MJSA Architects

11/08/2022

Our founder, Max J. Smith was recently highlighted in AIA Utah's "Legendary Utah Architects" series!

Interviewed by Fran Pruyn.This is the tenth in a series of architectural legends; interviews with retired architects who practiced in Utah during the second ...

03/04/2022

to this beautiful & project. We are so lucky to have forged strong relationships with special clients. The O.C. Tanner Flagship Store, will forever be one of our favorite projects.

02/07/2022

Custom reception desk. Hot rolled steel & white oak.

01/29/2022

Our has been working with one of our long-standing clients on an interior facelift of the David Keith Mansion located in Salt Lake’s South Temple Historic District. One of the components of this project was the coordination & install of some new custom windows. On a recent site visit we couldn’t help notice the windows showing off.

01/21/2022

Meet Porheang!

Originally from Cambodia, Porheang moved to the United States as a teenager to have the “American” high school experience. High school was where he was first introduced to architecture. In science class he was asked to build an earthquake resistant structure out of popsicle sticks, Porheang was so inspired by this assignment that he was instantly hooked on architecture. He felt that gravitating towards architecture was a natural progression, he was always interested in trying to understand how the things around him were put together. When it came time to pick a major for college, he knew it would be architecture. He pursued both his Bachelor & Masters degrees up at the U. Porheang explains that he is passionate about architecture because not only is it a creative artform, but it is also technical--generating spaces where people can live, play, interact & work. Outside of architecture you can find Porheang making delicious meals for friends & family. He is a big foodie, when he travels, he often eats his way through a city, you can learn a lot about a place by experiencing the food. He also considers himself a cinephile & spends lots of time dissecting new movies.

01/14/2022

Mountain living at it's finest. A fresh for our hot new project!

12/11/2021

Remodel Alert! This home was designed and built by our firm’s founder 47 years ago. He recently sold it and we now have the privilege of assisting a new family update it & make it their own. It has been a rewarding process seeing it come to life for the second time.

11/19/2021

Hand sketched elevations for a townhome & adaptive re-use project in the Marmalade District.

11/05/2021

Meet Dixon! Dixon was born and raised in Hong Kong. He moved to the U.S. when he was 14 for high school. He received his Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Utah and then moved to Los Angeles to pursue his MArch at the University of Southern California. Dixon loves the “journey” of architecture. Seeing something start as an idea that grows into schematic design, into construction, & finally seeing the owners inhabiting the final built design. Dixon finds the process of architecture very rewarding. It motivates him to push the design further and further. Dixon has traveled to more than 15 countries & hopes to travel to even more places once the world returns to a bit of normalcy. When Dixon is not hard at work, making clients dreams come true, you can find him golfing, playing tennis, snowboarding, or hiking with his dog Archie.

10/08/2021

Welcome to the team Jake!
Jake comes to us after a recent move to SLC after spending two years in New York City. Last year Jake took a six- week solo road trip into the Rockies. He fell in love with the mountains & knew he had to move somewhere that had them in abundance. In a conversation with his brother, they realized they had the same idea and agreed to move together to SLC. In his free time Jake likes to visit hot springs, find petroglyphs, admire giant rocks, golf, play baseball, shoot pool, grill meat, hike, & snowboard. He says he enjoys sunshine and the snow. Having grown up in rural Ohio, he is happy to be back in a place with open spaces. Jake has a background in fabrication and experience with high-end residential projects, he is excited to dig into the details of the refined projects here at MJSA.

09/23/2021

Here at MJSA we market ourselves as a Boutique Firm. We are able to take on projects that excite us & we can do it all. Some of our favorite project types are: bars, restaurants, mixed-use, & high-end homes. This also means that when we design, we see the project in 360 degrees. Our work does not end where the exterior meets the interior, the exterior informs the interior, and we love getting into the nitty gritty details of bringing a project to life. Check out this mood board that our architectural designers & interior designers have been collaborating on.

09/07/2021

Design Guidelines, we do that too! Check out this page from a current DG we are working on for a client that would like to franchise their restaurant. We are having a lot of fun with this playful & whimsy material palette.