KEM STUDIO | Architecture + Industrial Design | Kansas City

1914 MAIN APARTMENTS – Architecture

Two Birds One Stone – Architecture

The HELM – Architecture

Field Office – Architecture

Faust Residence – Architecture

WILLOUGHBY DESIGN – Architecture

PORT KC – Architecture

SUNSET RESIDENCE – Architecture

MADISON RESIDENCE – Architecture

BELLWETHER – Architecture

Landscape Forms – Backdrop – Industrial Design

HEDGE acoustic office divider with integrated shelving, planter, and whiteboard in a modern workplace by KEM STUDIO

Adobe – Join Me – Industrial Design

SHRED READY Zeta – Industrial Design

MODERN WEAVE 3.0 – Industrial Design

MARTIN LOGAN – MASTERPIECE SERIES – Industrial Design

ACADÉMIE LAFAYETTE PLAYGROUND – Industrial Design

MARTIN LOGAN PLAYFI – Industrial Design

LOFTWALL – TEMPO – Industrial Design

APERTURE – Industrial Design

WE MAKE LIFE BETTER THROUGH DESIGN™

KEM STUDIO is an award winning design firm that fuses architecture + industrial design.

Through our interdisciplinary approach and shared knowledge, we create holistic design solutions and authentic experiences.

The products we touch.

The buildings we inhabit.

The communities we shape.

At every scale our work connects, inspires, and makes life better. Better Design Better Living™.

WHAT WE DO

KEM STUDIO provides architecture, industrial design, product development, interior architecture, furniture design, and strategic design services across a diverse range of industries, including civic, commercial products, furniture, healthcare, hospitality, medical devices, multifamily, outdoor, retail, residential, transportation, and workplace.

From the beginning of every project, our architects and industrial designers uncover opportunities that traditional disciplines often miss. Whether we’re designing a building, a neighborhood, a workplace, a medical device, or an outdoor product, we create more connected experiences and more innovative outcomes.

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RENDERED > REALIZED
Hey, hey, it’s process day!

A look behind the scenes at our work with @MartinLogan on their ESL speaker line.
Our BIG IDEA... Express the clarity and performance of sound through form.

• A singular frame that recedes.
• Bent wood that brings warmth and precision.
• A system that feels as refined as it sounds.

From RENDERED to REALIZED, the moves are subtle, but they matter. Proportion, material, and detail are dialed in to make the final product sing.

#KEMSTUDIO #IndustrialDesign #Architecture #BetterDesignBetterLiving #BDBL #ProcessDay #CreativeProcess #ProductDesign #FurnitureDesign #AudioDesign #MartinLogan #DesignProcess #audiofile

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Studio Spins | March + April

At KEM STUDIO, music is part of our daily life. New finds, crate digs, and a few that never really left the turntable. Here’s what’s been spinning through the studio this March and April.

@flea333 - HONORA
Flea reminding everyone he’s also a jazz musician. Springtime headphones required.

@harrystyles - KISS ALL THE TIME. DISCO, OCCASIONALLY.
We know what you like. We know what you really like.

@gorillaz - THE MOUNTAIN
Always a studio favorite. This one slid right into rotation.

DANNY JOHNSON - INTRODUCING DANNY JOHNSON
Not everything worth hearing is easy to find. If you see it, grab it.

@brunomars - THE ROMANTIC
It’s spring. Time to cha cha cha.

berhana - HAN
Not new, still essential. If Midnight Marauders is in your rotation, this might find its way in too.

@mulatuaestatke - NEW YORK – ADDIS – LONDON: THE STORY OF ETHIO JAZZ 1965–1975
Start with Yègelé Tezeta. You’ll get it.

Needle down. Vibes up.

More next month.

#StudioSpins #KEMSTUDIO #IndustrialDesign #Architecture #BetterDesignBetterLiving

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BIG IDEA > PROTOTYPE > RENDERED > REALIZED

Hey, hey, it's process day again! Our process starts with a BIG IDEA to identify innovative solutions.

For our project with @HermanMiller, that idea was simple but ambitious - OPEN + FOCUSED. A way to support collaboration, while still allowing for deep individual focus within the open office.

From there, we moved into PROTOTYPE, building, testing, and refining at full scale to truly understand the opportunity.

Take a look at how that BIG IDEA translates into PROTOTYPE, RENDERED, and ultimately REALIZED. Each step shapes the next. Ideas get tested. Assumptions get challenged. And the design gets better because of it.

#KEMSTUDIO #IndustrialDesign #Architecture #BetterDesignBetterLiving #BDBL #ProcessDay #CreativeProcess #ProductDesign #FurnitureDesign #HermanMiller #Aperture #DesignProcess

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In honor of International Women’s Day, we’re recognizing two designers whose work inspires us.

Architect @fridaescobedo has been advancing thoughtful, culturally rooted architecture on a global stage. Her work demonstrates how architecture can be both poetic and socially meaningful, and her recent recognition as an Honorary Fellow of the @aianational reflects the impact she continues to have on the profession.

In industrial design, we’re inspired by @laurynmenard, a former colleague from our time collaborating on projects together at @adobe, who has gone on to found @gob.earth. She's creating beautifully simple products that help people find moments of quiet in a noisy world. In addition, her earplugs are made from mycelium, which results in soft, breathable hearing protection that is fully compostable and grown by nature rather than manufactured from oil-based foams.

