Lindsey Wikstrom is an architect, author, and professor, known for advancing regenerative approaches to design with a focus on material innovation, biodiversity, and non-extractive processes. As the Founding Principal of Mattaforma, she leads the design of all projects big and small, public and private. She has been invited to contribute to notable publications, including the publication of her own book Designing the Forest and Other Mass Timber Futures (Routledge, 2023), has moderated conversations with global leaders, and is a frequent public speaker. She has taught at Columbia, Yale, Cornell, and Syracuse, and holds a Master of Architecture from Columbia University where she was awarded the McKim Prize and Avery 6 Prize. She also is the winner of the SOM Prize, the 2025 New Practices New York Prize and among the World Architect Festival’s Top 40 Under 40.
(Image above: Lindsey Wikstrom | Photography by Guarionex Rodriguez)
The Nursery at Public Records by Lindsey Wikstrom | Photo by ILL GANDER
When you were a kid, what did you dream of becoming? Did any of those childhood ambitions lead you to where you are today?
I totally dreamt of becoming an architect! I attended an elementary school that believed in hands-on learning, which is how I became an apprentice to an architect at age 11.
Where and what did you study?
Architecture at Arizona State University and at Columbia University
Was there a specific turning point or experience when you realized that design was your true calling?
It seems like every chapter in life presents specific turning points that continue to validate this path, so I keep listening to the universe! One that comes to mind is the moment I landed my first commission: The Nursery at Public Records. Not only did the stars align for that collaboration to happen, but the design process was so effortless and fun for everyone involved.
Is there a particular designer, artwork, or design movement that deeply inspires you? How has it influenced your own style or philosophy?
This next phase of Mattaforma includes a handful of mass timber multi-family projects, so I am constantly going back to study the work of Jean Renaudie, an architect designing social housing in France that challenged the assumption that cost effective design meant repetitive geometry. Renaudie showed that repeatable geometries can also generate difference,and therefore create communities that feel human and natural in their scale and form.
Designing the Forest and Other Mass Timber Futures by Lindsey Wikstrom | Image courtesy of Mattaforma
Which designers do you love following on social media? What draws you to their work?
I love to watch the student work coming out of Design Academy Eindhoven because their work constantly challenges conventional material assemblies, aesthetics, use, lifespan and value. These are all dimensions of thinking that architecture can learn a lot from.
How would you describe your design philosophy? Has it evolved over time, and if so, how?
I do a lot of listening and research. Many clients of mine are creating new typologies in the world, or responding to the housing crisis by proposing more density than what is allowed by zoning, or introducing innovative material assemblies that are very new to the building department like mass timber and hemp block. This means that my role is to constantly communicate with the Authority Having Jurisdiction on feasibility and safety, planning for public hearings, and presenting at engagement events so that the entire community is part of the process and sees the value very clearly and honestly. So, I guess my philosophy is that design includes paperwork and strategy, and that I hope young architects don’t shy away from this aspect of the work.
Rancho Almasomos Site Strategy by Lindsey Wikstrom | Image courtesy of Mattaforma
Tell us a bit about where you live: How long have you been there, and how does your environment shape your creative process?
I’m based in the New York New Jersey Connecticut Tri-State Area. First I was on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, then Chinatown, then West New York, now I just moved to Atlantic Highlands in an area of New Jersey called Bayshore (a quick 45 minute ferry ride to Lower Manhattan where our office is). I find inspiration in movement, in constant walking and commuting, and experiencing different walks of life. So, the long distance doesn’t bother me at all. I love the high contrast in environments, moving from low density oceanic views (literally walking along the beach every morning) to our super dense urban office on the 25th floor of a tower. My practice is focused on making landscapes of production (where materials are grown, harvested, and made) and spaces of consumption (cities) more aware of each other, and it feels like I am the perfect person since I happen to live this connection every day.
Which of your projects are you most proud of, and what makes them stand out for you?
I love all my children!
Monospace by Lindsey Wikstrom | Image courtesy of Mattaforma
In your opinion, what is the most significant challenge facing the design world today?How do you think designers should respond to it?
I don’t think this challenge is new to today, but it is probably more challenging than ever before. Being innovative, doing something other than what has been done before, takes more time, and therefore more money, and opportunities for this additional risk to be shared are very rare. In an OP ED I wrote about the importance of grant funding in the mass timber space, because otherwise, these projects have a tough time making financial sense for architects or developers, no matter how much they want them to go forward. There is so much value in learning how to fund innovation in the built environment, I think more designers should learn about that process and how to leverage it as well as other industries do.
What are you currently working on?
Multi-family mass timber projects in the Pacific Northwest and in the Midwest, and a biodynamic farmstay in the Southwest.
What’s on the horizon for you? Any upcoming projects, events, or goals you’re particularly looking forward to?
So many secret things coming up! We have a few big announcements for 2026 and perhaps a few new unexpected ways to tell the story of our practice and projects. Stay tuned.
Mattaforma website here >>>
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