There is a site for every architectural project, and it is always somewhere; not nowhere.

That somewhere has a landscape with shape, texture, aroma, contour, flora, fauna, earth and sky. To this natural landscape, man has added buildings, bridges, fences, walls, silos, sidewalks and towers. These ingredients of location create local context.

The New Native house is always the quotient of its local context, translated and distilled through my impressions.

Local context worries those who think progressively. They equate local context with small minds, local bigotry and narrow traditions. Being provincial is feared and, thus, is avoided.

This is ironic because everything starts in the provinces. Think of fashionable denim, which originated as miner’s tent fabric more than 100 years ago, or Duke Ellington’s music, inspired by work songs of the cotton fields. These and other innovations and expressions grew out of local inspiration.

The New Native house finds its soul at the “sweet spot” on the land, in a very specific place that must be located at the start of each project. This is true even in an urban setting where the choices seem much more limited.

Context is essential, for it allows me to create a connection between my New Native house and its older neighbors.