Our Team
Our team is committed to integrating nature-centered art and architecture in environmentally-friendly private and public spaces.
Principals
Drew Hubbell
Architect, Principal of Hubbell & Hubbell Architects
Drew Hubbell’s diverse background ranges from historic restoration and adaptive reuse of existing commercial structures, to custom residences and remodels. He especially enjoys working on cultural and nature centers for non-profits and municipalities.
He leads the firm Hubbell & Hubbell Architects, and collaborates with his father—renowned artist James T. Hubbell—merging art and architecture in ecologically and aesthetically mindful ways. His firm specializes in sustainable architecture, green building materials and the use of alternative building materials such as straw bales, insulated concrete forms, adobe, and sprayed concrete construction.
Locally, Drew helped pioneer the use of alternative building materials, and has been a key figure in educating public agencies about their benefits, in order to gain acceptance and permits for these materials. Drew designed the first permitted straw bale structure in San Diego County, and his firm designed the first permitted straw-bale commercial building in the City of San Diego.
Drew’s education includes the architectural program at the Danish Institute of Study, Copenhagen, Denmark, and an architecture degree from University of Arizona. His extensive travel throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States allowed for an architectural survey of historic material and building techniques, providing him with a rich design vocabulary.
Drew is a member of Citizens Coordinate for Century 3, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization of informed citizens who are interested in local and regional planning issues. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA)-Committee on the Environment, the Newschool Arts Foundation Board, and the Ilan-Lael Foundation Board. He has been a member of the US Green Building Council (USGBC) since 2003, and the California Straw Bale Association (CASBA) since 1997. In 2010, he served as the sole juror for the San Diego Art Institute’s July/Aug Regional Show.
Please see Drew’s resume for more details.
James Hubbell
Artist and Visionary Designer, Principal of James T. Hubbell Art Studio
James Hubbell has been designing and building in San Diego County using local materials and a nature-centered approach since the 1950’s. His unique designs seem to grow out of their surroundings, and he incorporates community involvement, as well as volunteer participation and education, whenever possible. James’ buildings, artwork, and public park projects have garnered international interest and recognition, and have been featured in numerous articles and books, television programs on the Travel Channel and Home and Garden TV, and two documentaries produced by KPBS.
James assists Hubbell & Hubbell Architects with site master planning, schematic design, models, and renderings; he also designs and fabricates unique artistic details for our projects. He runs the James T. Hubbell Art Studio in Santa Ysabel and is the guiding light of the Ilan-Lael Foundation.
Please see James’ resume for more details
Our Architects
Peter Barroso
Project Manager
Originally from Chicago, Peter has had an extensive background ranging from theater and set production to cabinetry design and fabrication to architectural drafting and rendering. After the 2003 Cedar Fire that gutted four out of the eight structures at James and Anne’s property in Santa Ysabel, Peter played a major role in rebuilding the cabinets and much of the woodworking. In his free time, he sings and plays guitar in his band and takes printmaking classes.
Sashi Maniraju
Associate
Sashi is a native Tamil from TamilNadu, India. She has her B.Arch from Madurai and M.Arch in Architectural Conservation from New Delhi. She has been living in San Diego since 2016 and loves the place for what it is! For her, every building has a life of its own & every project is an opportunity to learn from it. Outside work, Sashi is a busy mom & loves to spend time at home with her two little boys & husband.
Mykaela Scarpace
Associate
Mykaela grew up in Connecticut and moved to Boston, Massachusetts to attend Wentworth Institute of Technology. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Architecture and her Master of Architecture while at Wentworth. Soon after, she moved to San Diego for the year-round sunshine. She is passionate about sustainability and believes that architects can play an important role in the global effort to address environmental concerns. Outside of architecture, Mykaela enjoys traveling, hiking, camping and rock climbing.
Sarah Jamieson
Administrative Assistant
Originally from Indiana, Sarah studied Interior Design at Miami University of Ohio and moved to Julian, CA in 2017. While working hands-on at the Hubbell Studio with James Hubbell and in the office on the technical side with Drew Hubbell, she developed an appreciation for all things art. She moved to central Montana in 2021, but continues to assist with marketing, proposal preparation, and other administrative tasks while running her art studio focused on stained glass windows and centerpieces made out of found objects.
