Infinity pool and terrace with wood-clad columns overlooking hills and a valley town at sunset

Bjella Architects — Est. 1993

Art to live in.

Custom homes designed across North America — from Malibu to Manhattan, and everywhere in between.

Modern Zen Mountain House — California

A home should be as singular as the people who live in it. For more than three decades, Bjella Architects has designed residences that pair fresh, modern forms with classical principles — open, light-filled spaces shaped by the land they stand on.

1993

Studio founded

30⁺

Years of residential practice

15⁺

Publications featuring the work

Perched on a Los Angeles hillside, this modern residence balances urban vitality with natural serenity through bold timber and steel architecture, immersive indoor-outdoor living spaces, a cantilevered glass dinette, and a lush sustainable rooftop oasis.

Glass-walled dining nook with a glass floor and round table, floating over green hills and a valley neighborhood — Modern Zen Mountain House, a custom home in California — The glass dining room

Circular sunken roof deck with lounge chairs around a fire bowl, overlooking city lights and hills at sunset — Modern Zen Mountain House, a custom home in California — The sunken roof deck

Night view of a lit infinity pool beside an outdoor dining table with an orchid, city lights in the valley below — Modern Zen Mountain House, a custom home in California — The infinity pool at night

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Featured Homes

Gallery →

The work has appeared in

Architectural Digest Better Homes & Gardens Residential Architect Artful Living Midwest Home Home & Architectural Trends Great American Kitchens

Including the cover of Architectural Digest — RAVE Award · Sub-Zero Best Kitchen Award

Aerial view of the infinity pool, covered terraces and planted roof, with green mountains beyond — Modern Zen Mountain House, a custom home in California

Modern Zen Mountain HouseCalifornia

Entry with gridded wood double doors, copper diamond cladding, stone walls and a sweeping curved wood soffit — Copper Clad Eclectic Home in Missouri

Copper Clad Eclectic HomeMissouri

Hillside pavilion with metal hip roof and angled concrete columns beside an infinity pool overlooking the ocean and palms — Canopy Pavilion, a custom home in Kauai, Hawaii

Canopy PavilionKauai, Hawaii

Classical pavilion home at dusk with arched colonnades, carved wood doors and a fountain ringed by fire bowls — Modern Classical Pavilion & Home in Palm Beach, Florida

Modern Classical Pavilion & HomePalm Beach, Florida

Stone tower with a white windowed lookout and flower box, metal roofs, white pergola and a red Japanese maple — Lakeside Tower Home, a retreat in Minnesota

Lakeside Tower HomeMinnesota

Modern home with a curved steel-framed arched roof, board-formed concrete walls, glass living room and pool among palms — Various Work

Concrete Arch HomePalm Beach, Florida

Italianate villa entry with an arched iron-and-glass door, Corinthian columns, balustraded balconies and red tile roofs — Various Work

Classical Italian VillaNaples, Florida

Heavy timber mountain home with stone chimney and copper cap, shake roof, lattice porch rails and aspen trees — Heavy-Timber Mountain Home, a retreat in The Yellowstone Club, Montana

Heavy-Timber Mountain HomeThe Yellowstone Club, Montana

Limestone home with steep gables, planted roof, timber pergola over a glass wall and a curved stone terrace — Timeless Gable Estate, a custom home in Tennessee

Timeless Gable EstateTennessee

Modern white home at night with a two-story glass facade, fireplace glow, lit concrete walls, stairs and poolside loungers — Various Work

Modern Glass Beach HomeFlorida

Glass-walled lanai with crisscrossing dark timber beams, louvered screens, cream sofa and views of tropical mountains — Various Work

Glass Living LanaiKauai, Hawaii

Stone Tower House rising from a boulder hillside, its stone tower and timber gables framed by autumn aspens

Stone Tower HouseSpanish Peaks, Montana

The Monolith Retreat at dusk, a lit pergola terrace with olive trees, fire pit and pool between stone and concrete walls

The Monolith RetreatTexas

Stone and glass desert home at dusk with a glowing lantern roof, lit infinity pool, fire feature and mountain views — Desert Lantern House, a retreat in Arizona

Desert Lantern HouseArizona

Bird’s Nest Artist’s Retreat: weathering steel volume beside a concrete canopy, terrace lounge chairs and round pool in native planting

Bird’s Nest Artist’s RetreatFlorida

Stone and shingle home with diamond-pattern copper cladding, curved eyebrow dormer and a terrace with lounge chairs by a pool — Copper Clad Eclectic Home in Missouri

Copper Clad Eclectic HomeMissouri

Stone and timber pool house with a standing-seam roof, glass gable end, perforated wood sliding screens and a firepit — Modern Colorado Farmhouse, a custom home

Modern Colorado FarmhouseColorado

Two-story living room after remodeling, with a tall stone-clad fireplace, upper cross-pane windows and gilded armchairs — Architectural Digest Before & After Remodeling

Architectural Digest Before & After Remodeling

Stone and timber lake house with a tall glass gable on a wildflower hillside, reflected in the lake below — Stone & Timber Lake Home in Lake of Bays, Canada

