RJA-Architecture

RJA-Architecture Since 1983 RJA-Architecture Since 1983 Roberts|Jones Associates, Inc.

has been consistently utilizing sustainable design principles before the term 'sustainable' became fashionable or common. Vitruvius wrote that, "architects must be sensitive to the local environment" and those words are the core of the philosophy of our firm. Whether located in the Sonoran Desert, the historic urban core of Tempe, or the tall pines of Flagstaff the context of the site has deeply i

nformed the architecture and ultimately the user. This team embraces an architecture that is responsive to its context as the fundamental basis for a sustainable built environment. The body of work produced over the entire history of the firm speaks to our philosophy which is evident in the number of awards received, long term repeat clients, and our positive reputation in the community.

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) recently posted the following amazing and important information:Two recent hu...
11/06/2024

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) recently posted the following amazing and important information:

Two recent hurricanes—Helene and Milton—have been historic. They rapidly intensified and caused significant damage and flooding even to inland communities far from the coast.

We are currently working with state and local AIA chapters to support impacted communities. But we want you prepared to help your community before a disaster happens.

Here are some AIA resources you can use:

1️⃣ AIA’s Disaster Assistance Handbook: https://bit.ly/4060fPF
2️⃣ Safety Assessment Program (SAP) training (Dec. 11-12): https://bit.ly/3Nr6FBA
3️⃣ Resilient design resources: https://bit.ly/3Nx4lsA
4️⃣ AIAU Disaster Preparedness Series: https://bit.ly/3BLLmYX
5️⃣ Stay updated with AIA: https://bit.ly/3Ud77ak

Remember 🔖 your local AIA chapter is an invaluable partner in the disaster preparedness effort! Contact them to get involved.

The US Building of the Year poll on American-Architects website was open for most of January and asked visitors to the s...
01/31/2024

The US Building of the Year poll on American-Architects website was open for most of January and asked visitors to the site to pick their favorite building from the nearly 40 Buildings of the Week featured in 2023. The "Interactive Learning Pavilion" won by a wide margin, tallying approximately 42% of the roughly 5,000 votes cast. Designed by Seattle's LMN Architects, the classroom building consists of two volumes astride an open-air “street” that, in the architects' words, “encourages serendipitous interactions among students and faculty.”

Centrally located on the main campus of UC Santa Barbara, the Interactive Learning Pavilion (ILP) is notable as the first dedicated classroom building to be constructed there since 1967. The 90,000-square-foot ILP consists of five lecture halls, three project-based learning rooms, and twenty seminar-sized classrooms, all serving 2,000 students. The building was much-needed: it increased classroom space on campus by 35%, such that a quarter of the university's classroom space is now provided for in the ILP. The ILP opened in spring 2023 as the campus's first fully electric facility and earned a LEED Gold Certificate in the fall.

12/28/2023

May the upcoming year bring new opportunities, renewed partnerships, and continued growth. Happy New Year
from the merry team at RJA | Architecture.

It's Halloween! If you live in a country like the United States that celebrates Halloween, it means a season of enterta...
10/31/2023

It's Halloween! If you live in a country like the United States that celebrates Halloween, it means a season of entertainment and decorations with ghosts, pumpkins, candy, and more. The entertainment industry has associated Halloween with very particular styles and eras in architecture. Many films have become iconic for their stand-out choices, ideas, and environments that come together to make a horror movie a true one-of-a-kind. The genre of horror requires many elements to be brought to life. Architecture is one of those elements that deserves notice as an integral and major player in shaping these pieces of art. (Bimsmith.com)

One example of that architecture that uses the building and interiors as the catalysts for the experience of horror is the Ennis House shown in the film "House on Haunted Hill".

