I was raised in Toledo, Ohio, earning my 4-year architecture degree from The Ohio State University in Columbus and my Masters from Rice University in Houston. Before joining Sionas, I worked as a freelance architect in Parma, Italy where my wife and I lived for a year and a half, enjoying the simple life, the warm climate and people, and getting to know exquisite cured meats, wonderful tortelli, and the occasional castagna secca. In addition, my time in Parma expanded not only my waistband, but also my appreciation for the craft of architecture.

I think architecture is at its best when it has awareness and ability to speak beyond itself, both in self-critique and within a social dialogue. It is true that a building is constructed as an actual built environment for a specific location, but it is architecture’s ability to transport its inhabitants to other places and times through the narratives it can unfold that has always been of interest within my work.

I’m an avid home brewer and enjoy crafting various ales and lagers for family and friends. Thanks to my recently earned certificate of brewing technology from Chicago’s Siebel Institute, when I hone my craft I leave the kitchen in less of a disaster, much to my wife’s pleasure. Other things I enjoy include film and in my free time, working on a screenplay.

Favorite film: Milos Foreman’s “Amedeus.” All of us should aspire to apply our out-of-this-world passion into our work. (Just watch out for the jealous crazies.)
Inspirational beer: Samuel Smith’s Nut Brown Ale. The hint of chocolate, plums and raisins is wonderful.
Email Mike