Modern white minimalist house with flat roof, rectangular windows, and a central pool in the courtyard; doors open to a furnished interior, with stairs and planters on either side.

September 10, 2026

Words: Dan Howarth

Messana O’Rorke: Three Decades Of Design Defined By Scale, Light And Form

“Scale, perspective, solid, void, and light” are the words that Brian Messana and Toby O’Rorke use to define a portfolio they’ve amassed over three decades. Hailing from California and the U.K., respectively, the two met while studying architecture at Virginia Tech in 1988. After stints at such firms as Peter Marino Architect and the Office of Thierry W Despont, and designing stores for Donna Karan and Polo Ralph Lauren, they founded Messana O’Rorke in 1996 in New York.

Alongside its rigorous minimalist approach, MO’R is renowned for pairing historic properties with contemporary additions. Perhaps the best example is Ten Broeck, the Upstate New York cottage Messana and O’Rorke renovated for themselves in the early aughts. The original 1734 structure adjoins a rectilinear volume clad in Corten steel, yet it’s “incredibly warm and accessible,” O’Rorke notes. Messana describes it as “the seminal work everyone started gravitating toward,” adding that they still receive inquiries based on that project today. Their Tank house is similarly from early days, centered on an existing structure, and famous: adapting a water tower on a Manhattan rooftop into a sunlit contemplation room.

IDOLS 30 years: Messana O’Rourke

  • Modern white minimalist house with flat roof, rectangular windows, and a central pool in the courtyard; doors open to a furnished interior, with stairs and planters on either side.
    A home in Córdoba, Spain, 2023, built to Passive House standards. Photography by Fernando Alda.
  • Modern retail store interior featuring a marble display counter, minimalist shelves with products, wood paneling, and a MALIN+GOETZ sign.
    Malin+Goetz Westfield Century City in Los Angeles, 2018. Photography by Eric Laignel.
  • Two men at a table look over documents; one is standing with a pencil and the other is sitting and writing.
    Messana O’Rorke cofounders Toby O’Rorke (left) and Brian Messana in their New York studio, 2026. Photography by Nicholas Calcott.
  • Modern interior with large vertical wooden panels, light wood flooring, and soft natural light from a window with sheer curtains; part of a kitchen area is visible in the background.
    A 2013 apartment in Montecito, California. Photography by Eric Laignel.
  • Modern open-plan living space with wooden floors, a frosted glass room divider, bookshelves, dining table, and artwork featuring a man’s face with a sunflower on his head.
    A Manhattan loft, 2023. Photography by David Mitchell
  • A modern extension with rust-colored metal siding projects from a traditional dark house, set on a grassy lawn with trees and a stone retaining wall.
    Ten Broeck cottage, 2004, in Livingston, New York. Photography by Eric Petschek.

Commercial commissions took off in that era as well, beginning with SkinCareLab, a SoHo day spa that embodies an approach they describe as “building blocks” (also the title of their 2022 monograph). “We took all we’d learned over the years and put it together,” Messana continues. The resulting language of boxes, blocks, and containers, assembled using a disciplined material palette, has since manifested in five stores for apothecary brand Malin+Goetz, including three in Los Angeles, and other projects all over the world. These range from a Wyoming home that blends traditional Mountain West architecture with modern minimalism and a boutique Connecticut hotel (under construction) to a photography exhibit in Greece and a residence in Spain that, built of thermally insulated concrete, is MO’R’s first using Passive House principles. “It only costs about 4 Euros a month to operate,” Messana marvels.

  • A modern black cylindrical structure with large windows sits on a rooftop garden with city buildings and a water tower in the background.
    Tank house in New York, 2002. Photography by Elizabeth Felicella.
  • A portrait of a person with dramatic red and gold face paint is displayed on a dark wall in a dimly lit gallery space.
    Terry Tsiolis photography exhibit at the Benaki Museum in Athens, Greece, 2021. Photography by Terry Tsiolis.
  • Indoor pool with marble edging, surrounded by large windows, overlooks a grassy landscape with trees in the background. Natural light fills the room.
    A Jackson Hole, Wyoming, house, 2021. Photography by Tuck Fauntleroy.
  • Modern living room with large grid windows, city skyline view, two armchairs, two wooden stools, a woven rug, and a cactus sculpture on a concrete pedestal.
    A Manhattan apartment, 2023. Photography by David Mitchell.

A commitment to a clear set of ideologies has been key to Messana and O’Rorke’s longevity. “We have really held our ground and not wavered,” Messana reflects. They’ve continually challenged and supported one another in equal measure. “We call each other out,” O’Rorke affirms, “but also provide the confidence needed to follow ideas through.” messanaororke.com

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