Some think architecture starts with the eye. We believe it begins with the ear – with a dialog between architect and client.
To us architecture is about the people who use it. We want to know how you and your family exist in the world and how you move through it. We’d like to know what matters to you, your philosophy and your values. Tell us about the music you love and the films that stir you—to us, these details are as important to the design of your home as understanding how many rooms you will need or the context in which we will build.
Above all, we listen. We absorb. And then we bring our perspective to bear. Perspective shaped by years of designing and building custom homes tailored to their site, their social context, and the people who use them. Our inspiration comes from across the arts, technology, sciences—anything that makes us think and feel.
We are driven to imagine, design, and build work that is worthy of life – of your life. So between your vision and our perspective, let’s work together to create something new in this world—a home that inspires, comforts, has a directness that’s felt as much as seen, and that is a material testament to things that drive, motivate and inspire you.
Rolfs Elert Office is an award winning full service Architecture and Interior Design partnership of architects Mark Rolfs and Rudi Elert. Established in 2012 the practice focuses on creating beautiful buildings and thoughtful spaces through light, material, and craft. Our work is varied and influenced by the history of innovative modern design while sometimes rooted in timeless ideas and traditional forms.
Mark Rolfs – Partner, Architect, AIA
The son of a minister, Mark Rolfs grew up thinking deeply about the difference between the physical and the ephemeral, and seeking the sacred in his work. For him, architecture is a means of shaping the sequence of events in space, and offers the freedom to creatively recombine elements – artistic, literary, spiritual and physical – in creating compelling structures.
During his time at SCI-Arc and working in Los Angeles, Mark worked among innovative architects searching for ‘meaning in lightness.’ Mark’s diverse background spans over 25 years, and includes large-scale projects from office buildings and airports, to concept design at Walt Disney Imagineering. Above all, he enjoys custom residential architecture, and building homes that reflect abiding truths about their owners.
Mark Rolfs AIA, NCARB, Licensed Architect, New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Massachusetts
Master of Architecture, SCI-Arc, Southern California Institute of Architecture
Bachelor of Science, Architecture, Temple University
Bachelor of Science, Management, Juniata College
Rudi Elert – Partner, Architect, AIA
Rudi Elert’s interest and training in sculpture, painting and art ultimately led him to architecture. For him, drawing and making are the ways he relates to the world with design and building the artistic medium in which he works.
Rudi considers a broad range of architectural styles – modern to traditional, contemporary to old world – equally compelling forms as long as they are approached with rigor and thoughtful consideration.
Whatever the style he works in with clients, Rudi’s fundamental way of approaching architecture is to listen. To what a site or an existing structure itself seems to evoke. To what clients are saying (or not quite articulating) about their needs and desires. This empathetic and reassuring process helps Rudi design homes that reflect their clients’ deepest intentions.
Rudi Elert AIA, NCARB, Licensed Architect, New York, Connecticut
Master of Architecture, Clemson University
Traveling Fellowship for European Study Abroad, Clemson’s Daniels Center, Genoa Italy
Bachelor of Science, Design, Clemson University
Studies in Classical Drawing and Painting, The Barnstone Studios
Interested in joining the REO team?
info@rolfselertoffice.com