Oikos Architecture OIKOS Architecture is a partnership between Annitella Porges Kiriakou and Susan Linda Wootan. Oikos was selected as the 2000 Design Award recipient for the Most Outstanding Renovation in the City of Piedmont, California. We also received a Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association 2004 Preservation Award. One of our kitchen designs was selected as an honorable mention for the 2007 Design for Living Dream Kitchen Contest. Notable residential projects: Nelson Residence in Piedmont, CA won the 2000 Design Award for the Most Outstanding Renovation by the City of Piedmont. Claremont Hills Residence in Berkeley, CA won the 2004 Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association’s Preservation Award and was published in the Contra Costa Times East Bay Home & Design Section. Umanzio Residence in Orinda, CA won Honorable Mention in the Diablo Publications Design for Living Dream Kitchen Contest and published in the Design for living magazine. DESIGN APPROACH Our goal is to combine space, function and materials to create the most appropriate design.  Existing conditions, historical context and ecological concerns are also fundamental to our design approach.  A building or space is a sculpture that fits the environment and the needs of the client and occupants.  We work closely with the client to understand their vision for the design and mold the aesthetic of the project to fit this vision, rather than using the same visual language on every project. We believe in economy of materials and that materials and space are integral to each other.  Forms grow out of the selection of materials. Wherever is possible, we encourage our clients to consider using recycled, recyclable, or otherwise environmentally- friendly materials that do not compromise on aesthetic or quality. We consider the interior design of the project integral to the architecture.  Therefore we typically design the project interiors and at times the furniture.  However, we are pleased to work with a designer chosen by the client. OFFICE INFORMATION We are interested in designing a wide range of projects. We believe that a good set of construction drawings is clear, concise and easy to build from.  We use computers for drawings and three-dimensional modeling. Our fees are based either by percentage of construction cost or by the hour.

Annitella Porges-Kiriakou Project Designer / Partner Annitella is co-founder of and partner in Oikos Architecture and has thirty years’ experience in architecture. Originally from Greece, Annitella started her studies at London's prestigious Architectural Association School of Architecture. She returned to Greece to complete her Master of Science in Architecture at the Aristotelian University in Thessaloniki. After completing her studies and getting her architectural license, she formed an architectural practice with business partner Panos Panetsos. Their design of the Cultural Center of the municipality of Korydalos, Athens, completed in 1994, was published extensively, and received the First Prize in the Greek National Architecture competition. In 1995 twenty projects were chosen for exhibition at the First Biennale of Young Greek Architects, two of them were Annitella's projects. Annitella resumed her architecture career in the United States in 1989. She worked for two years on residential and commercial projects with Larry J. Mortimer, AIA in Oakland, after which she independently completed the Malinas residence in Oakland. At Oikos Architecture, Annitella brings her many years of international experience and her love to create beauty, balance and serenity. She is a gifted designer with a strong spatial intuition, and she is able to adapt design concepts quickly in response to changing needs.

Susan Linda Wootan Project Architect / Partner Susan is co-founder of and partner in Oikos Architecture and has twenty years’ experience in architecture. Originally from New York State, she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area to attend UC Berkeley, where her studies included design studios, computer applications, city planning, environmental design & architectural history. While attending school, she worked with Thaddeus E. Kusmierski, AIA in Berkeley and with Larry J. Mortimer, AIA in Oakland. After receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Architecture, Susan continued working for Larry J. Mortimer and became his right hand woman, for numerous residential, commercial and historical projects, including the Western Market Building (Liberty Hall) and the Camron-Stanford House. While completing the California Architect Board exams, Susan worked for Fong & Chan Architects in San Francisco, working on, among many other institutional projects, the Gates Computer Science Building at Stanford University (with Robert A.M. Stern). At Oikos Architecture, Susan continues to apply her experience and knowledge of architecture to residential, live-work and commercial projects.  She approaches all aspects of a project with the same talent and enthusiasm, from field measuring to code research, from design and construction documentation to construction observation and contract administration. She is dependable and a problem solver, and has many successful projects and satisfied clients to attest to this. Susan finds uncovering the history of a building both fascinating and helpful for remodeling with respect to the history and structural system of an existing building. She is eager to have more projects include green building materials and practices.