Shutze Awards

Wendy M. Graham
Artisanship / Craftsmanship

The hand of the craftsman is on full display with the Helical Elliptical Staircase, inspired by both the grand (and modest) escaliers of France as well as the free-standing helical elliptical stair in Charleston’s Nathaniel Russell House. Beyond connecting three floors, Graham says the sensual, gentle curves—the result of collaboration between an architectural designer, consultant and artisan—are “an architectural expression of the elegance of nature.” Judge Joel Barkley agreed, saying, “the lightness and grace … shows how wise geometry can lift construction from prose to poetry.” 

Tammy Connor Interior Design
Interior design – Under 5,000 sf

After her clients purchased two additional units above their quintessential New York City apartment, a three-year reconfiguration and expansion ensued to transform a pied-à-terre into a spacious family home with multilevel views of Central Park. A collaboration between Tammy Connor Design, John Murray Architects and DiSalvo Contracting, the resulting architecture and interiors (a labor of love and architectural achievement) are a lesson in juxtaposition; a study in balancing contrasting elements and styles that harmoniously joins the city with nature through perfect scale and proportion. 

Alex Smith Garden Design, Ltd.
Landscape Design – Residential

House and garden become one at Thistlewaite, a Highlands, North Carolina, residence in which horticultural-driven design was rendered in rare harmony among the design team and discerning clients. Alex Smith Garden Design complemented Norman Askins’ exquisite architecture with an English country garden that unfolds intuitively through three primary outdoor spaces: an entry garden that requires guests to pass through a moongate; the courtyard, where they emerge on the way to the front door; and the seep garden. These exterior rooms both relate to and emanate from the interiors. 

Shawn Henderson
Restoration

This circa-1836 Mississippi plantation, a three-story Greek Revival dwelling, was discovered by a director as he searched for antebellum homes for the filming of the movie, The Help. Called Wyolah Plantation, and listed on the National Register for Historic Places, Manhattan-based designer Shawn Henderson was called upon to both save and restore the compound, which included eight original outbuildings on 100 acres. The three-year renovation complied with historic requirements and transformed the interiors in a transitional style.    

Jeffrey Dungan Architects
Architecture / Residential – under 5,000 sf

A retired, downsizing couple wanted to create a thoughtful retreat that also celebrated solid materials and forms. Jeffrey Dungan envisioned a “simple program” that included just two bedrooms, sculptural interior spaces and a one-car garage/party pavilion. He employed a rustic stone on the exterior and antiqued limestone detailing around windows and doors. Says judge Steven Gambrel: “The spirit of place is derived from the permanence of the materials and the detailing of the masonry. The enormity of character makes the relatively small structure strong and meaningful.” 

D. Stanley Dixon Architect
Architecture / Residential – over 5,000 sf

Following a tragic 2014 fire that consumed the original, center portion of this circa-1924 Hentz, Reid & Adler Architects residence, the owners’ appreciation for its historic significance led them to architect D. Stanley Dixon, who helped them to sensitively rebuild in the spirit of the original structure. Original drawings were studied, and historic and family photos referenced. The team salvaged and matched both the odd-sized brick and windows with true divided lites that are operated by weights and ropes, and duplicated the original cornices, porches and other prominent details.  

G. P. Schafer Architect
Architecture / Residential – over 5,000 sf
Interior Design – over 5,000 sf

For a new, 16,000-square-foot South Georgia plantation residence located on 6,000 acres, New York architecture firm G.P. Schafer Architect earned the award for both interior design and architecture for a residence over 5,000 square feet. Built on the site of a 1940’s hunting cabin overlooking a 19th-century gristmill pond, the house was designed with a deliberate nod to the historic homes of the region, with a reverence for the traditions of Georgia’s quail plantations. Four years were spent on the decoration; the result is an atmosphere that’s collected, comfortable and unpretentious.

McCrery Architects
Architecture: Civic / Institutional

Aiken, South Carolina, is replete with fine examples of traditional and classical architecture, so this entirely new Roman Catholic church building, situated in the heart of the thriving town, was commissioned to stand among the best of them. Inspired by several periods of church architecture through the ages—Early Christian, Romanesque and Renaissance—the Saint Mary Help of Christians church was organized by McCrery Architects to act as an assembly of distinct buildings arranged to form a comprehensive whole.

Jacques P. Levet, Jr.
Student/Emerging Professional

Disheartened by post-Katrina development in New Orleans, Jacques Levet, Jr. ’s thesis project for the Notre Dame School of Architecture sought to create the New Orleans Center for Architecture to show that “construction of a new traditional building within an historic district can support the growth of a local building culture while furthering the unique sense of place a historic district classification initially sought to protect. By serving as an example of contemporary classicism and providing educational resources … [it] can guide other parts of the city in how they might grow while caring for existing urban fabric and traditions.”