Photo by Nicole Martyn
Walter is the founder of the Baltimore Architecture Foundation and has won numerous awards for his dedication to preservation including the 2008 Baltimore Heritage Historical Preservation Award for the Restoration of the Drawing Room at the Garrett-Jacobs Mansion. Walter’s easy-going nature, sense of humor, and ability to recite poetry appropriate for any occasion make him a favorite of both clients and colleagues.
How did you get started as an architect? I knew as early as ninth grade that I wanted to be an architect. I was totally captivated by Frank Lloyd Wright; he was cool and doing what I wanted to do.
In 1968, I graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Master’s degree in Architecture, but instead of going right into a practice, I joined the Navy and became an engineering officer. I was a bachelor then, and I really wanted to see the world. It was an incredibly powerful experience.
What do you love most about your job? Architecture is a problem-solving profession. People need something resolved whether it is renovating an old building or building a new one. The high point is being able to create something meaningful for the client. I guess my favorite part of the process is doing the free-hand drawings of perspective views of a project.
If you could change one thing about your industry what would it be? We are often brought in too little, too late; we should be a part of the design team and the whole problem resolution from the beginning. Very often people say, “Give me a few sketches” and then they disappear, and I don’t like that. I am most satisfied when the project is built and the clients are moved in.
What accomplishment of yours makes you the most proud? There are three main accomplishments that make me most proud. First, after 28 years, SMG is still in business. I have devoted my prime years to this industry, and I have met a lot of great people along the way.
Second, we have been able to work on some of the greatest buildings in Baltimore and the Mid-Atlantic region…the Garrett-Jacobs Mansion in Mount Vernon, the B&O Railroad Museum after its collapse, the State House in Annapolis, the Custom House in Chestertown, and in Baltimore, the Alex Brown Building, the Bromo Seltzer Arts Tower, and the Maryland Club.
And finally, I am very proud of the creation of the Baltimore Architecture Foundation. I spent 22 years fostering this foundation, which offers lectures, tours, forums, events, and even books on some of the most historical buildings and architecture and architects in Baltimore.
Who in your life was most instrumental in helping you get started with your career? I would have to say my wife Nancy. I started this office in 1982 in the unfinished first floor area of our house—a converted warehouse in Federal Hill—and it wasn’t always easy. Nancy was and remains a preservationist and in the first years of our marriage she introduced me to many of the people in that community and most importantly introduced me to the historic architecture of Baltimore.
Another big influence would be my father who served in the army in World War II and then became a dentist in upstate New York. Being the second son, I also owe it to my older brother Carl for taking the pressure off of me by becoming a dentist as well as having a distinguished career in the Navy medical core.
What was the biggest challenge you had to face to get to where you are today? How have you managed to overcome them? Managing a firm was definitely my biggest challenge. They don’t teach you about that in architecture school. You really can’t look out more than 60 to 90 days with any clear understanding of how many projects you will have. I try to keep smart people around me, and I asked questions of other architects as well as the AIA about the business side of things. I go to seminars and conventions on a yearly basis and find that you do learn from others.
If you could do anything other than what you are doing, what would it be? I am a great fan of gardening, and I have a greenhouse on my roof. In retirement, I would like to grow plants, but I think I would get too attached to the plants to ever sell them. I also like to do watercolor painting.
What advice can you offer someone wanting to get started in your field? I get asked that question all the time. Get a four-year undergraduate degree in a liberal arts program because architecture is not just about building. You have to get along with the folks that hire you to be their architect. You have to take their abstract ideas and put them into an abstract drawing to create something concrete. Also, try to get experience in different sized offices; in large offices you get exposed to huge projects and you’ll be on a team. And architecture is now a team profession and you have to get along. Finally, try to see the world; South America, Asia, and Europe. It’s all been done before, so see it, remember it, record it, and create it.
Jennifer K. Dansicker is Special Projects Editor for ChespeakeHome.
Contact:
SMG Architects: smgarch.com or 410-685-3582
