Journey To Architecture

The following is a timeline of my meandering journey into the unexpected. Architectural Design, as my life’s career. 

I’ll share how my interest and talents in art and architectural renderings conjoined over time with knowledge of spatial psychology — all playing a leading role in the design process for my on-going consultations, designs and public presentations.

Since early childhood I was naturally gifted with artistic abilities — capturing with pen and pencil actual and envisioned reality.

When not drawing, I was upgrading the design/building of a tree house directly above that week's sand castle — subconsciously absorbing the many playful ways of creating sand and leaf spaces to support desired functions and behaviors.

I also didn’t realize at the time how my explorations in photography, painting, sculpture, jewelry and stained glass served in my future co-creation of high-functioning, soul-nourishing personal residential and business environments for many appreciative clients.

Attending RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) was my dream. However, my high school interests were baseball, basketball, football, tennis, cars, parties and girls. The creation of an art portfolio was not!

A battery of high school aptitude tests suggested I focus on becoming an engineer or policeman! Ha! No way!! Not seeing the “creative magic" in such a life, I continued to flounder in the insecurity and uncertainty of youth, burdened with anxiety of going to college, graduating and becoming a successful adult.

Discouraged with a RISD rejection, an arising intuition hinted that I wasn’t meant to become just a starving artist!

Following Florida’s Rollins Liberal Arts College's suggestion, I blindly chose a Business Major as a safe path forward.

It soon became clear this was a soul-depleting career choice for me.

Another lesson in what was not envisioned for my life!

Water skiing, tennis, scuba diving, lake-side fishing, weekend orange grove or ocean side parties and the mysteries of the female species offered hits of dopamine and challenges!

All this as diversions, until I added another “art” elective to my painting, jewelry and sculpture classes.

Architectural Design! - Wow this is cool!

Unexpectedly, this one and only available architectural class ignited a spark within me. An available career in architecture, the middle path between business and fine art, was exhilarating! But how? When? Where?

Having just blown 2.5 years of my parent's money, with less than ideal grades, it was clear.

The Business Major had ended!

I was leaving college! — For the time being, anyway.

Married at a mature (Hah!) age of 21, with five wonderful children not yet even imagined, I moved into a Cambridge, MA apartment with life partner — my first!

I seriously did not know what I was doing. I was in love, for God’s sake!

Naively, without an architectural degree or work experience, I — not surprisingly — boldly failed to secure a job with an architect.

Unable to secure a draftsman’s spot with a Cambridge or Boston firm, I wound up cruising the streets of Cambridge in the Broadway Supermarket grocery delivery truck — another example of what was not going to be my life. However, it was a golden opportunity to see all kinds of people and the spaces they occupied — a subtle intro into the connection between space and behavior.

Being a short lived truck driver, delightfully ignited the idea of returning to my home town for further education and promising work opportunities in the field of architectural design.

During four years in my home town of Indianapolis, I was gifted several important life experiences. I secured an electrical drafting position as gateway to the A & E firm of Lennox, Matthews, Simmons & Ford. I worked my way into and thru their electrical, mechanical and structural departments, eventually into the architectural production department — one step short of where I was inspired to be — the design department!

While starting my career as an architect, I was also taking classes at John Heron Art Institute while also obtaining an Associate Degree in Architecture.

Knowing I would not likely get into the firm's design department any time soon, I elected to take another leap and return to the East Coast for enhanced professional experience with an award winning firm.

With intent of continuing my education, I enrolled at Boston Architectural College which, at the time, allowed students to pursue a degree while working during the day in a professional position.

I simultaneously interviewed with the Frank Lloyd Wright (FLW) inspired Boston design firm, Huygens and Tappe’ (H & T) who gifted me the perfect and greatly appreciated 8 year professional apprenticeship. This professional learning experience was more valuable than my 8 years of varied college education.

Impressing the firm with my architectural illustration talents, I slowly became one of the firm's illustrators for a variety of career enhancing projects, while climbing the corporate ladder.

Though becoming a licensed architect was my career goal, it was not then envisioned that I would eventually open my own office, “Sustainable Environments”, on Custom House Wharf, Portland, ME — a 15 min boat ride from my home on Peaks Island.

Also underway was an increasing interest in the profound connection between the built environment and behavior, exploring many professional spatial psychology resources.

Though I had, off and on, considered pivoting out of architecture into the counseling profession, a NY City architectural colleague strongly encouraged that I integrate counseling with architecture.

SpaceTherapy Inc., founded in 1995 with co-founder Prof. of Architecture, Roger Richmond, was the official start of my “SpaceTherapy” Consultations.

Two years thereafter, with Mr. Richmond's pivot into full time professorship, I founded DwellRight Studio providing to this day “SpaceBehavior” residential design, coupled with on-site and on-line consultations for living and working environments.

Today I work from my Oakham MA home as well as satellite offices in Hadley MA, Northampton MA, and Portland, ME. offering sought after design and consulting services to a variety of satisfied clients.

Creative hand drawn  architectural illustrations continuing to serve as an effective means of conveying my design ideas.

These drawings are both inherently pleasurable and integral to critical design thinking — a way to directly and creatively connect the eye, brain and hand. Unfortunately today, computers enable architects to do little or no manual drawing, and drawing less by hand may tempt some architects to think less critically.

While CAD offers many benefits and I do use it at various stages of my design process, there is nothing quite like the creative freedom that comes with hand drawn architectural renderings.

I feel that hand drawn renderings with the evident “hand of the maker” feel of pen and pencil, black & white or color renderings bring a more human and emotional element to architectural illustrations. These crafted drawings allow me and my clients to more deeply connect to their envisioned goal and what it might feel like when brought to life.

With enthusiasm, I utilize whatever artistic and spatial psychology strategies are necessary to allow residential and business owners the ability to directly experiencing the profound difference between work-of-architecture and a mere building.

Often using what already exist and other immediate and profound no-to-low cost design strategies, I work with clients all across the country and beyond. Whether in New England, New Mexico, California, Washington or Barcelona Spain, on-line and on-site design/consultation services and talks are available.

Questions? Ideas?….Let’s talk !

Be well,
Terry

Consultations
Residential Design
Commissioned Illustration
Public Speaking & Workshops