Talk Design

On this special AIA Austin Homes Tour episode of TALKdesign, Adrian Ramsay catches up with architect Elizabeth Alford, co-founder of Pollen Architecture & Design. They explore an extraordinary Hill Country live-work home designed for interior designer and fiber artist Laura Roberts, bringing a working design practice, a textile weaving studio, and a private residence together under one roof. H...

What does it take to expand a home by 1,000 square feet mid-build for four generations on a fixed budget? In this AIA Austin Homes Tour edition of TALKdesign, Adrian Ramsay tours Twin Oaks, the personal residence of architect Vani Singal (AIA, NOMA, NCARB), Founder and Principal Architect of Workshop No.5. When Vani bought a property centered around a 160-year-old live oak, the initial plan was st...

How does an architectural photographer see a space when they step through the front door? Ahead of the AIA Austin Homes Tour on 24–25 October, I sat down with photographer Rob Gomez, who captured all nine residences on this year's tour. A house stays on its site, but thoughtful photography gives its story and light a way to travel. In this special episode of TALKdesign, Rob and I look past sur...

In this AIA Austin Homes Tour episode of TALKdesign, I sit down with architect Murray Legge, FAIA, to walk through his South 3rd Street project in Austin, Texas. We talk through how he quadrupled the living space of a compact 800-square-foot 1930s cottage on a tight 3,500-square-foot urban lot. Rather than building outward and losing the garden, Murray added three stories behind the original bunga...

In this AIA Austin Homes Tour edition of TALKdesign, host Adrian Ramsay sits down with Michael Hargens, AIA, and Tyler Frost, Associate AIA, co-founders of Agenda Architecture, to explore the remarkable Courtyard House in South Austin. Sitting on a modest 2,500-square-foot block in the Zilker neighborhood, this home demonstrates how thoughtful design, texture, and site responsiveness can turn tigh...

How do you transform a dark 1970s house into a light-filled cliffside sanctuary? Licensed architect Dianne Kett of DK Studio joins host Adrian Ramsay on TALKdesign to unpack the practical architectural principles behind the Horseshoe Bend Cove remodel in Austin, Texas. Together, we explore how keeping just 20 percent of the original structure allowed Dianne and her team to completely rethink spati...

Can strict historic preservation rules actually unlock better design? On this special AIA Austin Homes Tour edition of TALKdesign, I sit down with architect Carina Coel of Restructure Architecture to explore the extraordinary transformation of Rutherford Place. Located in the historic Travis Heights neighborhood of Austin, Texas, this 100-year-old Spanish Revival triplex was reimagined from three...

Join me on TALKdesign as architect Davey McEathron shares key design insights and creative problem-solving techniques from Terraluz, an exceptional highlight of the AIA Austin Homes Tour. In this episode, we unpack the performance and beauty of two-foot-thick rammed earth construction, examining how natural thermal mass creates quiet, comfortable, and humidity-regulated living environments suited...

Great design is often defined by what you do not see rather than what you do. In this special AIA Austin Homes Tour episode of TALKdesign, host Adrian Ramsay sits down with David Webber and Stefan Bader from Webber Studio to explore their North Hills remodel. Together, they dive into spatial volume, natural light, and subtle detailing, offering a practical guide on how clever spatial planning, com...

What if the way most of us travel—rushing between crowded landmarks and snapping quick photos—is actually preventing us from connecting with the true soul of a place? In this episode of TALKdesign, host Adrian Ramsay sits down with close friend Wenna Privé, founder of Eratō Retreats, to explore the magic of slow travel, the emotional concept of "Alma" (soul in space), and how small, design-led wal...

What drives an award-winning architect to spend eleven years building a single house for his parents with his own two hands? That's the question at the heart of this deeply personal episode of Talk Design. Adrian sits down with Mark Frazerhurst, a Kiwi architect whose career began not in a design studio, but on the ski slopes of Queenstown. After graduating, Mark and his wife Kate packed their car...

What happens when an oncology specialist quits medicine at thirty to design homes, and an architect camps on a rugged hillside for two days before drawing a single line? In this episode of TALKdesign, I sit down with Jon and John from Auckland’s award-winning practice, Matter Architects. Introduced to me by acclaimed architectural photographer Simon Devitt, Jon and John share their fascinating, un...

