Sherwood B. Stockwell (Woody), a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, was a founder of Bull Stockwell Allen Architects in San Francisco, California. In addition to his work as an architect, he was a member of the San Francisco Planning Commission, a board member of San Francisco Planning and Urban Renewal (SPUR), the Founding Director of the California Planning and Conversation League, a recipient of two NEA grants to study land planning in Europe, and author of books and articles on architecture and planning.
Career
Woody began his career in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1949, following his graduation from MIT.
After several years with architectural firms in the Boston area, Woody moved to San Francisco with his wife and children in 1956, drawn by the opportunity to do more innovative work at a time when California was beginning to enjoy a significant population boom. He started as an associate at Anshen & Allen.
With a growing list of private clients, Woody joined Daniel Volkmann and founded Volkmann & Stockwell Architects in 1961. They designed beach and mountain vacation homes and private residences throughout Northern California, many of which exist today in their original form.
In 1967, Volkmann & Stockwell merged with the firms of Henrik Bull and John Field to pursue larger commercial projects. Bull Field Volkmann Stockwell became known for their ski and ocean resort architecture as well as for bringing the charm of European streets to the American shopping mall (with the redesign of the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto, California). One of the firm’s major achievements was being awarded first place in an international competition to design a new capital city for the State of Alaska, an honor that earned them the cover of Newsweek magazine.
Woody was elected to the American Institute of Architecture Fellowship in 1979. He retired from architecture in 1997 and today lives in Boulder, Colorado where he writes non-fiction and fiction.
Award Winning Projects
1959: Cameron House, Stinson Beach, CA [show photo]
19??: Syntax Corporation, 150-acre Evergreen Site
1978: Venetian Gardens, Stockton, CA [show photo]
1981: McDonald’s at Stanford Shopping Center
1982: Stanford Shopping Center [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_Shopping_Center]]
1983: Marin County Regional Library
1984: Shoreline recreational park, Mountain View, CA
1985: Stillwater Cove Resort
1988: Inn at Spanish Bay and Spanish Bay Club, Pebble Beach, CA
Meadow Club, Marin County, CA
Grant Awards, Honors
National Endowment for the Arts: Planning Study, European alpine lake resorts
National Endownment for the Arts: Planning Study, English urban spaces
U.S. Department of Energy: Passive Energy Study