ADAC: Behind the Windows
Spring 2019
A Commemorative Look at
Southeast Designers and Architect of the Year Winners
Each spring, ADAC and VERANDA recognize a new class of finalists and winners of the esteemed Southeast Designers & Architect of the Year Awards. This year at DESIGN ADAC, we are commemorating past Award recipients, whose innovative, unique, and beautiful work continues to inspire the design industry. On April 23, ADAC proudly unveils a new window display that honors the personalities, passions, and perspectives of these deserving Awards recipients. Celebrate their legacy of design as we reveal The Winner’s Circle at ADAC.
ADAC Management Office | Suite 423
What is your favorite or first memory of ADAC?
Amy Morris | Amy Morris Interiors
amymorrisinteriors.com
“I started my career interning with Gandy-Peace; I will never forget how exciting, and nerve-wracking, it was when I got to make a trip to ADAC. I loved learning the ropes, especially pulling & selecting fabrics.”
Bill Peace | Peace Design
peacedesign.com
“My favorite memory of ADAC is having heard ADAC Founder, John Portman, speak in the 80s about his commitment to design and the influence that Atlanta has on the market-at-large. John Portman was an inspiration to this city and to this industry.”
Beth Webb | Beth Webb Interiors
bethwebb.com
“My first visit to ADAC was probably in my late teens, when I drove down to Atlanta from my hometown of Lookout Mountain, Tennessee. I thought I’d died and gone to decorating heaven. At the time, I had no idea I’d later become an interior decorator…but I did feel like I’d come home.”
Bill Ingram | Bill Ingram Architect
billingramarchitect.com
“Being overwhelmed and wanted all of it.”
Carole Weaks | C. Weaks Interiors
cweaksint.com/index_pc.php?pg=Home&for=text&user=cweaksint
“When I first started, I remember going into a much smaller Ainsworth-Noah….and having the staff welcome me as if I actually knew what I was doing. And, with their help, and the help of many other showrooms, it took a very short time to learn my way around. In many ways ADAC was a different atmosphere then but, one thing truly has remained the same, and that is the camaraderie that exists within the Southeastern design community.”
Craig Dixon & Ken Pursley | Pursley Dixon Architecture
pursleydixon.com
“All the welcoming faces….After the evening [Southeast Architect of the Year] ceremony, carrying the coveted, delicate glass award into the Clermont Lounge!”
Elizabeth Ingram Brown | Elizabeth Ingram Studio
elizabethingram.com
“First and favorite: My mother and I visited ADAC just after it opened in the 70s. She brought me along to pick out fabric for a sofa, and I remember getting lost in all of the fabric displays—I mean just rows and rows of fabric; I had never seen anything like it. I probably got into trouble at some point, but I couldn’t help myself—I was awestruck!”
Jeff Dungan | Jeff Dungan Architects
“I would say the first time I came to ADAC, it was very overwhelming and honestly impossible to take it all in….The thing I appreciate about ADAC, and any creative entity, is the ability to evolve well. I think they do that very well, so it’s always new and always inspiringly fresh.”
Jim Choate | Surber Barber Choate + Hertlein Architects
sbcharch.com
“In my early days I collaborated frequently with Charles Gandy & Bill Peace, from whom I learned a lot about what an interior designer does, and how to collaborate as an architect. We’d often meet at their office at ADAC West, and occasionally take our clients over to the showrooms.”
Jo Rabaut | Rabaut Design Associates
rabautdesign.com
“As we are blessed to have designed a lot of showrooms at ADAC, my favorite thing to do is to stand discretely nearby at the grand opening of the showroom and see the reactions on the faces of the folks experiencing it for the first time!”
John Oetgen | Oetgen Design
oetgendesign.com
“It was 1977…driving through the gate, past the fountain, and immediately meeting Jerry Pair and Mavis Cahoon at the door of their showroom. First Floor. West Building.”
John & Vivian Bencich | Square Feet Studio
squarefeetstudio.com
“Vivian’s first memory of ADAC was way back in 1989 when she visited as part of a field trip in grad school while at Georgia Tech. The tour was led by Professor John Kelly, as the class was starting up a new project in their design studio learning about showrooms and interior design.”
Joni Vanderslice | J. Banks Design Group
jbanksdesign.com
“As an out of towner, coming to ADAC for resources is essential. Before we all carried cell phones, my assistant would call Dennis Hunt if she needed me, knowing that I would have an afternoon Coke with him every day around 3 PM. I looked forward to this time and the visit with Dennis, Hal, and Winton. Through the years, my ADAC friendships have made my trips so much more than resourcing for my clients.”
Melanie Turner | Melanie Turner Interiors
melanieturnerinteriors.com
“I just remember going to ADAC at 19 years old, when it was an outdoor facility. It was on the first project I worked on and everything felt so glamourous and special. It was a bounty of resources that made me so happy.”
Phoebe Howard |
phoebehoward.net
“When I first took on design projects, I was in awe of the selections and world of opportunities so well displayed in showroom after showroom. I was also so humbled by the friendliness and helpfulness of the staff. I think the longevity of much of the staff in ADAC speaks volumes about the pleasant atmosphere, as well as the collective passion for design.”
Rita Carson Guest | Carson Guest Interior Design
carsonguest.com
“When I was an interior design student visiting an icon of design, Edith Hills, in her ADAC office, when ADAC was small, to learn about the business.”
Robert Brown | Robert Brown Interior Design
robertbrowninteriordesign.com
“I hate to admit it, but before I was a designer I would sneak into ADAC (back when only designers were allowed) and explore all the showrooms. I was very intrigued by Winton Noah. I had the best time and that’s when I knew I needed to transition my career from the fashion world to interior design.”
Stan Dixon | D. Stanley Dixon Architects
dsdixonarchitect.com
“Roaming the halls with my mother when I was 15 years old. Ainsworth-Noah blew me away.”
Stan Topol | Stan Topol & Associates
stantopol.com
“I have two wonderful memories at the Decorative Center…one was, in the beginning, some 30 years ago, when I walked into these great showrooms and started selecting pieces for a small job I had at that time. And the other would be walking through the center with Mr. and Mrs. John Portman and all of us smiling.”
Suzanne Kasler | Suzanne Kasler Interiors
suzannekasler.com
“When I first moved to Atlanta from Indianapolis, I was used to shopping in Chicago, which was very different. When I went to ADAC for the first time, it was all open air. It was so interesting to watch as they enclosed it, but managed to keep the sense of being open and outside, just protected from the elements. I remember coming in and really loving the individual personalities of each of the showrooms, everything was so connected and there are so many great resources in one place.”