Today we’d like to introduce you to Clifford Welch.
Clifford, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
For as far back as I can remember, I’ve always had a great appreciation for design and the desire to create. Some of my earliest memories are of riding in the front seat of my Grandfather’s 1966 two-tone metallic gold Chevy pickup, surrounded by levels, tool bags, transits, and rolls of blueprints as we would drive around town checking on jobsites. My grandfather had migrated to Texas in the 1930’s with the WPA Program to build highways, parks, and bridges, By the time I came along he and my Uncle had a small construction company located just outside of Fort Worth. I grew up working construction every summer and most weekends. In addition to the commercial projects, we would build homes on Eagle Mountain and Possum Kingdom Lakes, not developments, but individual homes, built one at a time, specifically suited for the site. I would help clear the trees, work the grade, and gather native stone from the site to use in the construction. Looking back, this had a huge impact on how I approach design as an architect today. At about 17 years old, knowing I loved to draw, they showed me how to use a T-Square, a lead pointer, and a scale, and I started drafting, shortly thereafter I was drawing small buildings that were actually getting built. I was hooked, there is nothing like the feeling of ideas moving from one’s head, through your hands, onto paper, and eventually being able to experience the actual space. It’s still as exciting to me now as it was then. I received both my undergraduate and graduate degree from the University of Texas Arlington. We had an engineering professor who would end each class by telling us, “Keep striving for excellence, there is no room in this profession for mediocrity” a philosophy that has stuck with me to this day. It was at UTA that I was really first introduced to modern architecture. In addition to the most notable architects: Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies van der Rohe and le Corbusier, it was the perhaps lesser known architects that had the greatest influence: the Scandinavian Architects Alvar Aalto, Reima Pietilä, and Ralph Erskine that would embrace natural form and materiality, the bold expressions of structure and precision of Central European masters of the early 20th Century such as Marcel Breuer, Walter Gropius , R.M. Schindler and the American post war modernism of Charles and Ray Eames, Craig Ellwood, Quincy Jones and John Lautner as well as an appreciation for the early California Eichler Homes and the Case Study program. After graduation I was fortunate enough to work with some of the most respected design firms in Dallas. I gained an appreciation for the local regional modernists such as O-Neil Ford, Scott Lyons, Arch Swank, Bud Ogelsby, Frank Welch and Howard Meyer. Closer to my own generation, I followed the work of Lionel Morrison, Joe McCall, Max Levy, and Gary Cunningham as it was being built. Each of the above was influential in the formation of my own philosophy toward design. My wife Donna, and son Dylan live in a classic mid-century modern home in East Dallas, just a short walk from White Rock Lake, the largest urban park in the US and one of our cities’ most beautiful natural assets. Over the years it’s served as my haven for running, rowing, and biking as well as an incredible backdrop for some of our homes. One of my other favorite aspects of Dallas is its people, we’ve developed close friendships all across the city. I ride bikes with a great group of guys, who primarily live in East Dallas, and raise money to fight Cancer. In addition to other efforts, we do an annual all-night ride out of White Rock lake to raise money for “Heroes for Children”, an event I look forward to all year. Our offices are located in a refurbished industrial warehouse near Fair Park and Deep Ellum, two urban neighborhoods going through a resurgence. I love being able to see the Dallas skyline, one that is both constantly evolving and iconic.
Have you had struggles along the way?
Yes, along the way we have shared in the same struggles as our clients; the real estate downfall of the mid- 80’s, the dot-com bust, and the stock market collapse to name just a few. I started my firm with a 75,000-sf dot-com Corporate Headquarters and a residence for one of their CEO’s. As we were wrapping up both projects, the dot-com bubble burst and the company went into bankruptcy (through no fault of our client I might add), and our client was flying all the US having to close down offices, prior his own position evaporating with his unfinished new home here in Dallas. Everyone just rolls up their sleeves, regroups, and figures out how to get through it. We had another project where the owners tore down their home to prepare for new construction the day before the stock market crashed, so again, you step back, take a breath, and work together. Our project in Jackson Hole was built during a recession, which actually meant we had the best craftsman on site, sometimes the founders of the company, laying stone and building millwork, resulting in an impeccable quality of work, often more difficult to achieve when construction is booming. I believe with each obstacle comes opportunity
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Welch Architecture was founded in 2000 and has focused primarily on high end modern residential design. Last summer, after 17 years as a sole practitioner, I was joined by a long-time friend and fellow architect, Scott Hall, and we launched our new firm, WELCH | HALL architects. At his previous firm, Scott was the principal designer of the Holocaust and Human Rights museum that has just broken ground, a meaningful project we are very excited to see here in Dallas. Our Firm’s philosophy is simple: to create timeless, meaningful architecture. We have always taken a sustainable approach to design and recently completed the first LEED Platinum residence in Highland Park. Quality of materials and craftsmanship are key to each of our projects regardless of scale. Honesty of materials, clarity of form, and appreciation of natural light are key to each design. Our hope is that the architecture we are creating today may someday be worthy of preservation by future generations While primarily in Dallas, we have residential projects in Denver, Jackson Hole, Napa California and scattered around Texas. My current focus includes growing our practice in the area of vacation homes for clients based here in Dallas, as well as pursuing opportunities with Art Galleries, and Museums.
Where do you see your industry going over the next 5-10 years? Any big shifts, changes, trends, etc.? I see a shift back toward higher quality, sustainable, well-designed longer lasting projects. We are currently still in a construction boom, where quality and sustainability are often sacrificed for tight budgets and schedules. I see new construction all over the metroplex that is not sustainable and have concerns over its long-term impact. More and more of our clients are returning to the principles of buildings that will last and will stand the test of time. Budgets and schedules are still very much real issues, but the long-term value and Lifecyle of our buildings is playing a larger role over the initial building cost and short term “value-engineering”. Our commercial clients are wanting to invest in buildings that will benefit our cities not just now but for future generations. Our residential clients are investing in homes that will be here for years to come, that will not only enhance their lives now, but that that their families will enjoy for years to come. I am seeing a renewed appreciation for craft, workmanship and an architecture based on principle and philosophy rather that style and trend. All things are cyclical, Modernism has become stylish once again, I’m hopeful that when the next trend comes around, the best of modern architecture will continue to evolve and flourish.
Contact Info:
- Address: WELCH | HALL architects 820 Exposition Ave Suite 4 Dallas, Texas, 75226
- Website: www.welchhall.com
- Phone: 214-327-3707
- Email: cliff@welchhallarchitects.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/welcharch/
Image Credit:
Photography Includes images by Dan Piassick, Mark McWilliams, Dror Baldinger and Cliff Welch, AIA
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