Honor Award Winner

“The jury recognized the genius multi-use program and what can be achieved within a minimal footprint, and the thoughtfulness of the design solution, use of material, and attention to detail”American Institute of Architects, Triangle Chapter, 2026 Design Awards Jury

Mangum Street Grocery - Recording Studio & ADU

Small space, small budget, big dreams…let’s do it!

The programmatic needs for this 500 square foot footprint were high: it had to work well as a Recording Studio, Rehearsal Space, Performance Venue, and Guest Suite/ADU. Every day this recording studio is visible to the clients (Mangum Street Grocery) from their bedroom, kitchen, and back deck, so it was important that the building felt integrated with the landscape without being too tall. In tension with this were the volumetric ratios of the space as a tall live room was essential for good acoustics.

ADU studio loft bedroom — A guest bed in the loft looks out over a leafy backyard

large doors open wide performance deck standing seam metal siding — Oversized doors open wide on special hinges to create an inside/outside performance deck

recording studio office corner window — A large window offers a peaceful vista during recording work and a porthole window lets the sound engineer check on the band during live recording

standing seam metal siding round window in doors — Careful details make simple materials shine

peaceful desk meditation natural light — A desk with a view is a great spot for contemplative song writing

vertical standing seam metal siding studio backyard ADU — Flexibility of use was essential to this project’s success

shed roof modern architecture backyard ADU — Standing seam metal wraps the roof and performance side of the Recording Studio

Central to our early design process is developing shared experiential goals with our clients. For this client, the most comfortable way to express the experience they wanted was through storytelling narrative. Through this exercise we understood the importance of a welcoming atmosphere, natural light, and how they wanted the space to function as a performance venue.

On the ideal spring or fall night, people come over and gather outside in the yard. A fire is going in our firepit. The studio is lit up. As the sun sets a shadow puppet show happens as people gather on blankets. After the shadow puppet show finishes, the doors open up and musicians set up on the porch outside of the studio. When it’s dark the musicians play lit by lights in the eaves.

Understanding the experience the client wants to have is essential to our design process at Charlton Architecture. We always take the time to gain this core conceptual understanding because it helps us focus our design skills on what is truly important to the client.

standing seam metal siding round windows — Porthole-like openings create playful character

recording studio ADU night party deck — At night the studio is transformed to a dynamic event space

large doors recording studio performance space sound proofing — Carefully designed for acoustics in both volume/shape and materials