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Collection by Dwell

Meet the Faces Behind Our First-Ever Smart Home Issue

For Dwell's inaugural issue dedicated to home automation, we visited tech-savvy residences from Napa to Spain. Here, we introduce you to the photographers and writers who made it happen.

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Trained in engineering and journalism, Bill Leebens has worked in the fields of audio, automobile racing, and medical imaging. “I’m fascinated by areas in which art and science meet,” he says. “Researching the history of music at home made me realize how little we appreciate the artistry that goes into the design of audio gear.” Dream tech item to own? “New stuff: a Tesla S, complete with a solar-charging system. Old tech: an Alfa-Romeo GTV coupé from around 1974—I’ll take green, please.”
Trained in engineering and journalism, Bill Leebens has worked in the fields of audio, automobile racing, and medical imaging. “I’m fascinated by areas in which art and science meet,” he says. “Researching the history of music at home made me realize how little we appreciate the artistry that goes into the design of audio gear.” Dream tech item to own? “New stuff: a Tesla S, complete with a solar-charging system. Old tech: an Alfa-Romeo GTV coupé from around 1974—I’ll take green, please.”
An architecture and design writer and editor for nearly 14 years, Laura Mauk worked on staff at Architectural Digest and Western Interiors and Design. She covered the high-tech Heathdale Residence in Toronto. “Touring the Toronto house with the residents was like going on a light-filled odyssey.” Smartest thing in your house? “A toothbrush station in a kitchen corner so we don’t have to walk upstairs to brush our teeth after eating breakfast.”
An architecture and design writer and editor for nearly 14 years, Laura Mauk worked on staff at Architectural Digest and Western Interiors and Design. She covered the high-tech Heathdale Residence in Toronto. “Touring the Toronto house with the residents was like going on a light-filled odyssey.” Smartest thing in your house? “A toothbrush station in a kitchen corner so we don’t have to walk upstairs to brush our teeth after eating breakfast.”
On his website, BLDGBLOG, Geoff Manaugh writes about architectural speculation and the urban future. Formerly a senior editor at Dwell, his next book, A Burglar’s Guide to the City (FSG Originals, October 2015), looks at the built environment through the eyes of burglars and the police who track them. His first in a three-part series on security debuts in this issue. Learning about radio-frequency vulnerabilities in the modern smart home and the oddly comic perils of hackable children’s toys was just a reminder of how much he loves his job. Smartest thing in your house? “I’d say my iPhone, frighteningly enough. The technology packed into today’s smartphones makes architecture look positively archaic.”
On his website, BLDGBLOG, Geoff Manaugh writes about architectural speculation and the urban future. Formerly a senior editor at Dwell, his next book, A Burglar’s Guide to the City (FSG Originals, October 2015), looks at the built environment through the eyes of burglars and the police who track them. His first in a three-part series on security debuts in this issue. Learning about radio-frequency vulnerabilities in the modern smart home and the oddly comic perils of hackable children’s toys was just a reminder of how much he loves his job. Smartest thing in your house? “I’d say my iPhone, frighteningly enough. The technology packed into today’s smartphones makes architecture look positively archaic.”
A New Zealand native, photographer Matthew Williams finds that the simple raw, beautiful landscapes and light of his homeland still influence his work today. He now lives in Brooklyn with his wife and daughter. “The Napa home was an eye-opener on how seamlessly a house can function with technology while not distracting from the beauty and form of the architecture and environment.” “Dumbest” thing in your house? “My cat. It tries to sleep in the dryer.”
A New Zealand native, photographer Matthew Williams finds that the simple raw, beautiful landscapes and light of his homeland still influence his work today. He now lives in Brooklyn with his wife and daughter. “The Napa home was an eye-opener on how seamlessly a house can function with technology while not distracting from the beauty and form of the architecture and environment.” “Dumbest” thing in your house? “My cat. It tries to sleep in the dryer.”