RDC, the award-winning architecture, planning, and interiors firm, today announced that Jackson Thilenius, AIA, Principal, has been named to the position of Senior Vice President, Hospitality and Interiors, Americas. Thilenius has relocated to RDC’s office in the central United States, located in the city of Rogers in Benton County, AR.
With this appointment, Thilenius is focusing on the expansion of the firm’s hospitality and interior design practice across the United States. His central location in Arkansas positions him to facilitate greater collaboration between all RDC office locations globally, from Los Angeles to Portland, Washington DC, and Shanghai, offering integrated design services and providing clients with an international advantage.
“We are very excited about Jackson’s expanded role and what it means both for our clients and our design practice,” said RDC President and CEO Brad Williams, AIA. “We are able to offer our clients increased capabilities in some of the most rapidly growing regions in the country under Jackson’s creative and collaborative leadership.”
The RDC interiors team works with prominent hospitality brands, including Hilton, Equinox, Marriott, Pacifica, CIM, and IHG. The group’s portfolio also includes cutting edge design for corporate workplace, including headquarters for Laserfiche and Skanska. The RDC interiors professional staff provides integrated services that include interior architecture, branding, interior design, and procurement services.
“Today, there is a common thread of hospitality within all of the typologies that we touch. Brand integration and narrative-driven designs that support impactful messaging are essential to the lasting success of our clients and their investments. Our team excels in creating memorable destinations, utilizing the tools of creativity and storytelling to personalize and differentiate the user experience,” Thilenius said. “We have the great advantage of leveraging our extensive hospitality and branding background to create innovative designs that speak to the guest journey and customer interface. The guiding principles that define these interventions are consistent with the evolution of workplace environments, restaurants, retail, residential communities, and even fitness venues. It’s an exciting era of disruption and exploration within the design industry, and I’m very proud to be leading the global expansion of our interiors division.”
A licensed architect with more than 30 years of design experience in hospitality and interiors, Thilenius has created a broad range of award-winning projects located around the world. His diverse and extensive portfolio includes hospitality design, branding, adaptive reuse, historic preservation, urban planning, public art installation, set design, interior design, residential design, and bar/restaurant design. He has led projects all over the U.S. as well as in Hong Kong, Manila, China, Porto, Panama, England, Costa Rica, Trinidad, Italy, and Spain.
Thilenius holds a master’s degree in architecture from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he has also served as a freehand drawing instructor and design critic. He teaches oil painting from his private studio and bridges the gap between art and architecture for every project with which he engages.
