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"Open Audition California's Top Designs\nHats off to the following designers and architects who attended AD's Open Audition California, which took place on March 25, 2009, at L.A.'s Pacific Design Center. These participants' designs were selected from more than 250 projects, which were reviewed by editor-in-chief Paige Rense and our panel of senior editors. Congratulations!\n\"The entry of my maintenance-free lakefront home reveals not only a perfect combination of unique materials and proportion, but also the playfulness and openness of the interior. Immediately upon entering the home, a live pond, a two-story waterfall, glass floors, and a two-story glass-illuminated shaft is all evident. The kids especially love greeting guests at the front door by sliding down the firepole just inside the door.\"\n\nKevin Akey is a principal with AZD Associates, with offices in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, www.azdarch.com.\n\"The focus of this project was to capture the expansiveness and unique light of New Mexico, while keeping the space uncomplicated yet comfortable. A neutral palette, simplified textural materials, high ceilings and a southern exposure all helped to achieve this goal. Views from the kitchen frame the pi\u00F1on-covered hills of New Mexico and horses on a nearby ranch make it equally soothing inside and out. It's hard not to want to spend a morning, afternoon or evening in this space!\"\n\nSeth Anderson is a designer and builder of residential projects and is the owner of Lifdom Properties in Santa Fe, New Mexico.\n\"The house was so much a part of its environment, being part of the mountain, with its rocky surrounding, and the elevation at which it was sited. Even a huge boulder that could not be removed from the site was forced to remain caged' within the house. Instead of trying to disguise the boulder, as the previous owners had done, we chose to feature the rock as though it were sculpture. A skylight was dropped in overhead to allow daylight in and ground mount lights were buried in the floor bricks to create a dramatic lighting effect. Now instead of caged, the rock represents shakkei, the concept of borrowed landscape, as in Japanese garden design.\"\n\n\"The home is technically in Phoenix. It sits on Camelback Mountain, situated between the ridge that gives the mountain its name and a boulder outcropping. It is a grandfathered site, so no one is allowed to build this high any longer. The other fortunate part to this is that it cannot be seen from any of the lower streets, which gives it a very private existence. The location is 15 minutes from the airport, downtown Phoenix and most of the cultural events, but it provides an extraordinary clandestine retreat.\"\n\nElizabeth Rosensteel is an interior designer based in Phoenix, Arizona, www.rosensteeldesign.com.\n\"Open interior spaces and the garden/patio are unified with a large telescoping glass pocket door, capturing city and ocean views, natural light and maximizing ocean breezes. A challenge of this project was to stay within the existing roof height to protect neighbors' ocean views, while creating aesthetic interest with a staggered roof line. The purity of form in the design creates an ideal environment for entertaining and the display of artwork.\"\n\nCraig McIntosh AIA, is an architect based in Newport Beach, California, www.mcintosh-architect.com.\n\"When I planned this project I was coming back from Southeast Asia and tried to distill the sensations and experiences felt. Taking advantage of the thrilling views above Acapulco Bay, the art came from the windows instead of the walls, in which I only looked for reflections.\"\n\nElena Talavera is an interior designer based in Mexico City, Mexico, www.elenatalavera.com."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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