interior design home

Another architect doing great work in the South is Ken Tate from Louisiana.  Ken, who was born in Mississippi, studied at Auburn.  His work is spectacular.  Ken, as others I have covered, does an incredible job of reinterpreting historic works to fit the homes sites or simply what he sees as fitting.  Each of his projects are unique works that fit incredibly well into their settings.
While I have seen many of his homes in person, this Norman style house I have not but love it.

A talent I've recently found that is taking modern twists on classical designs to a new level is Ken Pursley out of Charlotte, North Carolina.  His work is outstanding.  Doing both renovations and new construction, his take on design is fresh and current while maintaining a classical approach to architecture.


One of my favorite things about his work is the mixture of classical exteriors with extremely crisp interiors.  Few have the ability to mix the two.  Ken has done an excellent job of it.  I will be following his work for a long time.  What is so great about this approach is that any of these homes will fit in with the old neighborhoods across the country.


Here is his take on a Scottish Revival:

Look at the detail on the french doors below.

Here are a few images of a Colonial Revival he did.  All fresh, clean and beautiful.

Here is an English Kitchen and Garden Folly (as he calls it).  I love this kitchen.

Notice the ceiling below and the view of the "Garden Folly"

I love the way he designed this alcove for the master bed.

My first memories of loving houses began as a child.  I cannot remember exactly at what age.  But I do recall my mother dragging me through house after house though.  She loves houses as well.  Her parents lived in this house below in St. Francisville, Louisiana.  I recall swinging on the swing on the front porch, searching the hills behind their house looking for Civil War memorabilia and visiting the plantations throughout that area.  In the summer we would swim in the river.  At the time, I felt like the windows on the front porch were 12' tall.  Every year, St. Francisville holds the Audubon Pilgrimage tour of plantations and homes.  I recall my sisters dressing up in what I thought at the time were ridiculous outfits (and laughing at them) to work at the house during the tour. 

Modern adaptations of classical architecture have their place.  It is very easy to completely destroy what started out as a great design.  I see it all the time on additions to old houses.

The picture above and directly below are of Bobby McAlpine's house he built in Montgomery quite a few years ago.  He has since sold it and restored another house.

The three pictures above are of a house I saw when I was visiting family in Memphis and taking my early morning architecture drive (I do this in every city I visit).  At the time, I didn't know it was a McAlpine-Tankersley house but it caught my eye from 500' away.