What Johnston Marklee does

Johnston Marklee is a Los Angeles-based architecture firm founded in 1998 by Sharon Johnston, FAIA, and Mark Lee. The firm delivers professional architectural and interior design services across four primary typologies: cultural institutions (museums, galleries, libraries), educational facilities (university art studios and arts centers), high-end residential (single-family homes and increasingly multi-family towers), and commercial/exhibition work. Its core service model spans the full project lifecycle, including programming, schematic design, design development, construction documents, and construction administration, with adaptive reuse and museum-specific daylighting/conservation design serving as areas of distinct specialization.

Revenue is generated through negotiated, project-based architectural fees across multi-year engagements, with no publicly disclosed pricing. The go-to-market is anchored on three channels: winning invited and open international design competitions (e.g., Kunstmuseum Basel, Swiss House, Rice University VADA), direct commissions from institutional clients acquired via reputation and referrals (e.g., Menil Collection, UCLA, MCA Chicago, Dropbox, Federal Office for Buildings & Logistics Switzerland), and a deep referral/repeat-client network in the U.S. museum and gallery sector. The firm operates 17 staff across offices in Los Angeles (headquarters) and Cambridge, Massachusetts, and has delivered 80+ completed projects spanning 14 countries in North/South America, Europe, and Asia.

Practitioners and clients describe the firm's positioning around design excellence, economy of means, and materiality-driven spatial design. The firm is WBE-certified and BIPOC-led, holds over 50 major awards including AIA National awards, MCHAP finalist recognition, an American Academy of Arts and Letters award, the Richard Neutra Award, and inclusions on AD100 and Domus' 50 Best Architecture Firms. Strategic alliances with Christ & Gantenbein (European cultural projects), Simpson Gumpertz & Heger (structural engineering), ME Engineers (MEP), and Buro Happold (engineering/sustainability) round out the delivery ecosystem. There are no disclosed software products, API offerings, or technology platforms; revenue flows entirely from professional design services.

Name

Johnston Marklee

Legal name

Johnston Marklee

Website

https://johnstonmarklee.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Johnston Marklee is a Los Angeles-based architecture firm founded in 1998 by Sharon Johnston and Mark Lee, delivering project-based design services across cultural institutions, educational facilities, high-end residential, and commercial buildings for clients in 14 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (541310), Architectural Services (54131), Interior Design Services (54141), Interior Design Services (541410), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

Keywords

• Architectural design services
• Cultural institution design
• Museum architecture
• Adaptive reuse design
• Interior architecture

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Architectural Design Services: Johnston Marklee generates revenue through professional architecture and design fees for projects spanning cultural institutions, residential, commercial, and exhibition design. Revenue is earned through standard architectural fee structures including schematic design, design development, construction documents, and construction administration phases.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Johnston Marklee is an architecture and interior design firm that delivers project-based design services for cultural institutions, museums, galleries, educational facilities, residential, commercial/corporate, and exhibition projects. Services span the full architectural lifecycle from programming and schematic design through design development, construction documents, and construction administration, with particular expertise in museum and cultural institution design, adaptive reuse of historic and industrial structures, and contemporary residential architecture.

Product overview

Johnston Marklee is an architecture firm that provides architectural design services across multiple building typologies. The firm does not offer a unified software product or platform with modular components. Instead, it delivers project-based architectural services including cultural institutions (museums, galleries, libraries), residential projects (houses and multi-family), commercial buildings, and exhibition design. Their portfolio spans 14 countries across North and South America, Europe, and Asia, with notable projects including the Menil Drawing Institute, UCLA Margo Leavin Graduate Art Studios, MCA Chicago renovation, Dropbox Global Headquarters, and various gallery and residential projects. The firm's practice areas encompass new construction, adaptive reuse, renovation, and master planning, with no distinct software, API, or technology product offerings beyond their architectural services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cultural Institution Architecture Services Architectural and interior design services for museums, galleries, cultural institutions, and arts organizations, covering new construction, expansion, renovation, and master planning with specialized expertise in daylighting, conservation environments, and flexible exhibition spaces. Projects include the Menil Drawing Institute, Kunstmuseum Basel, MCA Chicago, Whitney Museum ISP, Portland Museum of Art, ICA Philadelphia, and Dallas Museum of Art.
• Commercial and Corporate Architecture Services Architectural and interior design services for corporate, technology, and commercial clients including workplace design and headquarters buildouts. Marquee engagement is the Dropbox Global Headquarters (750,000 SF interior architecture in San Francisco), awarded the AIA LA Merit Award for Interior Architecture in 2022.
• Residential Architecture Services Architectural design services for high-end single-family residences and large-scale residential towers for private clients and real estate developers. Spans contemporary custom homes on challenging sites, adaptive reuse residences, and multi-family residential towers including the 26-story Ray Phoenix (VeLa Development Partners) and 32-story Ray Nashville.
• Exhibition Design Services Design services for temporary and permanent exhibitions and gallery installations, frequently delivered alongside the firm's larger cultural and institutional commissions and in collaboration with specialist exhibition designers such as Sam Jacob Studio.
• Adaptive Reuse Architecture Services Architectural services focused on transforming existing historic warehouses, factories, institutional, and unconventional structures into modern functional spaces for cultural, educational, residential, and commercial uses. Examples include the Vault House, UCLA Margo Leavin Graduate Art Studios (adaptive reuse of a historic wallpaper factory), Karma Los Angeles (former autobody garage), and MCASD-related conversions.
• Educational Facility Architecture Services Architectural and interior design services for universities and educational institutions, focused on arts education facilities, graduate art studios, campus buildings, and performance spaces. Projects include UCLA Margo Leavin Graduate Art Studios, Rice University Visual and Dramatic Arts (competition finalist), Chapman University Hilbert Museum of California Art, and University of Illinois at Chicago Center for the Arts.
• Full-Scope Architectural Project Services End-to-end architectural project services spanning programming, schematic design, design development, construction documents, and construction administration, executed in collaboration with structural engineers (Simpson Gumpertz & Heger), MEP/lighting/sustainability engineers (ME Engineers, Buro Happold), and general contractors as required by each project.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50 major awards including AIA National awards, MCHAP recognition, and international competition prizes
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered major, ongoing and project-based.

