ABOUT THE STUDIO
THE PHILOSPHY
DESIGNING W/ CONTSRAINTS
With every project comes constraints. Oftentimes, these constraints are the very thing that manifest a spectacular project. We can compromise and optimize each element of a design for a different objective. We make sure to identify these different constraints, whether they be legal obligations, financial limits, or some other design parameter, and we then make decisions on how we can interrelate or separate solutions to achieve your goals.
PASSION AT THE CORE
We are always flexing our problem-solving muscles. We constantly learn, and re-learn, in an iterative process so that we can approach design problems with a holistic approach. We maintain a big-picture view of project goals, while applying our core skills to explore solutions to best respond to the project needs, whether they be simple and practical, or unique and elegant.
MIRROR AND LAMP
"We shape our buildings, thereafter they shape us." The built environment is both mirror and lamp, shaping us while also reflecting who we are. Our studio taps into that and reverberates shock-waves. We understand that with the opportunity to work with you, we are also invited to share your vision. Be it big or small, let's tell your story.
THE TURTLE
Raphael A. Santos, NCARB I Architect & Founder
Architect. That title used to seem so far away when growing up. One Master of Architecture degree from Florida International University later, coupled with 5+ years of training with some tremendously gracious architecture firms in Florida and Tennessee, and all wrapped up with stressful nights preparing for examinations, and by golly I had done it. But that's only a fragment of what I have been lucky enough to accomplish and be a part of.
Originally born in Lima, Peru, (and after a very long 20 year layover in Florida) I now sip my morning coffees from my new home-base in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It's a wonderful city which re-ignited a lot of different passions I now dabble in. I'm a bit of a hobbyist I admit, but I find it speaks to what makes me, well, me. I drum the drums, and sing the song with a band named Slicksilver. They're pretty neat guys. I shoot the biscuit with Chattanooga Hockey, which one dear friend rightfully calls, "the greatest sport in the world," and that "we're lucky to play it!" I also nerd out with reruns of probably the greatest show about a turtle hermit and his martial arts school, Dragonball (ah, to a be a kid again). On a more serious platform, me and a few talented folks stepped out onto the forefront of virtual reality in architecture with a venture called Architour. Now everything today is virtual reality this, and virtual reality that.
And so I find myself trying on as many imaginary acronyms at the end of my name these days, like an assortment of hats that maybe Ill end up wearing one on top another. Yes, professionally I primarily am an Architect, but I invite others to see beyond that one dimension of experience. Like the old adage tried to say, "a jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one," I try and let every facet of my skills be a spring board for my next project.
- Raph