News
Actual Architecture Co. wins two 2025 Residential Design Architecture Awards
Actual Architecture Company is pleased to announce that the firm won two awards in the 2025 Residential Design Architecture Awards. Dundee Walls, Omaha, Nebraska won a citation for Architectural Details while Duplex + (Extended Family Home) Omaha, Nebraska won a citation for Custom on the Boards. The 2025 Residential Design Architecture Awards (RDAA) received more … Continued
Actual Architecture Co. wins 3 AIA Nebraska design awards in 2024
Marking 20 straight years winning AIA Nebraska awards, ActualAC won three awards in 2024: The stair at the Sylvan Lake House won for Architectural Detail. The Grove won a Merit Award for Architectural Interiors. In partnership with Reddymade, Actual Architecture Co.’s St. Mary’s Campus won for Unbuilt Architecture. Located on the corner of Centennial Mall … Continued
Actual Architecture Co.’s Duplex + selected in design competition
ActualAC is thrilled to announce that our prototype design Duplex + won second place in the “Duplex X Design” competition led by Omaha By Design for age-accessible and affordable duplex designs meant to serve as new models for Missing Middle housing. Duplex + is an adaptable prototype duplex home designed for aging in place, affordability, … Continued
Wanaka Wedge House wins 2024 SARA National Design Award
The Wanaka Wedge House won an Excellence Award in the 2024 SARA National Design Awards. The project was also a Category Winner for Single-Family Residential. Learn more about the Wanaka Wedge House and the original Wedge House prototype on our website. See the other winners here. SARA is The Society of American Registered Architects, a … Continued
2024 AIA Central States Region Design Award Recognition
Actual Architecture Company won two awards from the AIA Central States this year: 1. Actual Architecture Company, in partnership with Reddymade, won a Merit Award in the 2024 AIA Central States Region Design Awards for St. Mary’s Campus opposite the Nebraska State Capitol Building in Lincoln, Nebraska. The expanded campus—with the historic church building as … Continued
Actual Architecture Co. Welcomes Ashley Byars
Actual Architecture Company is thrilled to share that Ashley Byars, AIA has joined our team as a partner. With over 15 years of architectural practice across various scales and work in property development, Ashley will play a key role as we undertake an ambitious plan to expand the breadth and capacity of our practice. Ashley … Continued
FACT kicks off OurStory housing project
FACT & Partners for Livable Omaha take aim at the housing crisis with OurStory, a new concept for infill housing and accessory dwellings in the Omaha metro and beyond. This fall semester, FACT is working in partnership with Partners for Livable Omaha (Livable Omaha) to create OurStory, a new concept for infill housing and accessory dwellings to be deployed in Omaha. OurStory is … Continued
in memoriam, Justin Kemerling
It is with great sadness that we share the tragic news of the passing of our dear friend Justin Kemerling; September 6, 1979 – July 26, 2024. Since 2007, Justin has been a collaborator, advisor, critic, client, close friend. Beginning with the graphics and collateral design for the 2008 exhibition “Art Farm @ Sheldon”, Justin … Continued
Omaha Mobile Stage and Bemis LOW END win SARA New York Design Awards
Actual Architecture Co. & FACT are thrilled to announce that the Omaha Mobile Stage won an Honor Award in the 2024 SARA New York Design Awards (student work category). And, Bemis LOW END won an Award of Excellence in the same program. This is strong recognition for the efforts of students to work together in … Continued
Architalx Lecture in Portland, Maine
Jeff is an invited speaker in the annual Architalx lecture series this April in Portland, Maine. Jeff’s talk, “Nonsite Specific” is scheduled for Monday, April 22, 2024 at 6:00 pm at Aura (doors open at 5pm), 121 Center St., Portland, ME 04101. The other speakers in the 2024 series are William O’Brien Jr (WOJR), Hillary … Continued
Actual Architecture Co. + FACT win AN Best of Design Awards
Actual Architecture Co. won a 2023 AN Best of Design Editors’ Pick Award for the Sylvan Lake House from The Architect’s Newspaper and FACT + ActualAC also won an Editors’ Pick for the Bemis LOW END. We are thrilled with the recognition from this popular awards program! AN’s Best of Design Awards honor outstanding built … Continued
Actual.AC Places in ADU Competition
Actual Architecture Co.’s CoreADU won third place in An ADU for U, a design competition organized by AARP Nebraska seeking age-friendly Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) designs for Omaha. “The growing population of older adults in the Omaha area and across the U.S. is putting a squeeze on the supply of housing for this demographic. ADUs … Continued
The Sylvan Lake House wins 2023 AIA Nebraska Design Award
Actual Architecture Co.’s Sylvan Lake House won a Citation Award in the 2023 AIA Nebraska Excellence in Design Awards, held in Omaha on November 9. This is the second award for the recently completed project. See the project page for more images and information.
