Nest architecture is architecture informed by the primitive architecture of early America when man harvested wood and stone from his own property with his own two hands and traded his crops to the metalsmith for door hardware. In colonial times, shelter from the wind and rain was not taken for granted, and refrigeration consisted of a hand-dug, stone-lined basement insulated with clay and straw. Roofs were steeply pitched to shed the elements. Structural lines of force followed from the roof to the ground. Americans learned firsthand which structures endured and which were ripped apart by gale force winds. We developed instincts about structure, mass, and form that are still part of our inner psyche.
As we grow further and further isolated from our natural environment, it becomes more and more difficult to put a finger on why one space feels uncomfortable and another uplifting. Today, most buildings are mass-produced, or built from plans out of a book of pseudo-styles. The more “plastic architecture” we accept in our lives and in our communities, the less honed are our skills at understanding the world around us and our relationship to it.
Nest architecture in the natural world is pure function: protection, efficiency, minimalism; appropriate, local materials woven creatively to form a structure designed to blend with the environment.
Nest architecture in the digital world is an engineered chassis fashioned of the latest composite materials designed to coddle the motherboard of a computer; lightweight protection, ventilation, efficiency.
Nest architecture is architecture that strives to embrace the human spirit in the digital age; not the cold, hard, modern architecture of the New York five, but a softer more organic version of contemporary architecture. “It’s design with an edge that still speaks to our soul.”
We are firm believers that architecture can make a difference in people’s lives. An exciting, uplifting retail environment can attract customers and help guarantee their return. A well organized, light-filled, monumental high school campus can create a more conducive environment to teach or study in. An open, airy waiting room can calm patients awaiting the doctor’s call. The home you wake up in each morning may be the most important of all.
