A friend comes to pick up her child from a play-date with our son and she announces excitedly that we are in Dwell. I smile and I say I know! Isn’t it great, we’ve been on Dwell a couple times, which one did you see! And she goes, no, you are in the “100 Houses we Love” Dwell, and you have a big article in it!

So we pick it up. Here’s an excerpt of the editorial:

They only chose TEN full articles, one per year. Thank you Dwell not only for choosing us–what an honor–but also for making us the chosen article for 2008.

One in ten years, ten homes in one hundred. Wow.

And so it is! Now in stands and zinnio, enjoy!

It also was important to respect the delicate lines and low profile of the existing mid century modern house designed by the late A.D. Stenger, one of Austin’s great modernist architects. From the street, the house looks virtually untouched. It remains a modest presence on the block.

The original house was taken back to the studs, the existing fireplace with its eccentric stone work was saved, and two previous unfortunate, mold infested, additions that made the existing house a black hole were removed.

A master bedroom and bath where added and the interior of the existing house completely remodeled and re-oriented around a long skylight and two interior courtyards. The skylight and courtyards maintain privacy and allow natural light into all parts of the house while providing a connection with the live oaks and changing sky.

Maple, tinted to match the tone of the pine flooring, wraps through out the house becoming cabinets, paneling, and flush doors. Traditional, earthy D’hanis “mocha” brick pavers become the surface in the courtyards.

Update: this project won a citation of Honor at the AIA, Austin 2010 Design Awards.

New additions are of wood and steel to contrast the existing raw masonry. Everything new is installed so that when removed, the integrity of the raw space is maintained for the future.

Careful allocation of funds and tricks like kerfing the ¾” plywood to provide the “poor man’s curves” where used to meet the extremely low budget of twelve thousand dollars. New materials are formaldehyde free plywood with a tung oil finish, cold rolled steel, and paint.

Update: this project won a Merit Award at the AIA, Austin 2010 Design Awards.

Enjoy, I am.

Check John, of Living Art Austin, getting his Uncle Fester on.

Check the stair detail that relates to the wrap around desk detail (see the post before this one).

And here’s a shot of the vanity in the master bath toilet room. Of course I had to take a couple of shots of the guest vanity again. 

It’s gettng close now.

Here are a few of the Wolfe Den’s Ipe entry bench, guest bath vanity, office desk, etc. hot of the digital camera.

Check It!

As y’all know and have heard to death, at least from our end, we were awarded a National Institute Honor Design Award this year for the Anthony Nak Jewelry Flagship Store by the American Institute of Architects

Ok, so we went to Boston and picked up the thing.

We were the only Texans at the design awards, but MJ made sure he was wearing his boots. 

This project has won almost every award I can think of so, although the National was a surprise, it didn’t surprise me as much as you’d think… Nevertheless, out of curiosity, I went and researched a bit to see how rare this really was for Austin and wow, as far as I could find here, or here there have only been three other projects in Austin, TX ever awarded a national AIA award… it’s really kinda freaky, actually, they are:

- Anthony Nak Flagship Store, by yours truly, M. J. Neal Architects, 2008 

That is not a lot of projects for a whole CITY, F-O-U-R??? It just doesn’t sound right to me… C’mon guys the work in Austin is GOOD, I’m I missing something? Texas architects in general fared a tad better, but besides Lake Flato, not so well, actually…

MJ still can’t believe it, but it’s real, I got in on camera! Slide show to follow, surprise, surprise!

Boston is now officially one of my favorite US cities, and they do have the best fish!!! We had lobster at the no name restaurant one rainy night after enjoying an afternoon at the ICA. 

The most wonderful thing about Boston was seeing Reese Schroeder, one of mj’s oldest and best friends. In the slide show you’ll see us at the opening of the Apple store where strangely and appropriately, we ended up celebrating the win after a dinner at Aquitaine that knocked our socks off. We enjoyed the Metropolis as well, and manager Tim is just too cute!

On the slide show, you’ll find also some pics of the only Corbu building in the USA at Harvard and the Office da’s McAllen building (worth the walk.) plus some bonus material!

We stayed at the Clarendon Square and I HIGHLY recommend the place, quiet, flawless, beautiful, comfortable, it’s all that and more!

On with the show!

(most pics by Viviane Vives (Who doesn’t mind shooting for hire email vvvATbarcelonafilmsDOTcom) some by MJ Neal, AIA and some by Reese Schroeder, AIA. All rights reserved) 

from picasaweb.google.com posted with vodpod