Omaha Mobile Stage wins SARA National Design Award
Actual Architecture Co. & FACT are thrilled to announce that the Omaha Mobile Stage won an Honor Award in the 2023 SARA National Design Awards (student work category). This is wonderful recognition for the efforts of students to work together in the FACT designbuild studio to bring the vision of Partners for Livable Omaha to … Continued
Lecture at Texas A&M
Jeff spoke at Texas A&M University’s School of Architecture on October 16, 2023. As part of the lecture series “Frameworks”, Jeff’s talk “Nonsite Specific” unpacks alternative ways that the architecture–site relationship appears in the work of Actual Architecture Co. & FACT, and challenges some of the received ideas about site and site specificity using contemporary … Continued
Actual.AC wins two 2023 AIA Central States Awards
Actual Architecture Co. won two awards in the 2023 AIA Central States Region design awards, held in Oklahoma City and coordinated by AIA Oklahoma. The Wanaka Wedge House won an Honor Award and the recently completed Sylvan Lake House won a Merit Award. See the project pages for more information on the work.
Home Builder Digest recognizes Actual Architecture Co.
Home Builder Digest has recognized Actual Architecture Company as one the top firms in the City. The story, “The Best Architectural Firms in Omaha, Nebraska”, features 8 Omaha-based architectural firms that were chosen based on their awards, experience, and portfolios. Home Builder Digest is a national online magazine focusing on the residential housing industry. The … Continued
Jeff Day interviewed on Lives Radio Show & Podcast
A wide-ranging interview with Jeff broadcast on Lives Radio Show & Podcast with Stuart Chittenden on Sunday, August 27 on KIOS 91.5FM, Omaha’s NPR affiliate. The show is now available as a podcast here, and on all major podcast platforms. In the episode, architect Jeff Day talks about the role of architecture in our individual … Continued
Actual.AC and FACT win two ACSA Awards
We thrilled to announce that FACT and Actual Architecture Co. have been honored with two awards from the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) in the 2023 Architectural Education Awards. Each year, ACSA honors architectural educators for exemplary work in areas such as building design, community collaborations, scholarship, and service. Award winners inspire and … Continued
Wanaka Wedge House wins 2022 Residential Architecture Design Award
The Wanaka Wedge House won an Honor Award in the 23rd Annual ARCHITECT Residential Architect Design Awards, one of only 8 projects to receive an award from 270 total entries. The “Residential Architect Design Awards aim to highlight the best in single-family and multifamily architecture — forward-thinking new builds, renovations, and affordable housing initiatives that capture where the field is, and should be, moving.” The project is featured along with the other winners in the November/December issue of ARCHITECT magazine. From the story by … Continued
Actual Architecture Co. announces 2022 AIA Awards
Awards season 2022 is big one for Actual Architecture Co., FACT, and our furniture line mdMOD. From the AIA Central States Region, we won 3 awards this year: Honor Award for Interior Architecture, FACT’s Bemis LOW END.Jury Comments: “For a lower-level lounge/bar/music venue, the jury appreciated the playfulness and unexpected episodic moments this design created.” … Continued
DVLP Basketball wins 2021 AIA Nebraska Design Award
DVLP won a 2021 AIA Nebraska Honorable Mention Award for Unbuilt Architecture. The jury writes, “This proposal is a striking and simple celebration of basketball, boldly presented and embedded in its community. The shape and plan are simple, well-organized, and affective. As the project is developed, we hope the realities of structure and enclosure are allowed to be expressed and the path of the rainwater is celebrated.”
