Matt VanSweden (2018)

Matt VanSweden (2018)

Matt VanSweden, Integrative Designer at Catalyst Partners, focuses his work on equipping design teams with the right tools at the right time necessary to solve the right problems; optimizing the design process with chaos, order, and a bit of humor. His design work is equal parts alchemy, art, and adventure.

Among other things, Matt is the state’s foremost expert on the Living Building Challenge, which is the current epicenter of his professional work. Matt loves the number three (3), enjoys engaging the wilderness in the wherever, and lives with his wife and three children in Grand Rapids.

His best known work is the Saginaw Chippewa Indiana Tribe’s tribal college in Mt. Pleasant, the Living Building Challenge project completed in 2014 when he was in a similar role at Integrated Architecture. He also created and installed eight temporary pop-up parks across Grand Rapids in collaboration with almost 60 companies, individuals, and organizations for events ranging from TEDxGrandRapids to SiTE:LAB to Kendall College of Art and Design.

To date, all the parks have been temporary installations. Sometimes dubbed “pop-up parks,” suggesting that they “pop up” only for a relatively short time. These parks are not meant to serve as permanent solutions but rather to invite the user to re-imagine ways in which we can utilize urban spaces at a scale more appropriate to humans and at speed more appropriate for pedestrians which are accessible to everyone.

He recently graduated from Kendall College of Art & Design, where he was the recipient of the Excellence Award, the highest honor a student can achieve.