This horror film is crafted over the idea of competition. The protagonist proposes a prize for five guests staying overnight at a mansion - that’s potentially haunted. If these guests can make it through the night, ten thousand dollars will be added to their names. The Ennis House created by Frank Lloyd Wright located in Los Angeles is critical to the film. The house's unusual form is modernist architecture at its idiosyncratic best. Meanwhile, with its many rooms, intricate shadow play, and isolated presence, it marks a hollowed physique that invites the possibility of ghosts and spiritual forces." (Wallpaper.com)

Happy Halloween to all of our friends and we send a boo to you from our crew!

Below the "Ennis House" featured in 'House on Haunted Hill', Allied Artists Pictures, directed by William Castle. (Image credit: Allied Artists Pictures, Directed by William Castle.

Dreamy Draw Park Grand Re-Opening
09/07/2023

Dreamy Draw Park Grand Re-Opening

Had some fun enjoying the Biltmore Estate in Asheville NC
06/01/2023

Had some fun enjoying the Biltmore Estate in Asheville NC

A few quick images of the new Madera Community Center pool. Nearing completion - just in time for summer!
04/24/2023

A few quick images of the new Madera Community Center pool. Nearing completion - just in time for summer!

Ala de Montana in Pine, AZ under construction! We'll keep you posted.
04/07/2023

Ala de Montana in Pine, AZ under construction! We'll keep you posted.

05/18/2022

It's my understanding that humans have been building shelters for over 10,000 years and over this time the profession of architecture was created. The process attracted all types of people. In light of both architecture's long history and its abundance of colorful characters, it's no surprise that it's full of surprising and unlikely stories. Here are some architecture-related facts as provided by the "ArchDaily" editorial team for you to enjoy.

Frank Lloyd Wright's son invented Lincoln Logs. John, also an architect was inspired by the interlocking beams of the foundation below Lloyd Wright Senior's Imperial Hotel in Tokyo.

There is a bridge in Lima, Peru that was built around 1610 and is still standing, remarkably, its mortar was mixed using 10,000 egg whites instead of water. Unsurprisingly, it is known as the 'Bridge of Eggs'.

Architecture was once an Olympic Sport. During the first four decades of the modern Olympic Games, 151 medals were awarded for music, painting, sculpture, literature, and architecture. Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who revived the modern games and founded the International Olympic Committee, considered art an essential part of the competition. The one caveat: every submission had to be sports-related.

Lego produced special bricks specifically for architects. The 'Modulex' bricks were smaller and more to scale and were sadly discontinued in the 1970's. When Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, son of the LEGO founder, tried to make a Lego model of the house he was building, it didn’t come out to scale, because Lego bricks have a 5:6 width-to-height ratio. This led to the creation of Modulex, a much smaller brick that was based on perfect cubes, in 1963.

'The Sims' was originally developed as an architecture simulator in 2000 & became one of the most popular video games around. But before it became a life simulator, the original concept had the game working more like SimCity: players would design a house, and autonomous characters would test the design's success.

More time passed between the start and end of construction on the Great Wall of China than between the start of Christianity and today. The idea of a single, unified wall to protect China from invaders began when Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China (221–206 BC) connected various fortifications built between the 8th and 3rd centuries. Construction continued through 1878, meaning that, including the original fortifications, the wall was under construction for over 2,600 years.

Celebrated architect Zaha Hadid was known for never designing a building containing a right angle.

During a powerful storm the Empire State Building will sway several feet back and forth.

The Hoover Dam was built to last 2,000 years, the concrete used to form the immense curved structure will not be cured for another 500 years.

There is a skyscraper in Manhattan with no windows.

The Aurora Ice Hotel in Alaska was made entirely of ice. Ice walls, ceiling, beds, bar, even martini glasses were made of ice. It was closed by the fire marshall for not having smoke detectors.

The supervisor of the Ouija Board Company fell to his death from the roof of a factory that the Board told him to build. William Fuld made his fortune selling the boards, and opened up a number of new factories; in 1927 one of these factories, which he claimed the board told him to build, was the scene of the business magnate's death when he fell from its roof.

The Empire State Building generates more revenue from its Observation Decks than from its 85 floors of office space revenue.

