National Small Project Design Awards 2013

Johnsen Schmaling Architects designed the Nexus Home, located in Madison, Wisconsin. Photo: John J. Macaulay

A compact home in Madison, Wisconsin is one of the stand-out winners of the national-level 2013 AIA Small Projects Awards. Designed by Johnsen Schmaling Architects, the three-level home occupies a small, sloping lot in one of Madison's historic residential districts.  Angular and modern, the Nexus Home is clad in cedar planks above a bluish brick base. At the rear of the house, its upper level features a deep cantilever that partially shelters a ground-level patio.

Ground-floor living space of the Nexus Home. Photo: John J. Macaulay

A studio project for a musician is a second winner designed by Johnsen Schmaling Architects.

Other winners of the Small Projects Awards include a new, lodge-themed transit building for Tahoe City, California, a traditional shingled home in Lewes, Delaware, and a high-end pool-and-pavilion addition to a home in suburban Bethesda, Maryland. These last two projects were both designed by Robert M. Gurney, FAIA.

Inside the new Tahoe City Transit Center, in Tahoe City, California, by WRNS Studio. Photo: Bruce Damonte/WRNS Studio

The complete list of winners includes:

Category 1A small project construction, object, work of environmental art or architectural design element up to $150,000.

• Bemis Info Shop, in Omaha, Nebraska, designed by Min | Day

• Cemetery Marker, in South Canaan, Pennsylvania, designed by Kariouk Associates

• Studio for a Composer, in Spring Prairie, Wisconsin, designed by Johnsen Schmaling Architects

Nevis Pool and Garden Pavilion, in Bethesda, Maryland, by Robert M. Gurney, FAIA. Photo: Maxwell Mackenzie

Category 2 A small project construction, up to $1,500,000.

• Nexus House, in Madison, Wisconsin, designed by Johnsen Schmaling Architects

• Pavilion at Cotillion Park, in Dallas, Texas, designed by Mell Lawrence Architects

• Webb Chapel Park Pavilion, in Mission, Texas, designed by Cooper Joseph Studio

308 Mulberry, in Lewes, Delaware, by Robert M. Gurney, FAIA. Photo: Maxwell Mackenzie

Category 3A small project construction, object, work of environmental art, or architectural design less than 5,000-square-foot constructed by the architect. The architect must have had a significant role in the construction, fabrication and/or installation of the work, in addition to being the designer.

• 308 Mulberry, in Lewes, Delaware, designed by Robert M. Gurney, FAIA

• Nevis Pool and Garden Pavilion, in Bethesda, Maryland, designed by Robert M. Gurney, FAIA

• Tahoe City Transit Center, in Tahoe City, California, designed by WRNS Studio

The unbuilt Four Eyes House by Edward Ogosta Architecture. Image: Edward Ogosta Architecture

Category 4Unbuilt architectural designs less than 5,000-square-foot for which there is no current intent to build, of all project types including purely theoretical, visionary projects, with or without a client.

• Four Eyes House, in Coachella Valley, California, designed by Edward Ogosta Architecture

The 2013 awards jury comprised: Leonard Kady, AIA (jury chair) of Leonard Kady Architecture + Design; Julie Beckman of KBAS; Christopher Herr, AIA of Studio H:T; Laura Kraft, AIA of Laura Kraft Architect; and Rob Yagid of Fine Homebuilding Magazine.

Webb Chapel Park Pavilion, in Mission, Texas, designed by Cooper Joseph Studio. Photo: Eduard Hueber/ArchPhoto Inc.

Studio for a Composer, in Spring Prairie, Wisconsin, designed by Johnsen Schmaling Architects. Photo: John J. Macaulay