Transfauxmations
The Ultimate Inspiration
Long-time user of Faux Effects® products, Nicci Perone, turned a good friend of hers onto SandStone™ when she was too busy to take on another job creating a home cinema. Because of this, Shawn Saathoff is producing finishes for himself and others, establishing another arm to his audio design company Architecural Audio Design Consulting in Tampa, FL. His latest project was to create a residential cinema inspired by the Tampa Theater. “It’s the pinnacle of all my projects. I designed every aspect of the project and applied all the creative finishes and interior treatments myself. The architectural design, proportions, acoustics, audio/video engineering, textures/colors, and all the project management were personally handled by me,” says Saathoff. “The president of the TampaTheater wants to tour it upon project completion.”
Architecural Audio Design Consulting creates one-of-a kind projects from start to finish. Conceptual home cinema planning, acoustical treatments, architectural design, video engineering, audio engineering and surround sound are just some of the services they offer. “I have spent over 27 years observing, learning and growing within this establishment. After 16 years of real world experience, I attended a technical college to learn the sciences behind the industry. During this time, I designed over 400 sound systems for boats and planes as well as estate and custom homes. The last six years of this time was spent on dedicated cinemas. These were definitely the most intensely creative and challenging years of my career,” describes Shawn.
Working along with a carpenter and electrician, a replica of the outdoor courtyard of the Tampa Theater was build inside the home, including fiber-optic sky of the Milky Way with two shooting stars 20 feet overhead on the ceiling. All stars were drilled by hand.
All the stone shown in this project was created using SandStone™. Saathoff used 15 five-gallon containers to create the façade. He layered the “stones” to the right thickness, and then sculpted them out to create the brick patterns. “It’s easy to manipulate and build up. SandStone™ is a quick solution to a finish that looks like it would take an entire staff to do,” describes Saathoff.
Today, Shawn is an independent design and acoustical consultant, President of Acoustiblok Mideast, and Vice President of Acoustiblok, Inc. Wearing many hats, he still relies on art and his creative side to set him apart from others. Shawn explains, “The bottom line is that without creativity, the world would come to a dull and screeching halt. Creativity evokes emotions; emotions evoke action; and actions create business. I love my job, and I love that I’ve made the world a more enjoyable place to live in with the projects I’ve created. If you have a God-given talent, it’s your duty to your personal well being to expand on it and see where it takes you. I can promise you, the journey will be wonderful and the people you meet along the way will be incredible!”
DECORATIVE ART BY: SHAWN SAATHOFF
PHOTOGRAPHY BY: SHAWN SAATHOFF
WRITTEN BY: SANDRA TAYLOR
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