• Christ & GantenbeinmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2021Christ & Gantenbein, a Swiss architecture firm, collaborated with Johnston Marklee for museography and interior design on the Kunstmuseum Basel renovation project. Johnston Marklee also collaborated with Christ & Gantenbein on the Swiss House San Francisco project, where both firms served as design architects alongside the Swiss Federal Office for Buildings & Logistics.
• Simpson Gumpertz & Heger (SGH)ongoingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerStructural engineering firm serving as structural engineer of record and building envelope consultant on multiple Johnston Marklee projects including UCLA Margo Leavin Graduate Art Studios and MCA Chicago renovation.
• Harley Ellis Devereauxproject-basedImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerExecutive architect on MCA Chicago renovation project, providing local expertise and construction administration services.
• MOS Architectsproject-basedStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on Dallas Museum of Art project as part of The New Architects Collaborative team, responsible for public realm design.
• Sam Jacob Studioproject-basedStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on Dallas Museum of Art project for exhibition design as part of The New Architects Collaborative.
• Iwan Baanproject-basedOthersArchitectural photographer for UCLA Margo Leavin Graduate Art Studios and other projects, providing professional photography documentation.
• ME EngineersongoingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerMEP & FPE Engineer on multiple projects including UCLA Margo Leavin Graduate Art Studios and Dropbox Global Headquarters.
• NOUS EngineeringongoingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerStructural engineer on multiple projects including Marian Goodman Gallery Los Angeles, Michael Werner Gallery, and Roberts Projects.
• HGAproject-basedImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitecture firm serving as executive architect on Dropbox Global Headquarters project.
• Buro HappoldongoingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEngineering consultancy providing MEP, lighting design, and sustainability services on multiple projects including Dropbox Global HQ and Swiss House.
• Abbott Constructionproject-basedOthersGeneral contractor for UCLA Margo Leavin Graduate Art Studios construction.
• Principal Buildersproject-basedOthersGeneral contractor for Dropbox Global Headquarters construction.
• Claycoproject-basedOthersGeneral contractor for Ray Phoenix and Ray Nashville residential projects.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Christ & Gantenbein: Swiss architecture firm that has directly collaborated with Johnston Marklee on Kunstmuseum Basel and Swiss House San Francisco. Closely matched on typology (cultural institutions) and boutique scale.
• Diller Scofidio + Renfro: A New York-based architecture studio equally renowned for museum and cultural-institution design (The Shed, The Broad, ICA Boston). Directly comparable to Johnston Marklee in typology focus, competition-driven pipeline, and creator-led boutique structure with a small principal team.
• Toshiko Mori Architect: Harvard GSD faculty-led practice with deep cultural-institution portfolio including the Cooper Hewitt expansion and Portland Museum of Art (collaborator with Johnston Marklee). Same boutique scale, museum specialization, and academic positioning.
• Steven Holl Architects: Internationally recognized single-name practice with comparable museum portfolio (Kiasma, Nelson-Atkins expansion, ICA Virginia) and a similar academic-anchored principal model.
• Allied Works Architecture: Portland/Cultural-institution-focused practice with notable museum work (National Museum of Mexican Art, Clyfford Still Museum). Same single-firm boutique structure and cultural-institution specialization.

Broad incumbents

• Adjaye Associates: Larger global architecture firm known for major cultural buildings (National Museum of African American History, Ruby City). Operates in the same museum/cultural-institution niche but at materially greater scale and headcount.
• Renzo Piano Building Workshop: Global architecture firm renowned for museum commissions (Whitney Museum, Menil Collection original). Same cultural-institution typology but operating at dramatically larger scale with global delivery.

Emerging players

• wHY Architecture: Los Angeles design studio with significant cultural-institution portfolio (Marciano Art Foundation, ICA Miami). Geographic and typological overlap with Johnston Marklee.
• MOS Architects: Boutique New York practice that collaborated directly with Johnston Marklee on the Dallas Museum of Art project. Comparable boutique scale with cultural-typology overlap and similar founder-driven model.
• Preston Scott Cohen: Harvard GSD-based architect who collaborated with Johnston Marklee on Portland Museum of Art. Boutique teaching practice with museum and cultural-institution focus, similar academic anchoring.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Johnston Marklee