Not just any competent, professional architect

Once I had acquired the land for my home, I had to pick a competent, professional architect - initially I did not know where to begin. I started by listing for myself, the few key items that mattered:

Firstly, our home site was non standard - odd non-rectangular shape, sloping terrain with significant level differences both within the site itself, as well as, from the hillside behind and the road in front of the plot. My intention to retain the boulders and trees on the site meant that they would have to be incorporated into the design. I felt that these were distinctive elements that would make my home unique and I wanted to find a designer who considered this site, a wonderful creative opportunity.

Need vision, attitude & collaboration

Secondly, the elevated location of the site, nestled among the hills offered stunning views in literally every direction - the structure needed to embrace the outdoors - the home had to lend itself to celebrating the

site and not be the star of the show. I wanted an architect who would feel this requirement as intensely as I did.

Thirdly, I felt that the various elements on the site provided a broad canvas to add detail to the high level design incorporating for instance, the cultural elements of the region in which my home was going to exist - so the design needed significant attention to detail.

Fourthly, I was planning to be actively engaged in the creative process - the designer would have to leverage my personal narrative, preferences and experiences to co-create the home. By nature I tend to bring a great deal of curiosity and intensity into whatever I do - this would require the designer to operate with a significant level of transparency and patience.

So there you have it - I needed an architect who was local - for ease of collaboration & regular visits to the site. Chemistry with the architect was important - since opinion about creative matters can vary significantly, one needed to be able to discuss and disagree without any ill feeling or rancour. The prior body of experience of the architect needed to be of very high quality, extensive detailing while still demonstrating classic simplicity. The final criteria was based on reviewing the architects conceptual design proposal post visiting the site. I was keen that my home would stand out from the crowd.

As you can see, what I needed was a lot more than just another competent, professional architect !

...Standing Out From The Crowd

...Making Decisions In A Creative Space