From architecture to industrial design, today is a great reminder of the many women shaping the future of our profession and inspiring us at @kemstudio.

#InternationalWomensDay #KEMSTUDIO #Architecture #IndustrialDesign #DesignLeadership #SustainableDesign #BetterDesignBetterLiving #BDBL

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RENDERED TO REALIZED

Hey hey it’s process day!

As a studio, we use a variety of tools to explore ideas, communicate clearly, and anticipate how a design will come together. Showing something before it’s built helps turn what’s in our minds into a shared vision we can shape and refine together (and with you!).

Take a peek at a few early, rough study renderings from the start of our Willoughby Design office fit-out, alongside the final photography. As design evolves and construction moves forward, refinement naturally happens. We love seeing how those adjustments strengthen the final result — while still appreciating the spark of the original idea.

#KEMSTUDIO #Architecture #BetterDesignBetterLiving #BDBL #ProcessDay #CreativeProcess #InteriorArchitecture #OfficeDesign #BeforeAndAfter

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STUDIO SPINS | February 2026

At KEM STUDIO, music is part of our daily life. Here’s what’s been in heavy rotation this February, warming the room while we wait for actual warmer weather.

@nightmaresonwax - ECHO45 SOUNDSYSTEM
Nightmares on Wax has long been a studio favorite, and ECHO45 is already living in heavy rotation.

@donnybenet - The Don
KC friends, konnichiwa. Donny hits The Truman on 02/28. Shoutout to our friends @oddly for the recommendation and for always bringing the energy.

@milesawayrecords - One
The Superstar cover alone earns its spot. Twelve more gems inside.

Willie Hutch - Havin’ A House Party
We missed Willie’s party, but he’s soundtracking ours.

Travis Biggs - Solar Funk
It’s Travis Biggs. And that cover. Enough said.

@analogafricarecords - Verckys et l’Orchestre Vévé
Sunshine in sonic form. Pure warmer weather energy.

KC Rare Soul and Funk Compilation
Custom made by @freestyle.vinyl.
Not for sale, but a few tracks are floating around Spotify.

Needle down. Vibes up.

More next month.

#StudioSpins #KEMSTUDIO #IndustrialDesign #Architecture #BetterDesignBetterLiving

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Check out some of our work on the boards! USM Wesley is a fresh take on campus ministries designed as a welcoming hub for student life, faith, and community. The space brings together worship and meeting rooms, a coffee shop, offices, student apartments, and outdoor areas made for gathering, studying, and connecting.

Inspired by the notion of a foundry, an architectural language of brick and metal evokes an honest, industrious character, symbolizing faith as something forged through practice, community, and reflection. In addition, an open, inviting front porch welcomes students into warm, light-filled spaces built for belonging, conversation, and spiritual growth. More than a building, it’s a place to gather, grow, and be forged together.

#kemstudio #betterdesignbetterliving #architecture #design #communitydesign #university #worshipspaces #campuswork #studentlife #apartments #coffee

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Bola was designed by Ron Kemnitzer in 1988 through Kemnitzer Design.

When we evolved Kemnitzer Design into KEM STUDIO in 2004, we chose to show only work created under the studio name, as we were building something new by fusing architecture and industrial design.

With Ron’s passing, we’ve taken time to reflect on the roots of our thinking. Including Bola now isn’t about rebranding the past. It’s about acknowledging the foundation that helped shape our work.

We’re honored to share Bola as part of our story, and as a tribute to Ron’s lasting influence on how we think about design that makes life better.

Link in bio.

#KEMSTUDIO #Bola #IndustrialDesign #ArchitectureAndDesign #DesignLegacy #FurnitureDesign #DesignEthics #BetterDesignBetterLiving

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Community Resilience | Fall 2025 Studio

In collaboration with @kcdesigncenter and @laurenharness, Jonathon Kemnitzer of KEM STUDIO co-taught a cross-disciplinary studio with @kstate_industrialdesign students focused on Community Resilience in Kansas City.

Partnering with leaders from the Dunbar neighborhood, students explored how design can strengthen and support local communities.

The semester culminated in a public exhibition at the @kclibrary – Central Branch, where students presented their final work. Scroll through to see each project poster.

#KEMSTUDIO #KCDC #KStateID #KSU #CommunityResilience DesignEducation StudentWork Dunbar KansasCity IndustrialDesign Architecture PublicExhibition BetterDesignBetterLiving

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From sketchbook to streetscape + riverbank shoreline, The Helm is an @kcbizjournal Capstone Award winner! Thanks to the partners and team who helped bring it to life.

@flahertycollins
@taliaferrobrowne
@apexengineers
@fsc_consultingengineers
@willobuzz @_40north @hausmannconstruction

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We hope you had a renewed interest in your fitness resolution! We’re now heading to Alabama to highlight X4—a class-based fitness studio where movement meets ritual. With a refined, boutique atmosphere, X4 reimagines fitness as a shared experience. Members gather in a communal lobby to reset and connect before passing through a dramatic, tunnel-like threshold that leads into the workout zones. From arrival to cooldown, the space is designed to support healthy habits, collective energy, and showing up stronger—together.

#architecture #healthandwellness #betterdesignbetterliving #kemstudio #design #throwbackthursday

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