exteriors
In many ways, this project is a study in personalities: of the original clients, of the home's architecture and, ultimately, of subsequent owners who purchased the property and called me back to it years after my initial work had been completed. The first time through, the owners were close friends of mine. We had remarkably similar tastes, so my basic charge was to do exactly what I thought needed to be done, much as if it were my own home. The house is a beautiful example of Mid-Century Modern, a style that fits well in the special environs of the Florida Keys. But when I first visited the site, I could tell that someone had tried to turn it into
One of the things I love about working in the southwest is the way the openness and rugged, sculptural appearance of the natural landscape opens the door to those who want to make bold architectural statements in concrete, stone, steel and glass. Even the plants here have an overtly sculpted quality. I appreciate this all the more by virtue of having worked in more tradition-bound places: Here in the southwest, I feel free to use a strong, contemporary design vocabulary in forging unique connections between built spaces and their dramatic surroundings. Although I'm perfectly comfortable working in those traditional styles, I'll admit to being heavily influenced by the masters of Modernism - particularly Frank Lloyd Wright and the German-born American architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe - and love the way those amazing mid-20th-century designers used clear, sculptural geometries to direct the eye and define intricate spatial relationships. The project depicted here is a direct channeling of their influence, aided and abetted by
