I'm so honored to have been selected to lead the Architectural Renovation of the celebrated Longpine Plantation in Thomasville Georgia. It's been listed as one of the top five plantations in the entire country, and is a house that is more than worthy of being restored to its appropriate glory. Attaining such a prestigious project has inspired a little reflection on my career so far...
I'll be the first to admit that I'm a pretty lucky guy. Most importantly, I serve an awesome God, and have a loving, supportive wife and family. But it never escapes my notice that I also have a job that I've dreamed of having for as long as I can remember.
Architecture is a passion that found me early in life, as it does so many people in our profession; I have learned that this, in itself, is a true blessing. I was (and still am) attracted to houses above anything else in the built environment, and was fortunate to grow up in a little corner of the world with some beautiful ones to admire. It was my exposure to those, along with the countless house plan magazines my mother would buy for me at our local Winn-Dixie as a child, that cemented my career path.
From those now obsolete - but coveted - house plan magazines, there emerged a certain "hero" to my seven year old mind. An architect in Atlanta named Stephen Fuller did something different with his houses; something that felt better, something that felt right. I followed him from a distance throughout my childhood, and watched everything he designed and published. Interning at his firm while still in college at Georgia Tech was a literal dream come true; working for him for the next ten years, learning design, illustration, watercolor, construction, and religion will without a doubt prove to be the most formative time in my life. Thank you, Mr. Fuller...
Stephen Fuller and myself, photo from Southern Living Magazine
And from those beloved houses that lined the oak-covered streets of Bainbridge, there emerged another "hero" who also did things differently. I would later learn that an architect from nearby Moultrie was responsible for two of the very best of those - the Simmons and Willis Residences on Lake Douglas Road. That gentleman was the revered Frank McCall. Unfortunately McCall passed away before I could ever meet him, but the influence of those houses, and the countless others that I have since had the pleasure of seeing, reading about, and visiting in person have had an indelable influence on my design philosophy - houses don't have to be grand, ornate, or enormous to be great... great architecture, instead, happens in the details, the scale, and the sense of place. Thank you, Mr. McCall...
As I am typing this, I can't help but reflect on how fortunate I have been so far in my career. Just seconds ago, I had a "let's have lunch" phone call from someone I'm now proud to call one of my very best friends - *the* Stephen Fuller.
And as I look to my right on my drawing board, I see my very own drawings, concepts, and ideas for breathing new life into Longpine Plantation - a house designed by... you guessed it - *the* Frank McCall.
How lucky and humbled can one guy get?
Renovation concept for the Arrival Façade of Longpine Plantation
Renovation Concept for the Garden Façade of Longpine Plantation
