HARRELL & CO ARCHITECTS
DESIGN PHILOSOPHY
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Our firm is primarily focused on a creative process that yields a finished residence capturing the client's personal vision, which is never a 'monument' to the architect. In our opinion, a custom residence is the most personal of architectural genres and is therefore the most interesting, challenging, and exciting opportunity available to a designer. Every client is unique, with different functional and aesthetic requirements considering such a personal space. Therefore our portfolio reflects a wide range of architectural styles, project scopes and project sizes. While we always integrate current technology and the latest proven building science into each project, we make a great effort to to infuse time tested architectural elements and theories where possible, no matter what architectural vocabulary is being used. Scale, context, respect for site, symmetry, and attention to detail at every level is the basis for almost all historically superior design. This is usually described as 'good bones' by a layperson and is easily recognized when flowing through a space. Architectural trends, like fashion, are often intended to create "change for change's sake" as a way to generate business in related fields. We try to carefully evaluate trends, distilling only the truly evolutionary aspects for integration into our projects while maintaining 'good bones' of historical precedence. Consequently we feel that our work stands up very well to the passage of time. Photos included in this presentation encompass work by our firm completed from its inception nearly 25 years ago through current projects. We feel that the continued relevance of homes that are decades old is a testament to timeless design based on our philosophy. Even where lifestyles and tastes change, we are gratified to see adaptations of even the most personal designs to different owners instead of the environmental waste created by a tear down. We develop friendships with all of our clients and view all of our projects as our 'kids', often working with a client's changing lifestyle or a new owner to evolve spaces for a new program. Once relationships are developed, they often blossom into a second or third project with the client or a new relationship with another family member or client friend. Nearly all of our work emerges organically from word of mouth recommendations in this manner or simply by the curb appeal of the projects themselves. Great relationships and communication are keys to a successful residential project and greatly reduce stress in the custom build process, which is often one of the most expensive and complex undertakings in life.