Endless Summer

Magazine Spread

Shameless Self Promotion or discussion on how to get there

from sddrawings.com

Today's submittal is way less about self-promotion and more about a great team brought together to make something amazingly unique and beautiful.  Under the direction of Julia Sanford @ Starr Sanford Design, this team created a stunningly beautiful residence.  Apparently so interesting, Jacksonville magazine decided to cover it in a really great spread this past month.

Take the jump to see more about this project !

photo from http://jacksonvillemag.com/endless-summer/

What is so great about this particular project, was the local talent.  From the lead designer Julia Sanford, to the technical production & Architecture by Architect Peyman Abadi and Master Builder Jeff Brecko with Aurora, and to continue, we must include the Clients who had the foresight and wisdom to trust their house and design in someone else's hands.

From the before to the after, there is a lot of trust put in a Designer's or Architect's hands.  We are in charge of a family's savings and hard work.  If we go over budget, the project may never even be built, and we have designed for naught.  We also have to be very careful not to over build, or design to show off our own ego.

Great Architecture, should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness -Frank Gehry

One of my favorite Architects (Frank Gehry) speaks so eloquently about the timelessness of our craft.  If the clients with the house pictured above decided to go with a Contemporary home in a traditional neighborhood... how long would any of us love the house? Would the neighbors love us for doing that to their street?  Let's imagine plopping a modern sleek, concrete poured and steel house right in a Classic Beach shingle community.  The house would be so out of place, and the neighbors would probably question our sanity, as well as stir up their Dandruff.  So designing to fit into the surrounding area is super important, we use the local Architectural language of the community to help guide our design, or risk losing neighbors as friends.

I question how long we will have individual Architectural language from each region.  If I were to make a prediction, it is that our Architecture is going to become as homogenized as our commercial landscape in America; countless miles of strip malls and big box stores, all the same in every city.  How long are we going to love this fashion trend in construction?  American's answer is usually just long enough to do some damage; like the suburbs.  Yes, they work well in theory, though totally car dependent, not walkable nor healthy for a true community.  We are turning around slightly.  Walkable communities with an urban shopping center are coming back in vogue.  

So how does this design fit into the neighborhood on a larger scale?  Julie did an amazing job designing this house to help speak the language of Florida's Northern Coast.  This house says "it is a part of the Ponte Vedra beach community and worthwhile".  I wonder what your house says?  Long story short, please do not build the white elephant on the block and Kudos to the design / construction team, as well as the Owner's. It is a beautiful home and a gorgeous story.