Fall 2023

A local firm with interna- tional reach and notori- ety, Sterling Huddleson Architecture (S|H Architecture) has completed a remarkable number of residential projects both locally and in some of the most sought after destinations in the U.S. and beyond. Nearly two decades ago, found- ing partner Braden Sterling opened the firm's first Carmel office in the Crossroads. Now located on San Carlos Street, the office houses the firm's highly skilled team of professionals.The team works collaboratively, designing homes that suit the specific needs of their clients while paying heed to the surrounding landscape and specifics of each project site. S|H Architecture projects range from historic renovations to expansive new builds with a wide variety of project sites, including Aspen, the Hamptons, Hawaii, Jackson Hole, Coeur d'Alene, Palm Beach, Montecito, Santa Barbara, Pebble Beach, Carmel, Beverly Hills, Palm Springs, Scottsdale, Sedona, Costa Rica and Provence.The firm has something of a Hollywood following and they have had the pleasure of designing homes for many celebrities, including Geena Davis, Bruce Willis, Jeff Bridges, Reese Witherspoon, Arianna Grande, Andy Granatelli, among others. A native Californian—born in Los Angeles and raised in Lake Tahoe— Sterling has a deep appreciation for the natural environment, which is evident in his firm’s work. His ties to Carmel date back to the 1970s, when, as a child, he began spending his summers vacationing at his grandfather's home in Monterey and, soon after, at his uncle’s home on San Antonio Avenue in Carmel— hiking at Point Lobos and playing in Carmel Bay.Throughout his upbringing, Sterling was nurtured by a family that valued engineering, preservation and art—his great grandmother, Christine Sterling, was known as the “Mother of Olvera Street.” In the late 1920s, she was responsible for preserving the Avila Adobe, saving the most historic part of downtown Los Angeles and creating Olvera Street. His great grandfather was an inventor and engineer in the San Francisco Bay Area, and his grandmother was a successful water- color painter in Carmel. Sterling’s path to becoming an architect began 130 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 2 3 “My focus is to design solutions that prioritize the site, environment and the needs of my clients,” states Sterling. Set on a five-acre vineyard in Napa Valley, this project entailed a 4,000 square-foot main residence as well as a guest house and a caretakers cottage, all designed to provide seamless indoor/outdoor living. Photo: Manny Espinoza Photo: Mary S. Nichols