Southwest style is one of the more distinctive forms of architecture.  Everything from its rustic feel in the interior to its exterior clean, unobtrusive lines and colors designed to blend in with our golden-brown landscape makes it a true romantic gem within our 50 states.  Two local Albuquerque builders Antoine Predock and Hap Crawford both scream Southwest style in their finished work, and each provides his own twist.  Predock whimsically combines modern features with a creative reimagining of the Southwest tradition while Hap Crawford remains closer to the root both in form and materials.

Hap Crawford’s more traditional style may be traced to his background.  An Albuquerque native born in Old Town, Crawford purchased his first home (an adobe of course!) for only $600 when he was only a teenager while working, delivering telegrams for Western Union.  Since then he has built homes up and down the Rio Grande for the last half century.

For most Burqueños “Hap Crawford” is synonymous with “adobe.”  This is because Crawford is a “true believer in the aesthetic appeal and durability of adobe.”¹  Crawford, like any Albuquerque native, appreciates natural adobe’s insulative characteristics while enjoying the look of a wall showcasing these massive 35-pound bricks.

Adobe isn’t the only architectural trope found in Crawford’s work.  He’s also known for incorporating courtyards, soaring living room ceilings, open floor plans, counter tops with glazed Mexican tile, viga beams traverse ceilings and kiva fireplaces.  These are all gorgeous “details that impart an uncontrived Southwest flavor.”¹

As luck would have it, there is a cul-de-sac nestled in Albuquerque’s Near North Valley with only 14 homes, all of which have been designed and built by Hap Crawford: El Nido Court.  As the El Nido Court neighbors proudly tell it, Hap Crawford would build one home, live in it while finishing the interior details, and then move on to the next one once the home was completed.  This anecdote appears to be accurate, because you’ll notice that the wood carving details in the homes at the end of El Nido Court appear to be more ornate than in the ones closer to Rio Grande Boulevard.

1“Master Works” by John Kent Albuquerque Journal December 28, 1997Sources:

“Each N. Valley Condo Has Living Quarters, Business Space and Warehouse” by Jane Mahoney Albuquerque Journal January 2, 2005