Costa Christ
Jeff Garnett's building sits between a locally-owned restaurant — originally a Coca-Cola bottling plant — and a semi-vacant two-story historic building.
Texas modern architect Jeff Garnett has been recognized with the 2023 AIA Fort Worth Design Award for the studio project at 110 Walnut Street in Glen Rose, the charming outpost and county seat of Somervell County, 50 miles southwest of Fort Worth.
Confronted with the challenge of a narrow infill lot on a historic town square, Garnett crafted a masterwork of high design that seamlessly integrates with its surroundings, according to a press release. The finished studio is a light-filled space where glass walls and custom steel fixtures frame views that take the eye far beyond the 1,000 square foot floor plan.
Across the street sits the historic Somervell County Courthouse, erected in 1893, two years before the Tarrant County Courthouse.
“I design places for people and strive to make each place a haven from the demands of today’s society, a sacred place for our clients to call home with a strong connection to the natural environment,” said Garnett in a statement.
Garnett's architectural journey, rooted in a childhood fascination with old barns, stone ruins, and the Texas landscape, has evolved into a practice that spans ranch houses, lake homes, and remote retreats, as well as urban properties and other installations. Embracing a minimalist ethos, Garnett's designs prioritize the integration of outdoor and indoor space, emphasizing the importance of retreat and serenity.
The 110 Walnut Street studio serves as Garnett’s own artistic retreat and home base and features a creative design choice. He uses it as a working studio and meeting space. Before construction, the property was a 25-foot empty lot overgrown with weeds, which sits on the historic town square between a locally-owned restaurant — originally a Coca-Cola bottling plant — and a semi-vacant two-story historic building.
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The space is 1,000 square feet. Construction was completed in July. The contractor was J Kellam Builder.
The studio building carefully slips between the existing adjacent buildings and is intentionally minimal in both size and proportions out of respect for the surrounding historical context. The front façade is slightly recessed (by approximately 8 inches) in relation to the adjacent historic buildings, allowing the historic masonry of each neighboring structure to turn their respective inside corners 1 full brick course, providing a subtle distinction between old and new.
The front facade facing the street consists of native limestone, board formed concrete elements, and custom steel windows and doors. The building signage is intentionally secondary, allowing the materials to be the primary focus.
An approximately 35-foot-tall existing rubble stone wall sits directly adjacent to the studio. This historic side wall was the driving force behind the entire design scheme — natural lighting, historic appreciation, and strategic design restraint.
“This studio was such a small project — smaller than I usually do — but it really captures what I'm about in my design philosophy,” said Garnett, who earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in architecture from UT Arlington. “As architects we can let our egos get in the way and go over the top in our designs. But sometimes restraint, and an emphasis on the space outside and not just the space inside makes for a greater ‘wow’ factor. By offsetting the building, I made it smaller, but with that outside space, it gained something magnificent.”
Before starting his own firm, Garnett worked on a range of residential and commercial projects with leading firms in Austin. According to a release, Garnett has won multiple AIA Fort Worth awards and accolades from Texas Society of Architects Studio Awards.
“The way I approached this project is the same way I approach a project on an empty field on a ranch. You have to pay respect to your surroundings, both inside and outside. If the view is there, I’ll take advantage of the view, even if it's 10 feet away. If it’s not there, I'm still going to create a space where you have that open feeling, that sacred space to unwind and slow down.”