY) is providing Southern Nevada’s homeless youth with help, hope, and the support needed to rebuild their lives. Their latest effort is the Housing Expansion Campaign . It’s a response to the dire need by purchasing multifamily housing properties to shelter unaccompanied homeless youth, getting them off the streets and on a pathway to self-sufficiency and success. Donate today ! We also support Family Promise of Las Vegas whose mission is to help homeless families with children in Clark County achieve sustainable housing and independence through a compassionate community-based response. Family Promise supports family resiliency with education and applied resources. They opera...