The problem before the picture.
We spend the first part of any project making sure we are solving the real problem. A beautiful answer to the wrong question is still the wrong answer.
The studio · Addis Ababa → worldwide
Seven disciplines.
Seven disciplines.
One practice.
BArch is a small, independent studio for architecture, interiors, finishing, software, notebooks, graphics, and motion. We keep the team close and the practice wide, so an idea can move from a section to a screen without losing its point.
01 — Who we are
A small studio with a deliberately wide way of making.
BArch began with architecture and kept expanding because the work asked us to. A house needed furniture; a client needed a site tool; a building needed a way to explain itself; a studio needed paper that could keep up. Rather than hand those questions to someone else, we learned to answer them ourselves.
Today we work as one integrated practice: architects, designers, makers, and developers around the same table, with trusted collaborators brought in for what each project needs. We are small on purpose. It keeps the decisions close to the people doing the work.
02 — What we believe
Three rules,
Three rules,
held loosely.
Not a manifesto. Just the things we keep coming back to when a project gets complicated.
Detail is not decoration.
The half-millimetre at a door reveal, the easing of a transition, the way a cover opens. Detail is how the idea reaches the hand.
Leave it usable.
A building, a brand, a notebook, or an app has to work after we leave the room. We design for the Tuesday, not just the opening night.
Make it together.
The best projects are conversations, not hand-offs. We keep the table small, the decisions close, and the credit shared with the people who build the thing.
07disciplines under one roof
01integrated studio team
03software products in-house
∞iterations before it is right
“We care about the half-millimetre and the five-year plan. Good design lives in both.”
Biruk Abraham
Founder & Creative Director
The studio is led by Biruk, with a core team of designers and makers and a long bench of collaborators. Every project has a direct line to the person responsible for it — no account layer, no hand-off to a stranger.
03 — Capabilities
One team,
Discuss a project
One team,
seven ways in.
Architecture
New buildings, additions, and spatial strategy — from concept to site.
Interiors
Layout, light, material, and the quiet decisions that make a room feel right.
Finishing
Joinery, surfaces, material research, and the last ten percent that matters.
Software
Products, platforms, and internal tools for the way creative work actually happens.
Notebooks
Paper goods and small editions designed to be used, not saved for best.
Graphic design
Identity, editorial, packaging, and print systems that stay alive in use.
Animation
Motion systems, title sequences, and architectural stories with a pulse.
Something else.
If the brief does not fit a category, that is usually where the interesting work starts. Tell us about it.
Work with us
Good work starts
Good work starts
with a conversation.
We take on a small number of projects each year, across disciplines and geographies. If you are building something that deserves care, introduce it.
Start a project