When did you first become interested in architecture? I was inspired by travelling in Mexico as a child. My family drove all around Central Mexico, the Yucatan, and Oaxaca in the summers. We stayed in an old house with a courtyard, three-foot thick walls, and a huge, ancient front door. The age, the large scale rooms, and the way of building were so different than the suburban ranch house I grew up in, really got my attention. Then, I went to Italy in college and did a research paper on the churches of Francesco Borromini—that's what got me. After college, I went to New York and worked for an architect—living in the city and being part of a serious architectural community during a time of transition was very intense.
 

What inspires your design? My husband and partner is an artist. We look at and discuss art and architecture all the time. Artists begin projects out of their own interests, while architects usually start from site and program. The tension between these two working processes has been important in our creative dialogue. In terms of architects, I studied with Steve Holl, and the historian Ken Frampton, who taught us how to “read” buildings and had an encyclopedic knowledge of modern architecture. I worked for Rem Koolhaas in the Netherlands one summer, and it was amazing to be able to see so much modern architecture in person. Alvar Aalto is a continual touchstone for me, both because of the way the buildings are sited, as well as his use of material and craft. Recently, I've been amazed by new Japanese architecture—Sanaa and Kengo Kuma.

Give us a brief architectural tour of the must sees in your favorite city other than Austin. Recently we lectured in Portland and loved it. It has an amazing fabric and parks by Frederick Law Olmstead. It’s roughly the same population as Austin, but much denser. All the important civic buildings are along a long park block that descends a hill to the river. I like it more for its beautifully integrated environment than for a particular building.

What's the most interesting architectural trend happening in Austin right now? I'm excited about the integration of laser cutting and CNC milling into larger scale work—architects working as fabricators. In our own work, we take pieces of projects to make ourselves, so we can develop them out of research we're interested in, and completely control the piece. I'm also really excited about some of the new civic buildings that are underway—the new courthouse by Scogin Elam Bray, Lewis Tsurmaki Lewis' renovation of Arthouse at the Jones Center, Lake Flato’s library. It's great that we're getting some real walkable streets downtown. How to get Texans out of their cars? That’s the big question…
 

What are your favorite buildings in Austin? I love the new dorm at St. Edwards by Alejandro Aravena—it has a pleasing sculptural exterior that relates to the old campus buildings, but the detailing of the brick atomizes the surface. It amplifies the effect of natural light on the form. Then you go inside the courtyard and it’s like a geode—a strong optical color framing views out and up. Mell Lawrence's concrete studio building for Charles David is amazing, with its concrete scales. I’m very fond of vintage modern buildings in Austin—the chapel at St. Stephen’s School, Roland Roesner’s houses—very Spartan and elegant. Liz Lambert’s places are all wonderful—she's an amazing patron of architecture and garden design, who always gets the right tone.

What are you currently working on? We're finishing a house, (our house) which I'm thrilled about (or will be once we finish moving in)! We're also working on a Municipal Recycling Facility (MRF) with a great client who's interested in looking at inventive ways to incorporate recycled materials into new construction.