When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything in the universe. | John Muir

CJ Paone | AIA is an award-winning architect and designer in Ventura, CA. He founded Archipelago Workshop in 2003, and specializes in residential architecture, landscape design, and custom architectural details.

Like the island chains for which his studio is named, CJ’s projects are each distinct, but part of a greater whole that connects his spaces – and those who live in them – with the environment. He draws inspiration from the natural world, and from the diverse designs of cultures around the globe.

CJ earned a Bachelor of Architecture from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, attended the Czech Institute of Technology (CVUT) Summer Studies program in Prague, and studied at the Virginia Tech Architecture Consortium in Washington, DC and Alexandria, VA.  He’s a maker as well: his work as a framer and cabinet builder adds substance and practicality to his theoretical training.

Moving to Colorado after school, he gained large firm/large project experience with Urban Design Group in Denver, added civic building design work with OZ Architecture, then turned to custom residential design with Harvey M. Hine Architects in Boulder. He continued his focus on residential design after returning to California, joining Andy Neumann and NMA Architects in Carpinteria.

I look for the beauty, the essence, and the spirit in things, and then highlight and accentuate that.

Now, more than a decade after founding his own studio, he works to satisfy his passion for creating and enhancing environments that inspire his clients and reflect their own unique lives.

Here’s more about our process, what inspires us, and our take on living well. Glad to have you along for the journey.