ABOUT MIKE SCHUMACHER

Growing up, my mom was a seamstress, and when she made clothes she used patterns, so I saw things go from 2D to 3D. My dad made cabinets. I always enjoyed watching pieces and parts going together– like seeing a big sheet of wood transform into things that serve a function.

I went to Engineering school and I took the ASVAB to get into the military because I had those propensities, but that path wasn’t exactly right for me. Then I went into architecture and never stopped. I knew this is where I belonged.

Form meeting function is fascinating to me. When I learned about industrial design at Archeworks in Chicago, I discovered what it means to get something made. I was exposed to theory and really high-level ideas in Chicago, but even with all of that thought, all of that philosophy, you still have to get something done. You can apply those big ideas to things, but it all scales down to these houses, where the value of theory applicable. No matter if you’re talking about a basketball arena or a house, it’s still where we live our lives.