Stone & Timber Lake HomeLake of Bays, Canada

Loft kitchen island with horizontal wood slats, a black stone top and bar stools — Stylized Branches Loft, a kitchen in Tampa, Florida

Stylized Branches LoftTampa, Florida

Arches House at dusk: a lit wood arch and steel tension rod above a stone wall, tall windows and a covered patio

Arches HouseSouthern California

Sunlit living room with a rough stone fireplace, bolted timber-and-steel mantel, corner window wall and vineyard view — Tower Home on a Vineyard in Sonoma County, California

Tower Home on a VineyardSonoma County, California

The Lair kitchen at night beneath a suspended ring light, with a curved concrete bar, stools and a corrugated black island — The Lair: A Cinematic Kitchen in Miami

The Lair: A Cinematic KitchenMiami

Glass-walled living room with curved wood ceilings, concrete columns, woven chairs and an ocean and island view at sunset — Wings in Flight House, a custom home in Hawaii

Wings in Flight HouseHawaii

White bedroom with arched openings, lattice screens, teal damask accent wall, coffered ceiling and a window seat — Modern Fairytale Apartment, a interior in Manhattan, New York

Modern Fairytale ApartmentManhattan, New York

Curved white rotunda with a glass corner window and lit pergola at night, framed by palm trees and a glowing pool — The Inland Oasis, a custom home in Florida

The Inland OasisFlorida

Riverfront Minimalist Penthouse living room at dusk, floor-to-ceiling windows framing the lit Minneapolis skyline

Riverfront Minimalist PenthouseMinneapolis, Minnesota

Covered lanai with wood ceiling, wicker seating and dining set, stacked stone walls and a pool among palms — Relativity House, a retreat in Marco Island, Florida

Relativity HouseMarco Island, Florida

Modern gabled home with a tall glass gable, concrete stairs and planters, wood shutters and a timber pergola porch — Sunlit Atrium House, a custom home in Nova Scotia, Canada

Sunlit Atrium HouseNova Scotia, Canada

Classical pavilion dusk palm beach florida — Modern Classical Pavilion & Home in Palm Beach, Florida

Modern Classical Pavilion & HomePalm Beach, Florida

The Sonoma Vineyard Estate at dusk, lit windows above arched wooden winery doors set into a vine-covered hillside

The Sonoma Vineyard EstateSonoma County, California

Facets and Angles House at night, warm light glowing through angled glazing above a lit curving pool

Facets and Angles HouseFlorida

Desert Rotunda Home at night: an illuminated radial timber crown over an outdoor kitchen, loungers and a fire pit by the pool

Desert Rotunda HomeTexas

Aerial view of the Sustainable Earth-Sheltered Concept Home, its grass-roofed concrete arches above a circular pool

Sustainable Earth-Sheltered Concept HomeHawaii

Covered concrete terrace with wicker seating and a lounger beside a raised mosaic-tiled pool under the tapered roof — Tropical Light and Shadow House, a retreat

Tropical Light and Shadow House

The Winter Green Atrium at dusk, warm light glowing from tall windows of the white gabled house beyond a dark meadow

The Winter Green AtriumSouthern Minnesota

Kitchen with a long rounded island, leather stools, stone walls and patterned cut-out screens, Miami — Various Work

Modern Textured KitchenMiami, Florida

The Edge Wilderness Retreat at night: a curved stone terrace and fire pit below the lit glass sky room and cantilevered deck

The Edge Wilderness RetreatColorado

Lit infinity pool at night beside a candlelit outdoor dining table, wood-clad columns and valley city lights — Modern Zen Mountain House, a custom home in California

Modern Zen Mountain HouseCalifornia

Sculptural cream stucco house with sweeping curved walls and a curved band of clerestory windows under a blue sky — Curves and Colors House, a custom home in Minneapolis, Minnesota

Curves and Colors HouseMinneapolis, Minnesota

Silhouette of a stone tower home with a pergola-topped tower against a pink sunrise over a sea of fog — Tower Home on a Vineyard in Sonoma County, California

Tower Home on a VineyardSonoma County, California

Coast to Coast

Mountain lodges, desert villas, beach houses, urban lofts, lake cottages—each home designed for its climate, its site, its view, and most importantly, you.

What We Do

One studio,
the whole picture

Entry with gridded wood double doors, copper diamond cladding, stone walls and a sweeping curved wood soffit

Architecture

New homes designed from the ground up, and remodels that rethink what a house can be — always melded with the land and oriented toward the views.

New house design
Remodeling & renovation
Custom additions
Site planning
Engineering coordination
Project management

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Sunlit living room with a rough stone fireplace, bolted timber-and-steel mantel, corner window wall and vineyard view

Interior Design

Interiors conceived alongside the architecture — not applied afterward — so every room, finish, and fixture belongs to the same idea.

Interior design
Kitchen design
Lighting design
Space planning
Finishes & materials
Custom furniture

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In Their Own Words

“We didn’t realize that a house could move us emotionally.”

Kristen Fitzmorris

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Lit infinity pool at night beside a candlelit outdoor dining table, wood-clad columns and valley city lights

Bjella Architects

Every home begins with a conversation.

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