Annette Clement has been an interior designer with Saxelbye Architects for two years.
HER SPECIALTIES?
Corporate design, including office buildings, banks, private and public schools and City projects.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT DESIGNING FOR COMMERCIAL SPACES?
“I like them because you get a good variety of scale — small buildings and big buildings — and different styles. You deal with a lot of different kinds of people. I like creating the corporate image.”
IS INTERIOR DESIGN A CREATIVE OUTLET FOR YOU?
“It is. You start with an interview and find out what the needs are for the firm or the building and then from there it’s sort of like a puzzle. You figure out how you are going to fit their needs into that space. Then you come up with this end result that is aesthetically pleasing and most of all functional for the client. I personally enjoy the analytical part mixed with the pretty side.”
WHO WERE HER MOST RECENT CLIENTS?
Episcopal High School, several St. Johns County projects, Unison Industries, CitiStreet, Homeside Lending, Bank of America and SunTrust.
HOW DID SHE GET INTO
INTERIOR DESIGN?
After college, she moved to Jacksonville and joined Saxelbye Architects. “I had always had been interested in art and I always thought I had a good eye for color and space. Interior design seemed to be the best field to incorporate all those items.”
WHERE DOES SHE GET
BUSINESS FROM?
“A lot by word of mouth. Also, job listings will come out and we will send proposals based on those listings.”
WHAT AREAS DOES SHE WORK?
Her office is located in the Saxelbye building on Hogan Street. “We are right across Hemming Plaza from City Hall. We have a contract with the City so we do a lot of work for them. We also do work in Baymeadows, Southside and St. Johns County. We’ve done a few renovation type jobs right here in downtown. We are also working on remodeling or building new community centers for several areas of Jacksonville.” Clement said she does about 25-30 design projects a year.
WILL REVITALIZATION CHANGE JACKSONVILLE?
Clement doesn’t think so. “Jacksonville is a very conservative and traditional city compared to the rest of Florida.”
BEFORE INTERIOR DESIGN?
She was a member of the Military Intelligence branch of the Army for five years.
BIRTHPLACE
Moscow, Idaho.
COLLEGE
She has a bachelor’s degree in interior design from Florida State.
FAMILY
She has been married to Matthew, an investigator for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, for eight years. They have two cats, Bug and Berlioz.
RESIDES
Jacksonville Beach.
PROFESSIONAL DESIGNATIONS
She is a vice president on the board of directors of the International Interior Design Association.
HOBBIES
Outdoor things including scuba diving, mountain biking and running.
FAVORITES
Her favorite movie is “Shining Through.” A book she would recommend is “At Home in Mitford,” by Jan Karon. “It’s very uplifting.” Her favorite place to visit is the Wallowa Mountains in eastern Oregon. When dining out, she enjoys Singleton’s Seafood Shack and when relaxing at home, she enjoys tuning into “Alias.”
— by Michele Newbern Gillis