The word 'Architecture' comes from the Greek 'Arkhitekton' meaning 'chief builder'.

A french postman spent 33 years building the "ideal palace" with stones he collected during His daily round. Ferdinand Cheval spent 33 years picking up stones while delivering mail—not just any stones, but a special type of hardened sandstone molded by time and water into wondrous shapes. With these stones he built the fantastical Le Palais Idéal, in Hauterives. The building is considered a prime example of naïve art, and in 1969 was designated a cultural landmark.

We'd love to learn about any additions that you may have.

We enjoy working on a variety of plans and designs for our clients and they don't have to be on the large scale. RJA has...
03/15/2022

We enjoy working on a variety of plans and designs for our clients and they don't have to be on the large scale. RJA has recently been having fun with several smaller and different remodel projects. Here is a view of the vanity area of a Master Suite remodel in Scottsdale. We’ll post more photos of these types of projects in the coming weeks.

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has announced the eleven recipients of its 2022 Architecture Awards, the prog...
02/23/2022

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has announced the eleven recipients of its 2022 Architecture Awards, the program that "celebrates the best contemporary architecture regardless of budget, size, style, or type."

Traditionally, the AIA announces its various awards, including the Architecture Awards, in the months leading up to the AIA Conference on Architecture. This year marks a return to in-person programming, with the AIA Conference on Architecture 2022 scheduled to take place in late June in Chicago. The following winners, announced recently on the AIA website, will be celebrated at the annual gathering, as will the numerous winners of other AIA awards.

The eleven winning projects are listed below in alphabetical order by project name.

Andlinger Center for Energy & the Environment in Princeton, New Jersey, by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects | Partners

Billerica Memorial High School in Billerca, Massachusetts, by Perkins & Will

The Century Project at the Space Needle in Seattle, Washington, by Olson Kundig

Home Building at Thaden School in Bentonville, Arkansas, by EskewDumezRipple

Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design in Atlanta, Georgia, by Miller Hull Partnership in collaboration with Lord Aeck Sargent (see also: building write-up by Ulf Meyer)

Marine Education Center at the University of Southern Mississippi in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, by Lake|Flato Architects in collaboration with Unabridged Architecture

Menil Drawing Institute in Houston, Texas, by Johnston Marklee (see also: headline on occasion of building's opening in November 2018)

The Owsley Brown II History Center in Louisville, Kentucky, by de Leon & Primmer Architecture Workshop (see also: US Building of the Week in March 2018)

Richardson Olmsted Campus in Buffalo, New York, by Deborah Berke Partners with Flynn Battaglia and Goody Clancy

The Shed in New York, NY, by Diller Scofidio + Renfro (Lead Architect) and Rockwell Group (Collaborating Architect) (see also: headline on the occasion of the building's opening in April 2019)

US Embassy in London, England, by KieranTimberlake (see also: our peek at the building before its January 2018 opening)

The nine member Jury are as follows:

Susan Blomquist, AIA, Chair, Payette, Boston
L. William Zahner, Zahner, Kansas City, Mo.
Ana Astiazaran, AIAS, University of Arizona, Tucson, Ariz.
Dominique Hawkins, FAIA, Preservation Design Partnership, LLC,
Philadelphia
Eddie Jones, FAIA, Jones Studio, Tempe, Ariz.
Gia Mainiero, AIA, Dattner Architects, New York
Pierre Roberson, AIA, AECOM, Detroit
Gail Kubik, Assoc. AIA, Finegold Alexander Architects, Salem, Mass.
Heather Young, AIA, Heather Young Architects, Palo Alto, Calif.

Address

10245 E Via Linda Boulevard, #209
Scottsdale, AZ
85258

Opening Hours

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Tuesday 7:30am - 5:30pm
Wednesday 7:30am - 5:30pm
Thursday 7:30am - 5:30pm
Friday 7:30am - 11am

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+16029557575

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