Above: Jünker’s cat, Mike Rice, sunbathes away the afternoon on the curving white-leather living room sofa while Jünker’s design of his condo plays on the television. Below: Fritz Jünker and his girlfriend, Kristina Burns, strolling out the door of his condo to sample the charms of downtown Portland. // Photos by Ty Milford

In the 2009 book Shop Class as Soulcraft, author Matthew Crawford writes, “There are fewer occasions for the kind of spiritedness that is called forth when we take things in hand for ourselves, whether to fix them or make them.” It took time for Fritz Jünker to take this notion of fulfillment through craftsmanship to heart.

In the past he’d tried his hand at a variety of artistic endeavors: running a historic theater, founding a nonprofit music organization, even producing an indie comedy film. But when he discovered how craft and design could combine into something greater than the sum of their parts, the heart of a master builder began to emerge. Nowhere is this more visible than in his own condo, a unit in the landmark Portland Plaza that Jünker remodeled and reimagined.

The Portland Plaza was built in 1973 and was one of the first high-rise condominiums in the city. With its aluminum and glass cladding and its curving form, it oozes modern chic. “I was wandering around downtown one day and I saw it from the Keller Fountain,” Jünker recalls. “I was instantly enamored.” The Portland Plaza is also ideally situated for enjoying the city, positioned just across from the Keller Fountain on SW Fourth Avenue along the newest MAX light rail line, and just blocks in various directions from City Hall, the South Park Blocks, the Portland Art Museum, Portland State University and a bevy of restaurants to explore with his girlfriend, Kristina Burns.

The 35-year-old Jünker, who operates his own design and construction firm, also realized the Portland Plaza condos offered a unique amenity in the age of lofts: actual bedrooms. “I’d looked at every condo in downtown Portland, the Pearl, South Waterfront, Irvington,” he recalls. “I lost count after a while. Through that process the value of this structure became more apparent. It had been very difficult at the time to find true two-bedroom two-bath condos that weren’t ridiculously priced. The condition of this unit was pretty awful, including seashell-shaped fake marble sinks, particleboard, and popcorn ceilings. But that also excited me. It was a vehicle for my design, but with a timeless design pedigree.”