Jennie Cannon West, principal and founder of Studio West, started the architecture and design firm in 2018. She and Jason Richards, practicing architect and principal at Studio West, now provide full architectural and interior design services, including styling and procurement.
“We work on both historic preservation and new construction, [and both] ground-up and renovations,” said West.
When she first opened the practice in a shotgun house in the Bywater, West knew she would eventually want to grow the firm. When that time came, she was happy to find a building in the Faubourg Marigny in 2020.
“We wanted to purchase and renovate a historic commercial building with character,” she said. “It was important for us to be our own client for the space and feel the excitement, stress and joy that comes with envisioning and constructing a new office. The building was a former pharmacy constructed in 1910 with a corner entrance.”
Though a former pharmacy, the building had most recently served as a real estate office for 30 years. West said it required some reframing of the exterior walls and sills that had deteriorated over time. Meanwhile, the interior had been sliced up into offices and various unusual configurations.
“It was important for us to be our own client for the space and feel the excitement, stress and joy that comes with envisioning and constructing a new office..”
West hired John Segura and Jacques Magne, partners at Arch Builders, to reconfigure the office space back to its original floor plan. While West and Richards developed the concept and design of the space, Arch Builders helped determine the feasibility of structural aspects to achieve the intended design.
In addition to reconfiguring the conference and breakroom areas, the team repaired, restored and replaced the main office space’s historic metal ceiling, wood-paneled walls and tile flooring.
“About half of the historic pressed-metal ceiling tiles were damaged or rusted, and [they] required replacement,” said West. “After extensive research, we located a company in Missouri that not only re-fabricates these panels, but had a handful of the field panels in stock. We carefully removed and shipped each of the panel types, including the curved cornices. The fabricator made forms out of them and shipped us replacement pieces, all within a few weeks’ time.”
After eight months of renovations (interrupted briefly by Hurricane Ida), the building was ready for interior design work to begin. The main goal was to create a day-lit workshop vibe that encourages collaboration.
The new main studio space features seating for the design staff, a private conference room, a library that houses support staff, a materials library and open meeting room, and a breakroom that overlooks the adjacent exterior garden. Studio West also designed custom oak and maple millwork — with a mix of closed and open storage, and lots of long work surfaces — to accommodate an expanding material library, brick samples and millwork mockups.
“We collaborated with Phil Hull, who did an amazing job creating clean, minimal interventions in the historic space,” said West.
As architects and interior designers, it was important for West and Richards to emphasize their design services in-house and to create the type of space that they design for clients.
“The space is set up for designers to work together at smaller workstations in a benching style,” said West. “We share resources and have larger shared tables for drawing sets and materials. Both of our meeting rooms are equipped with cameras and videoconferencing technology to facilitate remote collaboration with our clients and consultants. [We also have] pin-up boards made of Homasote (wall board made from recycled paper) that allows us to pin work on the walls for design reviews and client [presentations].”
West and Richards also curated artwork from local artists, friends and collaborators to include in the space.
“A couple of favorites include a multi-panel collage collaboration from Jason’s time in architecture school,” said West, “along with paintings by Mac Ball, a mixed-media piece from Babette Beaullieu, titled Remodeling: Bringing Something Back to Life, Julie Dermansky’s haunting photographs and a pair of linoleum block prints from Gianna Morelli.”
Flexibility was key for the space.
“We selected a neutral color palette with a few accent colors,” said West, “which allows the space to transform or flex for various client presentations to a variety of project types, including hospitality, education, civic, cultural and residential.”
The duo chose comfortable furniture from MillerKnoll, Muuto, Carl Hansen & Son, and Hay (sourced through AOS Interior Environments). They also collaborated with landscape architectural firm Spackman Mossop Michaels on the exterior courtyard.
“Whether it’s lunch or a sketch session, the lush garden courtyard is a perfect space to retreat and recharge,” West noted.
Studio West moved into the redesigned office space in March 2022 with four employees and six desks. They now have 12 employees and plenty of space to grow.
“We’re a young and ambitious firm,” said West. “We’re also proud to be a majority woman-owned business and home to a number of women architects, designers and staff.”
Studio West Design & Architecture, LLC
2340 Dauphine St. // New Orleans // IG: studio.west.design
facebook.com/studio.west.design
linkedin.com/company/studio-west-design-and-architecture
Quick Look
Number of Years in Operation: 6
Style of Architecture: Historic renovation
Square Footage: 1,800
Number of Employees: 12
Persons in Charge: Jennie Cannon West and Jason Richards
Architecture: Studio West
Interior Décor: Studio West
Initial Brand Development: Smoke Before Fire
Art and furnishings: Studio West
