OUR FOUNDER | PRINCIPAL ARCHITECT SHANE AMES

Born in Cincinnati, Ohio with European background, Shane at a very early age had the desire and passion to build and design, using Lego, Lincoln Logs, Kenner Girder, and Strut toys, which helped develop the abilities he uses today.

Growing up in South Florida, during the boom years, he chose to go to Cincinnati to attend the number one rated architectural school in the U.S., the University of Cincinnati, for the 6-year Bachelorette Architecture Program. The program was taught in the German Bauhaus model in which design is not limited to buildings, but is well-rounded in all fields of art, graphics, painting, and architecture, this same school program educated and graduated such greats as Michael Graves and Peter Eisenman. Shane received his bachelor’s in architecture, and a minor certificate in historic preservation, which included on-the-job training as part of the curriculum. During school, under a work-study program, he worked in a tract house plan factory doing work in Westinghouse’s suburb, Coral Spring, which then led to designing the new country club communities in Boca Raton and starting his own firm; building the company from scratch with a portable drawing board and a typewriter, getting references via word of mouth from realtors and builders, after seeing the popularity of the designs he produced, led to his unparalleled success.

Being first a designer and artist, he has the unique ability to design in any style or discipline, creating magnificent works from contemporary to period architecture, honing his abilities over the years, and doing it in front of your eyes, while talking with you about your wants and desires.

Clients have described it as “reading our minds”. He works this way for a reason:

“People usually don’t know exactly what they want, but they have pieces and small details in their minds. I take these pieces and pictures and put them together like a large puzzle, cutting each piece separately in front of their eyes; not with my ego getting in the way, but letting my design talent gently guide, I direct and redesign the house of their dreams. Another benefit to this design philosophy is time. Most architects take notes and come back a few weeks later with drawings you hate, losing enthusiasm and time. The one-to-one interaction over every detail creates great projects.”

Moreover, Shane states that:

“Our design process is developed by weaving modern ideas with historical influences with your wants and desires. We start with an axial design approach using line of sight, balance or symmetry, and good taste, to create the rough sketches. A European background and love for extensive worldwide travel and photography, combined with a penchant for the historical details from the Ancient Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Renaissance architectural styles influence our designs. Combined with your ideas and concepts this unique background and approach lead to a hint of elegance that emanates and is not just seen- they just feel good without knowing why. All architectural styles including contemporary can be approached in this fashion to create a timeless and classic piece of architecture.”

Having been the architect for thousands of magnificent homes and estates for an elite and international clientele who demand excellence, Shane enjoys a reputation second to none. He is proud and honored to be the recipient of countless unsolicited pictorials in dozens of leading architectural and design publications. Shane’s custom homes and projects now grace approximately 30 countries and counting.