Visual Mantra

Bobby McAlpine and Susan Ferrier incorporated beauty, sanctuary and “a bit of theater” into their new office inside ADAC. The chandelier was originally purchased for a client in Morocco; after a hurricane blew it to the ground, Ferrier enlisted Charles Calhoun to restore it.

A porcupine Ferrier fell for at a Paris flea market is elevated by a BRADLEY base.

A glance at McAlpine’s office desk.

A hide rug anchors the center of the office, were the assembly of materials and ideas happens at a pewter-topped table by François & Co. and Holland and Company. Piper, Ferrier’s pup, enjoys the soft texture.

The crisp button-tufted banquette in the reception area pops next to an architectural bookstand.

Floor-to-ceiling draperies fabricated by Douglass Workroom and high-back chairs create a rhythmic focal point; the antique mirrored wall is by Amy Smith of Blue Door Framing.

Smart use of space in McAlpine’s office transforms the back of a banquette into a book nook.

The wood-planked wall by Olde Savannah Flooring is a foil for crisp outlines, like a marble-topped console by Charles Calhoun, and pieces culled from McAlpine and Ferrier’s personal residences.

“It’s the strength of gestures that creates a visual mantra,” says Ferrier of the office’s intentional, rhythmic design. “There’s a tremendous amount of activity … but the emotionality we’ve brought into this space is a higher vibration.”

An elegantly appointed and divided workspace for a McAlpine architect.

An entry foyer detail; planked wall by Olde Savannah Flooring.

“Each of our partners feel the buoyancy and empowerment of working in a beautiful setting,” says McAlpine, pictured in his Atlanta office. “We do for ourselves what we ask others to do, and it’s a beautiful investment.”

An antique mirrored wall at the end of the hallway reflects the strong, rhythmic gestures McAlpine and Ferrier have taken care to create for the employees of their architecture-and-design firm, newly relocated to ADAC.

The buoyancy and empowerment that comes with working in a beautiful setting is just as important as the environment you choose to surround yourself with in your private dwelling, says architect Bobby McAlpine. “What you practice at home can follow you to work,” he shares.    

It’s a beauty-as-sanctuary philosophy that business partner and acclaimed designer Susan Ferrier not only espouses but also kept top of mind as she devised the interiors for their newly renovated office inside ADAC. “The emotionality we brought into this space is a higher vibration—and ultimately, it brings out better results in the workplace,” says Ferrier of the crisp but atmospheric mood she and McAlpine have created for their team of 11.

Indeed, it’s powerful, rhythmic gestures, such as floor-to-ceiling drapery partitions, high-back skirted chairs, and wood-planked walls that allow employees of the architecture-and-interiors firm both the privacy to succeed and the freedom to “strengthen a common muscle,” as McAlpine says.

The partners’ holistic approach to design also happens to be smart business practice. Clients who walk through the doors of their new office, says Ferrier, feel a sense of security and ease upon encountering what feels more like a living room than a typical office setting. “Without words, the layout of our office lays any insecurities to rest,” says Ferrier.

Of course, context also played a starring role in the residential feel of their new space. Moving into the “library,” as McAlpine and Ferrier call ADAC, was a bold move, one that raised the level of expectation from neighboring showrooms and manufacturers alike. However, “there’s no substitute for being among like minded people who hold beauty in greater esteem,” says Ferrier.  That sense of community, in fact, plays a key role in the firm’s success, as vendors and clients also happen to be great friends. “Our work and our social interaction are so interwebbed,” says McAlpine. “Most of our interaction happens here. So how we go about working and what it looks and feels like is really important.”

INTERIOR DESIGN Susan Ferrier and Bobby, McAlpine, McAlpine House. (404) 501-9200; mcalpinehouse.com