The New Faces of Southern Style

John Paul Huguley
Charleston, South Carolina
American College of the Building Arts
In our current era of drywall box building and strip mall facades, no one understands the need for artisans more than preservation champion John Paul Huguley, the founder of the American College of the Building Arts in Charleston, South Carolina. The ACBA is the first four-year institution of its kind to offer  liberal arts degrees in the areas of Architectural Stone, Carpentry, Forged Architectural Ironwork, Plaster Working, Preservation Masonry, and Timber Framing. “The goal of the ACBA is to produce more highly skilled critical thinkers in the American building industry,” Huguley says. “If we don’t invest in that education, we will continue to lose one of the largest industries in America to less sustainable building practices.” The main campus is located on the grounds of the Holy City’s nineteenth-century jail, a laboratory for new construction and preservation projects alike. Students spend the first two years learning old-world techniques, while the final two bring modernity into the mix, including course work in business and finance. And Huguley isn’t stopping there. “Ten years from now my hope is that the ACBA will not be just a college but a larger building arts center that will provide research for nationally recognized architects and serve as the home base of the best building arts museum in the country.” buildingartscollege.us

Stan Dixon
Atlanta, Georgia
D. Stanley Dixon Architect, Inc.
Since Tennessee native Stan Dixon founded his Atlanta firm four years ago, the understated elegance of his residential designs has garnered awards and captivated high-profile clients—from Braves pitcher Derek Lowe to best-selling author Kathryn (The Help) Stockett. A recent restoration of an eighteenth-century revival estate in Atlanta is typical of what Dixon calls his “less is more” approach to traditional architecture. Rather than pile on the pilasters, he focused instead on adding such period details as a slate roof, a hemlock-paneled study, and an octagonal porch inspired by Virginia’s Gunston Hall. While his firm is busy working on major commissions from Nashville to Jupiter Island, Dixon welcomes any client—no matter how small the project or modest the budget—who appreciates the authenticity and craftsmanship of his approach. “That level of respect and understanding is much more important to me,” Dixon says, “than a big checkbook.” dsdixonarchitect.com

Tim Maddox
Fayetteville, Arkansas
deMX Architecture
Most young architects gravitate toward the bright lights of cosmopolitan cities. But Arkansas native Tim Maddox, principal of Fayetteville firm deMX Architecture, preferred home over the hubbub. Together with fellow architect Tim de Noble, Maddox designs rigorously modern residential projects that incorporate vernacular elements—namely those inspired by the rich agrarian history of the area. This inventive combination of old and new is what sets Maddox’s work apart in the world of contemporary architecture. “The strength of Tim’s architecture is his response to place,” says renowned Southern architect Marlon Blackwell. Whether it’s the sloping roof of his minimalist Bakhita Ridge residence that mimics the lines of the picturesque barn located on the same property, or RomWoods, influenced in part by the traditional Southern “dogtrot” cottage, Maddox keeps things local for a reason. “It makes sense for me to practice where I grew up,” Maddox says. “This is what I know best.” demxarchitecture.com

Benjii Wall
Marshall, North Carolina
Burnpile Studio
Benji Wall is not the first person to jump aboard the salvaged wood furniture movement, but his work is distinctly different. In lieu of farm tables and ladderback chairs, his pieces are inspired by sleek mid-century modern forms. His studio, Burnpile, is located in Marshall, a small town in the Blue Ridge Mountains. “Much of the wood left over from construction jobs, large and small, goes into the burn pile,” says Wall, explaining the name. “I have never been comfortable seeing so much good wood go to waste.” Working out of an old grain storage building, Wall also recycles wood from old barns, antique wood pallets, and leftover timber frames into furniture that’s completely unadorned: tables, chairs, and more that highlight underlying colors, grain, and texture simply and beautifully. But he’s still a traditionalist at heart. Often, he’ll come across hidden nail holes left over from a time when these were hand-driven into each piece—a tactile reminder, he says, “of the strength of structures made by hand.”   828-989-4442

Heather Night
Asheville, North Carolina
Element Clay Studio
Even though North Carolina potter Heather Knight’s work can be found in galleries and museums across the country, including San Francisco’s Museum of Craft and Folk Art, she doesn’t do conventional bowls and pitchers. Instead, this avant-garde Houston native bathes porcelain sculptures of magnolia pods, sea urchins, walnuts, clamshells, and more in pop-art white—a look that’s just as suited to a modern interior as it is a traditional one. Her pieces, including unusual wall tiles shaped to resemble white lichen, are created entirely by hand, with every textural detail sculpted individually from her Asheville studio. Knight also accepts custom commissions. Most recently, she completed an installation for a client in Saudi Arabia. “I love my work because I love to look at things in new ways,” she says. “The creative possibilities are endless.” heatherknightceramics.com