We caught up with the brilliant and insightful William Bauer a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have William with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
I grew up in a small town in south/central Texas (Seguin) in the early 70’s. My parent’s both worked, and my father worked at a steel mill which was the big employer in the town. All I knew was that if I wanted anything I was going to have to work for it. We lived in the country and there were not a lot of ‘extras’. I mowed lawns, did odd jobs, whatever I could do to build up enough money to buy my first car. I think that early experience forged something in me that remains to this day. That said, there are more layers to this than just ‘I grew up in a small town and watched my parents work incredibly hard to scrape together a living’. True, but perhaps too simple. I was adopted and spent most of my young life and adulthood trying to prove that I belonged… even if I didn’t know where, exactly. I was the black sheep of the family and wanted to prove that I could adopt that same work ethic that seemed to come so easily to the rest of my family. I wanted more and knew that the only way to get it was to go out and earn it. That experience and that feeling never left me, that I needed to keep moving forward, that I couldn’t be satisfied with the status quo. It’s what ultimately pushed me to start my own businesses in the mid 2000’s.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about your business before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I’m a Landscape Architect and contractor and I also own a nursery in Austin. I have offices in Austin and Dallas and do design and construction work in both places. We have a good presence on Houzz and get many inquiries through them, but I would say most of our work is referral based, through Architects, builders, designers or former clients. We work strictly in the single family residential area. We typically start our process with homeowners by identify their wish list for their property, while also getting familiar with the house plans and features of the property. We also have to familiarize ourselves with the design guidelines and ordinances of their particular neighborhood or jurisdiction. It’s a multi dimensional process in that we need to study and understand the unique features or limitations of their site, interpret and understand the city ordinances that might limit our design, understand the vision of the Architect and also get to know the lifestyle of our clients and their family. All of this before we start design work in earnest. Then we start the creative process and that takes on a life and timetable of it’s own with a regular schedule of meetings as we craft a final landscape plan. This plan will involve all elements ‘off the slab’ of the home. Pools, water features, lighting, outdoor structures, kitchens, firepits, seating areas, fencing and gates, driveways, pedestrian walkways – all before we get to the plant selections. We work with Architects to make sure that the transition between architecture and landscape architecture are seamless. In addition to being a licensed Landscape Architect, my original degree was in Architecture from the University of Texas, and I think that understanding only helps us extend the architecture out into the land and merge those two disciplines in a way that is both beautiful, but also functional.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I didn’t understand when I was in school, or even early in my career, that there were so many ways that my career could look. I could do design only, I could do design/build, I would work for a commercial firm doing multi-family, I could do single family, I could do institutional. I would suggest that students in particular do research, do internships with a variety of experiences so that when it’s time to enter the workforce you have some idea of which direction you want to go. I also think getting some practical experience in construction is a huge plus. I happened to work for a design/build firm for 13 years before I started my own design/build firm and that gave me the firm conviction that I enjoyed seeing my creations get built and I enjoyed the process of adjusting to things creatively in the field. It made me see that the creative process doesn’t end when the drawings are done – the construction experience is an extension of that creative process, not the end of it. Even if you don’t go into design/build, having an understanding of how things are built is key. It makes you a better designer and better communicator of intent and details to the trades responsible for bringing it to life. Additionally, I would say take business classes ! That’s something as a business owner that I regret – I’ve had to learn everything on the fly and I wish I’d taken some basic finance, business and accounting classes when I had the chance.
As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?
I don’t recall being as inspired or moved by a book like I was by ‘A Pattern Language’ by Christopher Alexander. It’s hard to describe this book without going into too much detail. It’s basically a manifesto of how the world should be organized, via architecture. The scope of the book is huge, he begins with the macro (how far apart cities should be placed and why’ and moves down to the micro (how high should a window sill be placed). It’s meticulously organized and thoughtful… if not always practical. But I think there’s something there that transcends architecture. It’s about people and what we find valuable in the world around us: natural light, greenery, outdoors, breezes, beauty, community) and how those things can be delivered via thoughtful design. It can be dogmatic at times – the author is opinionated to be sure, but his vigilance and attention to detail are impressive. It’s definitely affected me as a designer and even in my non-design life – in terms of how I (try to) organize my home, my desk, my life. I would recommend the book to any design or building student or professional.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.gardendesignstudio.us