Kat Pephens & Shayne Swann
Accounting & Business Managers
Former Staff Members:
Chris Smart – Associate, 2020 – 2022. Simon Talago – Associate, 2020 – 2022. Aliese Hewitt – Intern, 2021. Harrison Bolden – Associate, 2018 – 2019. Richard Boynton – CAD Drafter, 2002-2018. Alex Miller -Project Architect. Bella Valdez – Associate, 1999-2004. Carolynn Wilson – Associate, 2001. Cher Brown – Associate, 1997. Deka Kano – Associate, 2004-2009. Diane Gage – Office Manager, 2000-2003. John Ruzicka – Associate, 2007-2009. Joseph Hensler – Associate, 1998-1999. Juergen Zierler – Project / Design Architect, 1999-2009. Kelly Fuller – Office Manager, 1998-2000. Kellyn Sanderson – Business Manager, 2004-2011. Kyle Bergman – Associate, 1996-1998. Lisa Moffitt – Associate, 2002. Patricia Peters – Business Manager, 2011-2012. Rex Marsh – Associate, 2003. Stephanie Cranney – Associate, 2002-2005. Todd Lukas – Associate, 2005.
Affiliates
James T. Hubbell Art Studio
Led by James Hubbell and located in the mountains near Julian, the Art Studio has been producing work since the early 60’s. It has produced thousands of works of art from doors, windows, gates, sculpture in almost every material such as wood, stone, metal, glass, clay, and plastics.
The Art Studio usually has between three to six craftsmen and apprentices working various types of materials. Occasionally we have called upon skilled craftsmen and friends from the San Diego area to work on special projects.
Through a wide network of friends and fine crafts people, we have access to a full range of disciplines.
Contact: (760) 765-0171
Ilan-Lael Foundation
“The Ilan-Lael Foundation is an arts education foundation celebrating nature and the aesthetic of the built environment for its ability to help us see ourselves and our world in new ways.” – James T. Hubbell
Our Mission
To preserve and perpetuate the vision and artistic legacy of James and Anne Hubbell at the Hubbell Center for the arts in nature.
Our Purpose
We provide a place to explore the arts through engagement with the natural world, and to inspire people of diverse ages and cultures to discover and celebrate their creativity and use it as a catalyst for positive change in the world.
Pacific Rim Park
The Pacific Rim Park Project is a nonprofit organization that has as its mission the creation of friendship parks around the Pacific Rim as a means of fostering understanding and goodwill. During these month-long, hands-on projects students from various Pacific countries design and build a park overlooking the ocean. The Pacific Rim Park organization has built seven parks to date: in Russia, Mexico, China, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan and the United States.
Read more about the Pacific Rim Park projects
“Pearl of the Pacific” in San Diego, California
Brennan Hubbell: Hubbell Craft
As the son of renowned San Diego artist James Hubbell, Brennan Hubbell began creating art as soon as he could walk. Even as a kindergardener, Brennan helped build Ilan-Lael, the art and nature center, which is now home to Anne and James Hubbell and Hubbell Studios. Growing up in the country, Brennan learned how to live and create in tandem with nature. With the nature-loving seed planted at a young age he continued creating nature-based art through early adulthood. Brennan attended Webb Academy in Claremont, California for high school, then went on to major in Fine Arts at St. Olaf College in Minnesota. In his twenties Brennan studied permaculture in Oaxaca, Mexico under the instruction of Chuck Marsh, the North Carolina-based permaculturalist and designer. As a father of two young children, Brennan hopes to pass on a love for art and nature to future generations.
Contact: (760) 765-0171; tresmilusos@yahoo.com
Teo Briseño: Briseñoarts.org
Teo Briseño is an eclectic artist, builder, gardener, stoneworker and instructor using natural materials. “There is a sense of joy, to enrich spaces on Earth. Artfully arranged gardens and structures can be supportive of each other when in balance with nature. To design and build spaces that promote life and beauty, feels good to me. The Love of this synergy is a pleasure to share.”
Contact: (808) 651-3396; livingartscollective@gmail.com
Examples of Living Arts Design work below, left to right descriptions.
Site Specific Solutions: This Outdoor Shower Gate pays homage to “Secret Falls” in Kaua’i, visible behind the gate. The hammered copper motif of water on the gate and the mountain peak above is encircled, highlighting the site, meeting form and function.
Succulents and Stones: These gardens contour with the land, becoming a focal point or solving a challenging area in micro or macro scale.
Natural Sculpted Bathroom: Inspired by antiquity, nature and spaces curved to the touch, this is the“Eco” bathing area. Natural Lime Plasters, stone and locally harvested lumber made this room comfortable to rest in. The plasters can be textured or polished smooth as in shower, thanks to ancient technologies of the Moroccan bathhouse builders. Lime sequesters carbon for a Net Zero approach.
