Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Leslie Finnie. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Leslie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you tell us about a time where you or your team really helped a customer get an amazing result?

Designing an experience that captivates the user in their environment is a passion I hold dear.

In 2020, I joined the multidisciplinary Architecture firm, Snøhetta (NYC), as a Architectural Designer, where I work closely with the founder/co-partner of Snohetta, Craig Dykers on a diverse range of cultural and arts projects with international artists, Prune Nourry, JR, Jose Parla, Ghetto Gastro and more. One of my favorite success moments happened with my client, renowned French Sculptor, Prune Nourry, during the schematic design phase of the project “Mater Earth”, which is currently in construction in Chateau La Coste, France. In collaboration with BK Club Architectes, I assisted Prune in recreating her original sculpture “Milk Pool” (2010, concrete and projection, 170 x 70 cm), a pregnant women lying in a Pool of Milk, with parts of her nude figure exposed, into a 25 meter architectural-installation space for the public to explore while visiting the artworks at Chateua La Coste. The final project will be a pregnant women (constructed of earth-clay bricks) lying down in the meadow, as she is one with the earth, and visitors are invited to walk-inside her womb, exploring and resting in the intriguing cavities formed by the interior walls . Through various experimentation, I developed the interior walls inside the sculpture’s womb to capture the embryonic experience the client desired. Prune was very pleased with my sketches and appreciated how I rendered her final vision. The form I model even embodied new elements from her previous sculpture that she enjoyed! Once I finalized the drawings and the 3D digital model, BKClub Architectes, Prune, and her team of local engineers, used my work to begin the designing the clay-earth bricks for structure and planning the construction process.

We’re looking forward to the final completion of the project this Spring 2023!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I’m Leslie Finnie. I’m an Architect and Interior Designer at Snøhetta. Also, I’m the Creative Director/Content Creator for Off The Map (@offthemap.savannah). I graduated with a Master of Architecture, including a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Architecture and minor in Interior Design from the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Every space I’ve entered throughout my life has been a place for my mind to wonder and create. Growing up in New York City, with its infinite diversity of iconic skyscrapers, public areas, parks, and developments my awareness and sensibility of people’s unique needs when it comes to their interior and exterior environments. Community and functionality are important to me when creating spaces that promote ease, wellness, awareness, and unique interactions with our built environments. During college, I worked for four years as an intern with the architecture firms: Gensler, G70, and Studio DB, where I’ve developed proficient skills in 3D BIM digital design/engineering software, graphic design, and rendering. In my first year of graduate school, I was awarded the 1st Place prize of $12,000 for 4-month travel excursion by Lyceum Fellowship for my design proposal “Living City Market”, a sustainable farmer’s market design in Guelph, Canada. The jurors, Snøhetta and few other firms, were thoroughly impressed with my innovative proposal to bring sustainability and farming culture back into the urban realm of the city. I used the award funds to travel to my favorite coastal and sustainable communities in Japan, Greece, Amsterdam, and Norway. The trip was incredibly insightful and exposed me to a plethora of knowledge that later went into my work as a full-time Architect.

For me, Architecture is the art of storytelling. I’ve always been intrigued by the schematic design process in the beginning phases of an architecture project. Before drafting the structure or selecting the finishes designers must organically generate ideas derived from what we discover about an environment and its culture. There’s a captivating dialogue between us and our built environments. It speaks to the influence that architecture has on one’s visceral experience, and how each space and environment I create is a chapter of the structure’s story. I enjoy being in a career where one of the key challenges is learning how to transform your inspiration into a built form. My all-nighters in the design studio are spent trying to merge various concepts by pulling inspiration from several different forms of media. From pop artists like Takashi Murakami to fashion designers like Virgil Abloh I’m fascinated by how different design forms can be utilized to develop the dialogue of my building concepts on projects in Snøhetta.

During 2020, working remotely has empowered me with the flexibility and ease to pursue my career in Architecture with, while continuing my online side-business, Off The Map Savannah. Prior to working for Snøhetta, I created Off the Map, a community platform founded by my friend MayLi Lynch (Co-Admin) in Savannah, GA, to highlight BIPOC (Black Indigenous and People of Color) and local businesses in Savannah. As a African American-Female Architect, who is underrepresented by her industry, I felt it was appropriate to pursue this project and elevate the voice of my people in this community.

From the very beginning, I created “Off The Map” as a company that produces tourist guides intended to highlight Black and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color)-owned businesses in the city of Savannah, GA due to their lack of representation in other tourist guides that are being distributed by the visitor centers in Historic Downtown Savannah. I started envisioning the tourist guide through multiple Zoom call sessions with Savannah’s most knowledgeable urban activists and our architecture graduate professor, Ryan Madson, who helped me conceptualize the intentions of Off The Map in his “Emerging Urban Issues” course at Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). However, I knew that after graduation and going into a career in Architecture, I would not always be physically in Savannah, and not having the direct access to business owners would purpose great challenges for the company. In fact, community involvement was key to the company’s growth and success. With this in mind, I adjusted my company’s model to be more remote-work friendly and successfully transformed “Off The Map” into a digital-community forum (@offthemap.savannah). As I continued to expand the page to other platforms (i.e. Facebook) I began to more engagement on the platform, which inspired me to extend our forum to BIPOC creatives, artists, and entrepreneurs, who are interested in sharing their work. Everyone was now given a chance to be heard and discovered.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Growth through execution. The most rewarding feeling in my career is transforming someone’s ideas into a physical form of prosperity. With every wildly imaginative client I encounter, I’m continuing to enhance my versatility and technical skills to render their desired vision. I’ve become stronger in my abilities as an Architect and Interior Designer through every project and see myself merging into other aspects of my career.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

As a Black-Female Architect and Designer, I’m inspired to create a path for other young BIPOC architects to discover their talent and worth in this industry. This year, I joined PENCIL, a partnership with our Firm, Snøhetta, that connects public school students to professionals in our industry, implementing hands-on, immersive design programs that open eyes, open minds, and open doors. Our program includes in-school partnerships, mentoring, internships, and targeted opportunities to make a real difference in the classroom and beyond. I would love to see more kids invent innovative strategies that will enhance our experiences inside our built environments. The journey of becoming an architect and designer has transformed my perspective to see the world through a variety of lenses and opportunities. It is my passion to create space for future generations to follow.

Contact Info:

• Website: lesliefinnie.com
• Instagram: @offthemap.savannah | @finnaleslie
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/OffTheMapSavannah
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leslie-finnie-5483b8119