Announcing Our 2024 Keynotes
Stan Dixon, AIA
Stan is the president and founder of his Atlanta-based firm, D. Stanley Dixon Architect, Inc. Raised in Sumner County, Tennessee, a region along the Cumberland River notable for its pastoral landscape and historic structures, Stan was inspired from a young age to study architecture. The simplicity of materials and authentic beauty of the houses, which originally compelled him to pursue architecture, continue to inform his design philosophy today.
He received his Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Tennessee and he also attended Britain’s renowned Attingham Trust School for the Study of Historic Homes and Collections. After completing his education, Stan moved to Atlanta where he acquired experience in residential and commercial firm s. This dual exposure provides a breadth of scope to his architecture and ultimately led him back to his underlying love of houses. Tutelage in residential design with the esteemed firm of Norman Davenport Askins Architect was the next phase of Stan’s career.
Stan’s edited approach to the classical elements of architecture creates an understated aesthetic that is historically based while embracing influences of modern design. His goal is to interpret individual needs and desires through contextually sensitive work that engages appropriate style, scale and proportion, giving every building a sense of permanence and delight. The resulting body of work has set an exacting standard.
In response to his work, Garden & Gun magazine named Stan one of “The New Faces of Southern Style.” He is a three-time winner of the “Southeast Architect of the Year” award given by Veranda magazine and the Atlanta Decorative Arts Center. Stan is also an eleven-time winner of the Philip Trammell Shutze Award presented by the Southeast Chapter of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art. Most recently, Stan was awarded the Addison Mizner Medal for his work in Palm Beach.
Stan founded D. Stanley Dixon Architect, Inc. in 2006. His firm’s portfolio includes projects in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, Indiana, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and New York.
Brian Sawyer, FASLA
and John Berson, AIA
Brian Sawyer, FASLA
Co-Founder
Sawyer | Berson
Throughout his career, Brian Sawyer has pursued architectural design, landscape architecture, and interior design as complementary endeavors. Originally from Indiana, Brian attended Wabash College, where he studied music and biology, and earned his Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Virginia. He is a Fellow of the ASLA, and a board member of the Perfect Earth Project and The Cultural Landscape Foundation.
John Berson, AIA
Co-Founder
Sawyer | Berson
John Berson has been practicing architecture in New York for thirty-five years. Prior to co-founding Sawyer | Berson with Brian Sawyer in 1999, John earned his Bachelor of Arts from Princeton University and a Master in Architecture from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design. John is a member of the Leaders of Design and the American Institute of Architects; he holds an NCARB certificate as well. He is a registered architect in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Indiana, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida.
Sawyer | Berson is an interdisciplinary firm practicing architecture, landscape architecture and interior design based in New York City.