01Mesa House / Marfa
Rammed-earth residence on a 40-acre mesa · 3,100 sq ft · Completed 2024
Work in
the world.
01
02Wetland Room / Matagorda
Raised timber pavilion over coastal prairie · 1,200 sq ft · Completed 2022
03Live Oak Court / Austin
Courtyard house around three heritage live oaks · 4,400 sq ft · Completed 2026
Case study / Mesa House
How the site drew the house.
Architecture clients hire for thinking, not renderings. A case study that explains decisions is the strongest proof a studio can publish.
Shade before glass
Deep overhangs on the south, almost no glazing to the west. The main room faces north-east, toward morning light and the Davis Mountains.
- Decision
- 1.8 m overhangs; west wall solid rammed earth
- Result
- Summer cooling load roughly halved in early modelling
Every storm is collected
The roof drains to a gravel courtyard and a 20,000-gallon cistern that waters the native garden through the dry months.
- Decision
- Single-slope roof, buried cistern
- Result
- Garden irrigated without a municipal connection
Built from the ground it sits on
Walls were rammed from soil excavated for the foundations, with steel and timber left visible where they meet.
- Decision
- Site soil stabilised with 6% cement
- Result
- Fewer truck deliveries and a colour that matches the mesa
Archive / 2018–2026
More work.
Arroyo Cabins
Four timber cabins stepped down a dry creek bed, sharing one kitchen pavilion.
Brick Works
A 1920s warehouse adapted into two homes around a planted courtyard.
Shoal Creek House
A narrow lot, a 30-foot grade change and a house that steps with it.
Mesa House
The case study above: rammed earth, a cistern courtyard and a north-east view.