Apartment Therapy Tours Twin Peaks

July 18, 2008July 19, 2008 | mjneal

It must be Twin Peaks month:-)

Good Life Magazine and now Apartment Therapy

A house tour by Adrienne Breaux. Fantastic article and she took a bunch of pictures, there’s a pretty comprehensive slideshow.

Table designed by MJ Neal, AIA, Photo by Adrienne Breaux for Apartment Therapy

Wow, it’s SO great to see a good picture of that table. MJ can design furniture like nobody’s business. I keep wishing we had the time to start that line of furniture that’s waiting in the side lines:-). All in due time, I guess!

AT is a great site and it’s just wonderful to see the house posted there but it’s even more wonderful to see Kim and Paul enjoy and appreciate the house. We worked so hard on those houses, all of us, for over two years. We fended so much criticism, I have pages of emails of neighbors either loving them or hating them, there sure was no middle place, until… they came inside, most people fell in love with the places during the open houses, attracted by the sustainability, the light, the warmth of the materials and color, and our own love, I guess, it must’ve come through somehow… So, when Kim and Paul seem so happy there, it actually means something to us, I’m not just saying this, we really worked so much in these homes that they are literally a part of us. Kim and Paul’s was the first in Bouldin, too… buf, I’m getting teary eyed… bleagh.

Y mas y mas, y maaaas Lobo!

July 17, 2008July 17, 2008 | mjneal

I’m just getting these up with the tile and the railing in the making and MJ already has taken more pics that will be coming up, he’s a MANIAC!!!

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Mas Lobo!

July 11, 2008July 14, 2008 | mjneal

It’s really starting to show more like a finished house, I can’t wait to seriously photograph it!

MJ took these teasers of the Wolfe Den on W Live Oak today:

(oh, I have to remember to tell El Lobo! about Magic Erasers, in case he doesn’t know about them… those walls and doors and panels have to stay white. The magic erasers are a magic trick for white walls and doors, I swear by these things, the contractors swear by them too, will save you a lot of re-painting.)

Posted by Viviane, photographs by MJ

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Good Life on Twin Peaks and a Little Porn

July 8, 2008July 23, 2008 | mjneal

Amy Lemen wrote a wonderful article in this month’s issue of The Good Life Magazine.

Download the article’s pdf HERE.

And this reminds me of the .Inc article on the “other twin”, just to balance matters. That’s a pretty wonderful article too.

If you happen to read these two articles you’ll get a pretty good idea of what’s like to live in the houses that come out of the studio.

And… if you happen to be wondering what it’s like to work with an architect, us for example, I’d recommend you read these two articles:

A Little Porn

And the sweet account from years ago, when I met MJ and he was working on Ron and Gina’s Lake house.

It makes me think of how much I’ve learned in these thirteen years, I’m grateful and lucky to be able to do what we do. We create beauty for a living, what else can you ask for?

Posted by Viviane

Larkey Addition/Remodel

July 8, 2008July 21, 2008 | mjneal

Went by the larkey job today, it was deserted because of the rain. With almost all the sliding doors in, you can really start telling what the space is going to feel like. My favorite has to be the new master bedroom, with the views to the courtyard and the clerestory window streching beyond where the glass will stop all the way down to the carport! Your eye just travels forever on that left side, and below that… all that storage!!!

I really also saw the jog around the tree, today, with the flashing being in and all, it’s a skinny carport but a very considerate one:-)

posted by vv

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AIA, Austin Honor Award and Silver Medal!

June 19, 2008June 27, 2008 | mjneal

2008 is rocking for us… I’m posting this way late, but after sending around the newsletter with the big news, I keep forgetting to put it on the blog, finally I get to it! Et voila ici:

MJ Neal, AIA wins Another Design Honor Award… and a Silver Medal as it was distributed on our newsletter, if you want to receive it, go here:


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MJ Neal Architects

2008 AIA Austin Design Honor Award
and
Tau Sigma Delta Silver Medal

If you can’t read this email please click here

Photo: Viviane Vives

Highest Honor (in town), again!

We are pleased to announce that, as we did in 2007, we just won the 2008 Design Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects, Austin.

It was published on yesterday’s press release:

“AIA Austin is pleased to announce the results of the 2008 Design Awards Competition. The AIA Austin design competition seeks to recognize outstanding architectural projects by members and to promote public interest in architectural excellence. The jury met on April 4, 2008 at the Chapter office and reviewed sixty-eight entries from local firms and made the following selections:

HONOR AWARDS
(The highest award given in this program)

PILATES STUDIO
M.J. Neal Architects

(—)

And it goes on to list the other Honor Award (the fabulous Concrete Studio by Mell Lawrence, a must see) 3 Citation awards and only 2 Merit Awards… This year there were only 7 awards in total!

The project awarded was the Pilates Studio.

Ann Arnoult was the client, and Living Art, John Bowyer and Michael Kalish’s outfit, was the builder. They deserve every credit and kudos for making this project a reality.

MJ and I were stunned, this is such a tiny project (at only $40 per sq ft.) and it was competing against such heavy hitters, that we didn’t have many high hopes…

So, at the Saturday Gala, when the Merit and the Citations came and went, and the beautiful Concrete Studio by Mell Lawrence came in as the Honor Award winner, we were almost getting up to go, a bit dissapointed but happy to have seen some good architecture and greeted some colleagues and friends…

Then, on the screen, it appeared: “Pilates Studio.” by… M.J. Neal Architects. I looked at MJ in disbelief, “that would be us!” He had a funny look on his face as he buttoned his jacket in a hurry…

What a jury, Julie Eizenberg, AIA; David Baker, FAIA, Randy Brown, FAIA … they had the nicest things to say about the work, rigorous, sensual, creative… wow, I still can’t believe it, and the last award of the night, how about them apples, eh?

This award is not connected to the AIA National Institute Honor award for the Anthony Nak Project that we will pick up in Boston May 15.

Photo: Viviane Vives

Silver Medal

MJ has been awarded the 2008 Silver Medal for significant contribution to architectural design from the Upsilon chapter of Tau Sigma Delta at Texas Tech University’s College of Architecture

He was very surprised and happy, we traveled to Lubbock so they could give the thing to him and so he could lecture them in exchange (not so sure about this barter here now, huh?)

OK, really, it was fun, MJ is a TTech alumnus and the students that hosted us (Adam Reed and Amber Howard) were intelligent, gracious and fun; we honestly had a great time with them and they took us to great restaurants!

Fashion Teens

June 4, 2008June 7, 2008 | mjneal

This is what I do in my spare time.

What an amazing opportunity:

Veronica, Roma, and Natalie have been getting together for fashion shoots for four years now, they are now fifteen, so do the math. They were joined by EvanA and Aralynne. Veronica is an amazing photographer herself and she chose the setting and orchestrated the get-ups and the do’s. She’s also a beautiful model (she’s the one in the “Kill your TV” t-shirt, a like minded soul!) They all are. Just incredibly talented.

I had such a good time that I’m considering getting back into photography, beyond architectural photography that is. I hope you enjoy these as much as I have shooting them and getting them ready for show. We had so many good pictures that it was quite the task.

Lauren Bard deserves also special credit. She was generous enough to let me participate, as were the girls… Lauren helped me with reflectors and what-not and managed some great shots of her own, on top of it.

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