HOW WE WORK Architects, Tucson, Arizona
Technologically Superb
We live in an age of increasing change and innovation. New technologies, both hi-tech and low-tech, force many changes. New materials and new building systems appear almost daily. Buildings now are required to be highly energy efficient and many owners are demanding that recycled materials be used.
In addition, work patterns and spatial needs are under constant review. This also forces a demand that buildings be much more adaptable to new needs and growth.
We constantly endeavor to offer our clients the potential to employ the latest technologies and to offer choices in how their project can be enhanced and improved with their use. Such considerations will extend the useful life of the building and create the potential to reduce operating costs while providing an improved human environment.
Supremely Functional
A new project should “work” well. Proper adjacencies, privacy requirements and movement patterns, or “flow”, are all elements that contribute to feelings of well being and that the structure is eminently useful and fulfilling of practical needs.
Detail considerations also affect how we perceive a structure's degree of practicality. Stairs that are comfortable to use, controlling the effects of natural light, or choosing materials that have a long useful life are a few examples of considerations that need to be reviewed in the design of any building.
Functionality is of prime importance to us. Usefulness is largely a matter of common sense and the application of an objective analysis. A useful building is a building that avoids unnecessary change and adaptation. Practicality is constantly rewarding to those who daily use the building and adds to its perceived value.
Thoughtfully Human
The human dimension in design is fundamental to its success. Image, propriety and ambience are all factors in creating a building that has great human appeal. Good buildings are visually rewarding and satisfy our human need for variety, curiosity and comfort.
Many factors affect the humanness of any building. There is human scale or the relationship of building design and mass to the individual. There should be a felicitous relationship between the building and the individual person. The building should provide visual enjoyment and interplay that invites one's curiosity with color, textures, shade and shadow.
Structures that possess these qualities are immensely rewarding and satisfying. Moreover, they do not tire and remain visually relevant. They add value to property and can become elements that should be preserved and maintained for future satisfaction, as is found in many older structures that are today treasured for their beauty and detail.
Responsive to Community and Regional Design Values
Buildings should maintain a sense of belonging. This is not so much an issue of style as it is a matter of a design that ‘fits” its location. How does it relate to its immediate location and how does it signify by its design a regional character? Buildings that look good in one part of the country may look out of place in another.
A goal of each new project should be to make it comfortably fit its surroundings. The new structure should be an enhancement of what previously has been built. Pomposity and self-reference should be avoided.
Propriety is a virtue that we strive to pursue in all projects. We constantly evaluate this goal in reference to the need for fresh, new imagery that is often a guiding objective of many owners. Harmony and imagination we view as companion elements in any successful design.
