STA Design Travel Book 2024

Here at STA Design, we value the idea that inspiration be gathered from many different sources. We believe that design can be inspired by our own lives and backgrounds, the city we live in, the people we meet, and all the places we visit.

The design of a place or space is never done in a vacuum and in every form that it takes, it’s possible to trace down the design ‘lineage’ of how it took shape. History, culture, geography, politics, economics, and technologies all play a role in how a building takes form or how a place takes shape.

This past year, we’ve all traveled to places near and far and have had the privilege and opportunity to inhabit places and spaces that tell stories to us, that have a history, and can become a source of inspiration for the designs we create. It’s with these ideas in mind that we present our STA Travel Book 2024, to showcase just a few of the places we have traveled to this past year that have made some impact in the way we think about our work.

Helmsley – Baltimore, MD, Washington, D.C., and Virginia Beach, VA

This past year I’ve had the privilege of travelling to a few cities in the Southern United States by car and I’d like to discuss some interesting details I’ve learn while there. You discover many compositional details about the built and natural environments of places when you drive through it rather than fly to it. Architectural styles slowly begin to blend and shift as you travel from coastal New England to the inland South. You also find similarities in areas where’d you least expect them.

In September of 2023, I took a road trip Boston to Virginia Beach and traversed through the entire Northeast urban corridor. One of the major stops I passed through was the Baltimore, Maryland area. I discovered that many of the city’s neighborhoods have residences that are built as rowhouses like what you would see in northern cities like Boston, Philadelphia, or New York City, even though Baltimore is much further down South.

Washington, D.C.’s outer neighborhoods resemble those of nearby Baltimore, but the streets of its central area appear more akin to a classical European city, like Paris or Berlin with its wide, tree-lined boulevards and imposing neo-classical federal government complexes.

Traveling to Virginia, I discovered that many of the rest stops along the interstate highways are built in a neo-colonial style that evokes 19^th century civic buildings. As you travel further south towards Virginia’s southeastern coast, buildings are constructed much shorter and are far less dense. In Virginia Beach, along the waterfront, the architecture transitions into post-modern art deco styles that resemble more Miami than Virginia due to the myriad of resorts and hotels that dot the oceanfront.

This year, each member of our team has had the chance to new locations as well this year and have made connections and discoveries that changed the way they think about design. Here’s a glimpse of what these new experiences looked like for each of us.

Felice and David – Lisbon, Portugal

Our first trip to Portugal! Lisbon is a spectacular city full of texture, color, history and hills! Touring the “City of 7 Hills” is a workout, but well worth it for the dramatic views, patterned black and white cobbled paved streets, and colorfully tiled walls and buildings! The city is a sensory delight!

Deandre – New York, NY

Although I’ve been there twice for work on different occasions, New York was an experience especially in terms of size and space and sustainability especially when it comes down to comparing architecture of Boston vs New York.

Ana – La Paz and Cochabamba, Bolivia, and Bogotá, Colombia

Cristo de la Concordia – One of the tallest iconic statues in Cochabamba, Bolivia. Monserrate Hill – Bogotá, Colombia – You can reach the top by cable car or funicular and enjoy the panoramic view. Tiahuanaco, La Paz, Bolivia pre-Colombian archaeological site near Lago Titicaca, Inca ruins from approximately 375 to 700AD the city grew to significance in the Andes, the area was roughly 4 square kilometers and had a population greater than 10,000 individuals.