How do we bridge the gap between architectural plans and what actually gets built on site? In this episode of the TALKdesign Podcast, Adrian Ramsay sits down with Jae Warrander, co-founder and architectural director of the award-winning Wellington practice Makers. Together, they explore what happens when spatial design and physical construction come together under one roof, diving into how integra...

What if your MRI is showing a problem, but your body isn't feeling it? In this episode of Talk Design, I welcome Dr. Masi Reynolds, an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine physician who's redefining how we think about injury, recovery, and long-term performance. Dr. Reynolds is fellowship-trained in sports medicine and advanced arthroscopy, and he works with athletes at every level—from Red Bull...

What happens when award-winning architect Shaun Lockyer designs his own home? Discover his 80/20 design rule, client dynamics, and creating spaces that make your heart sing. In this episode of TALKdesign, I sit down with my good friend Shaun Lockyer (Principal of Shaun Lockyer Architects and AIA Fellow) inside his personal Brisbane sanctuary, Judy's House. Together, we explore what it truly takes...

How do hand-drawn sketches help architects win clients? In this episode, Hamish Muir of Mason & Wales Architects explains how "messy" sketches foster vulnerability and empathy, allowing clients to feel more engaged in the design process than they do with rigid CAD renders. Discover the strategic benefits of working in scale and why traditional drawing boards remain a powerhouse in modern archi...

How can you renovate your home without losing your budget, sanity, or the design magic? In this episode of TALKdesign , Adrian Ramsay sits down with London architect Nick Horvath (co-founder of Momo and Co Design) to uncover the secrets of a successful build. Nick shares his journey from high-end corporate architecture to designing luxury ski chalets and London additions, revealing why traditional...

On this episode of TALKdesign , Adrian Ramsay sits down with celebrated design author Helen Thompson for a captivating journey through the stories, landscapes, and creative minds that shaped American Desert Modernism. Long before writing defining books like Marfa Modern, Texas Made Texas Modern, Santa Fe Modern, and Private Aspen, Helen was an imaginative only child pulling clothes from her closet...

Welcome to the TALKdesign Podcast . Today, I have the absolute pleasure of sitting down with the incredible Travis Price. Travis is a Washington DC-based architect, philosopher, and explorer who has spent his life building spaces that deeply connect with the human spirit. We explore what it means to truly understand the spirit of place and how our homes can tell our deepest, most personal stories....

Discover how embracing strict physical site constraints and moving from traditional open-plan layouts to an innovative "broken plan" design can unlock ultimate design freedom and preserve long-term property value. If you believe that great architecture should touch the soul and leave a permanent imprint on the people who inhabit it, this episode is required listening. In this conversation, I am jo...

What happens when a successful career suddenly takes a sharp turn, forcing you to rebuild your life from the ground up? In this captivating session of the Talk Design Podcast, Adrian Ramsay welcomes Andrew "Andy" White to discuss resilience, healing, and the power of authentic living. Moving from the UK to Australia with very little to his name, Andy eventually rose to become the National Teacher...

What does it take to create architecture that genuinely matters? In this episode of TALKdesign, Adrian Ramsay sits down with Alexander Josephson, co-founder of PARTISANS, for a wide-ranging conversation about creativity, resilience, politics, leadership, and the realities of architectural practice. Alexander shares his unconventional path into architecture, from a dyslexic and ADHD child growing u...

Welcome to the TalkDesign Podcast , the space where creativity meets conversation. In this episode, award-winning designer Adrian Ramsay welcomes custom residential expert Kelly Grace for a deeply human look at what happens when a lifetime of design exposure shapes a mission for structural wellness. From her childhood spent running around job sites as her father’s painting sidekick to teaching glo...

What is the true connection between spatial containment, modern material engineering, and the long-term human health span inside a custom home? On this episode of the Talk Design Podcast, Adrian Ramsay breaks down the core tenets of wellness intelligence alongside renowned practical Feng Shui expert Jane Langof. The discussion targets the architectural rigidity that frequently isolates modern buil...

On this episode of TALKdesign, host Adrian Ramsay sits down with Mick Hawes to explore builders business coaching, client experience, leadership, AI, and what success really looks like for custom home builders. Mick Hawes is the founder of Builders Business Blackbelt and has spent most of his life in and around the building industry. With more than 35 years of experience as a performance coach acr...