Dwell49 Design+Build was realized to activate our skillsets, ambitions, and lessons learned, alongside our desire to push boundaries and challenge not only the industries and communities that we affect, but also ourselves as individuals.  Intelligent design and construction is not solely brought to life through utilizing the most recent material innovations, nor is it accomplished through only doing what has always been done, but rather through a team comprised of individuals in possession of the minds to understand and the eye to distinguish the difference between that which strengthens the character of a structure and that which undermines it. 

We are not architects, but we are builders who pay attention and understand space and how people live in their environments.  We are not scientists, but we have observed and taken note of how materials and structures react over time to the forces that they are subjected to.  Authenticity is not discovered through the quest for perfection, but rather through seeking out the realness of that which has been subjected to the harsh reality that life often is, and thus has been shaped and often broken and transformed by the things that are an integral part of existence.  There is a reason why our eyes accept checks along the grain on a weathered barn clapboard, but rejects the congruence of vinyl siding.  There is a reason why our eye can relate to rusty rivulets cutting through the mill scale on a steel post, but finds no familiarity in the consistency of a plastic sleeved column.  Subconsciously we understand that quality is measured by that which can endure being tested and scarred without sacrificing integrity.

Working with natural materials elevates the responsibility of the designer and craftsmen to understand and competently select, place, and respect that which he or she works with, but it is often the unique “flaws” inherent in things that are shaped by sun, wind, water, fire, and dirt that give them the character that we are inexplicably drawn to.  In our quest for things that will never change, we’ve forgotten that change initiates growth, and without growth, stagnation sets in, which inevitably leads to deterioration.  If we intentionally seek out materials that respond well to growth and that react positively to change, we will set the course for longevity in our structures and create a dwelling that will weather well right alongside of you.