Today we’d like to introduce you to Micaiah Fletcher.
Hi Micaiah, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
The earliest memory I recall of design is at six years old. I had my own room in a country house in Jewett, TX by my family’s watermelon farm, finding myself wanting to change all of my furniture to cobalt blue. With the help of many cans of spray paint, my room had transformed to all blue furniture, on a neutral palette of white walls and dark hardwood floors. Legos, model cars, and my sister’s Barbie furniture were all a part of the training as well, but the journey was just beginning.
The years flew by, and I graduated high school not knowing where my career path would lead me until my uncle, a carpenter and home builder himself, advised me to study architecture. I then moved to Houston, Texas, started at a technical school, and shortly transferred to the University of Houston for a greater challenge. While there, I endured a long five years in the rigorous architecture program but also tried an acting and piano class after thinking about a new career path. I greatly enjoyed both, especially having been a musician of the trumpet for six years. Graduation came and I did not have a clear vision of my next move, but I did know it was time for something bigger. I thought of bigger, creative cities like Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. It wasn’t hard to choose after being frozen from past trips to Chicago and New York during the coldest moments of the year. Los Angeles was warm and adjustable from driving in Houston, and with a hub of creativity in acting, music, and design, I knew it was a great fit for me. I had a possible job at Restoration Hardware on Melrose, so I decided to pack everything up, and on a whim I drove out to Los Angeles with only 2 thousand dollars saved. It took two months to get the job, and after seven months, I found myself looking for more freedom and creativity.
While working there, grand opportunities began for me when I met Robin Karfo, who introduced me to Richard Lawson Studios since I wanted to explore the acting world. Soon after leaving Restoration Hardware, I started freelancing in design and studying at Richard Lawson Studios. I greatly enjoyed the creativity and freedom at the studios as an actor and had the grand opportunity to create architectural renderings for Richard Lawson and Tina Knowles Lawson for their new theatre. This re-ignited some joy for design, and I then focused more on design opportunities. I found an online listing for an art director for the television show Restored on the DIY network, where I interviewed and immediately started in light of their great need of assistance. I had the privilege to collaborate with the host Brett Waterman on materials, lighting, appliances, colors, and much more for about a year and realized I wanted to try staging homes. I staged homes mainly in Los Angeles, Marina Del Rey, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, but other locations as well. The world of stiff real estate agents led me to being more introverted and doing renderings and drawings for designers and architects, in addition to being creative in my own architectural design process with my current project.
While most may say this past year has been very challenging, I found it to be revitalizing and healing. I felt I could finally breathe, excited about life again through adventures in nature, and thrilled with an epiphany to create my first architectural masterpiece while escaping the money pit of renting an apartment. I found a majestic site of land near Palm Springs, remembering the ethereal wind turbines, unique desert plants and landscape from when I drove into California for the first time five years ago. It took a few months of research early in 2020 to find the right site, and since then, I have developed many concepts with drawings and renderings. The puzzling question of where I wanted to be and what I wanted to do had finally started to become more clear. Currently, I am solidifying the final concept with hopes to begin building in March or April, with the intent to submit the design to magazines such as Dwell, Architectural Digest, and ArchDaily.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Aside from the turns of life that can be found in relationships and family, the professional track had its own bumps, beginning with admission into an architecture program. It took me two attempts over a two year period to be accepted into the architecture program at the University of Houston Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture. With an admission rate of only a few hundred a year out of 2,500 applications received every year, a top 7% school in the U.S., #14 of the top 20 most hired from architecture schools, and #14 in the world for Industrial Design, I was grateful to be a part of an elite group of intellectuals. Challenges continued when I almost failed twice throughout the program, and began to think if it was the right career for me; though, the second time I almost failed, I produced two projects in two weeks for my professor, Joseph Mashburn, who was stunned for my ability to create despite my high chance of failing. Previously he was the dean of the college and greatly inspired me to begin the architecture program, so I was initially disappointed to hear the news but then delighted to have passed the semester.
This belief and victory in myself always remained a part of me for future endeavors, including moving to Los Angeles, but I found myself over the years switching jobs from a loss of joy frequently and trying to find finances when I started freelancing. There were also clients who seemed as if they could treat me as desired and pay low rates for my work. I was even almost evicted from my apartment a few times, which made me search deeper to find what was really inhibiting me from expanding in life. I found a therapist and discovered tools like meditation, yoga, and running to launch me in a new direction. I discovered my subconscious beliefs of my self-worth, the need to struggle, and many more things which were prohibiting me. In a three year period, I persistently meditated every day, went to therapy, and finally started to see my experiences becoming brighter and more abundant. I would advise to anyone searching for clarity if you aren’t finding where you need to be or where you think you need to be, it’s not because you haven’t found your perfect career, it may be just that you need to find joy in life again.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am an architectural designer collaborating with architects and interior designers in traditional and modern designs of new construction and renovations. My favorite projects to work on are minimalist and modern architectural design, comparable to the designs of Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), and Peter Zumthor. One of my most memorable experiences is my first internship in college with the firm HOK, where I worked with top designers in the world, some who have worked with Zaha Hadid. More shining moments include working with clients like Mohamed Alabbar, owner of the development company Emaar Developers who brought to life the Burj Khalifa in Dubai and creating 3D renderings for the WACO Theater Center in North Hollywood for Richard Lawson, Tina Knowles Lawson, and advisory board member Beyonce Knowles Carter. With my current and main focus for creating my own first architectural masterpiece, all of my experiences thus far will finally manifest into a compelling dwelling and establish my brand.
What makes you happy?
Finding appreciation every day in the simple things is my bliss. Over my lifetime, I found it was challenging to find much joy or happiness. Comparing myself to others or searching for a sense of unachievable perfection did not help. Meditation allowed me to quiet my mind and find appreciation of the pure things of life such as food, dancing Joshua Trees, the majestic mountains, and the ancient sequoias.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.mfdesigned.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/micaiahfletcherdesigns
