An honours graduate of the Master of Architecture program at the University of Calgary in 2001 and recipient of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada medal, Ben co-founded Modern Office in 2013 with Dustin Couzens. Ben also holds a Bachelor degree in Architecture from the University of Manitoba. Ben has been a sessional instructor at the University of Calgary’s School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape where he ran the architecture program’s Comprehensive Studio IV for two years and is a sought after guest critic and mentor for intern architects. Internationally recognized and published for its innovative and forward-thinking architecture, Modern Office views creativity – or the design process – as being this untameable beast that resides well beyond the periphery of the familiar; flourishing in its dark shapelessness, its fleeting visceral quality and its sovereignty over any one proprietor. In this regard, by intentionally not providing a shiny manifesto, we’re not being anarchistic for anarchy’s sake, but rather simply being honest in our resignation towards transcribing that which doesn’t want to be transcribed into sterile rhetoric. Our process is messy, abstract and non-linear; sometimes tears are shed and pencils are thrown. However, if at the end of the process we get that tingling sensation at the base of our spine, we know that we came as close as possible to honoring that initial creative spark. In essence, this is what drives us and brings us to work every day.