Wanaka Wedge House wins The Plan Award, 2021
The Wanaka Wedge House in Central Otago, New Zealand is the winner “House | Completed” category in the 2021 The Plan Awards from The Plan Magazine. Visit the project page for more information on this unique custom home. See The Plan for award details.
Wanaka Wedge House wins 2021 Residential Design Architecture Award
The Wanaka Wedge House in Central Otago, New Zealand won a citation in the 2021 Residential Design Architecture Award. Visit the project page for more information on this unique custom home. RDAA exceeded expectations in this extraordinary year of pandemic challenge and received more than 370 entries in 11 categories of residential design. With such … Continued
Min | Day interviewed in “What Kind of Architect are You?”
What Kind of Architect are You? by Udo GreinacherORO Editions, March 16, 2021 Jeffrey L. Day, FAIA and E.B. Min of Actual Architecture Co.’s predecessor office Min | Day talk about collaborative practice in a new book by Udo Greinacher that offers a corrective to the myth of the “starchitect”. “Architecture is commonplace. We inhabit … Continued
Wanaka Wedge House featured in The Local Project & ArchDaily
“Responding to its dramatic and embracing landscape, Wanaka Wedge House is a bold insertion, sweeping upward from the earth and opening to carefully placed apertures above. With restraint and considered rigour, Actual Architecture Co curates a home inspired by both simplicity and drama, deeply connected to place.” The Local Project, a multi-platform publishing project that … Continued
Wanaka Wedge House featured in new publications
The Wanaka Wedge House in Central Otago, New Zealand is the feature in two new publications. In the January/February 2021 issue of Dwell magazine, Stephen Zacks wrote “Variations on a Theme” with new photos by Simon Devitt. Claire Finlayson wrote “Wanaka Bravura” in the November/December 2020 issue of NZ Life & Leisure with photographs by … Continued
Jeff wins inaugural AIA Nebraska Architectural | Design Education Award
AIA Nebraska has awarded the first Honor Award for Architectural | Design Education Award to Actual Architecture Co. founder Jeffrey L. Day, FAIA. The award recognizes a living person of esteemed character who has rendered distinguished service to the profession of architecture design or to the arts science in a Nebraska institution of higher learning. … Continued
Dundee PenTable complete
Long Grain Furniture in Omaha recently completed a set of 6 table from our new PenTable2 series. For outdoor use, the Dundee PenTable, or PenTable2 reinterprets the classic 1930 Parsons Table designed by Jean-Michel Frank, here as a 5-sided table that affords unexpected and fun combinations. The tables can be composed in a variety of … Continued
Fall 2020 Lecture Week
September 21 begins a series of lectures by Jeff Day. First, on September 21, Jeff will kick off the fall lecture series at the University of Tennessee Knoxville College of Architecture + Design: Then on September 22 Jeff give’s a talk for the AIA East Tennessee Chapter, and on Thursday, September 24 he is a … Continued
Wanaka Wedge House Longlisted in Dezeen Awards 2020
The Wanaka Wedge House has been selected for the longlist in the Dezeen Awards 2020. The project is now under review by a panel of leading industry figures to decide on the shortlist and ultimately, the winner for each category. The shortlist will be announced at the start of September, and the winners at the end of October. … Continued
Wanaka Wedge House featured on Grand Designs NZ
Grand Designs New Zealand filmed construction of the Wanaka Wedge House from the very beginning and Season 05, Episode 03 is now available on YouTube. Follow Marc and Justine’s adventure in rural custom home building and check out Jeff’s site visit starting at 30:27. Watch the entire episode here.
Actual Architecture Co.’s plans regarding COVID-19
Dear Friends, In response to the COVID-19 / coronavirus pandemic, Actual Architecture Co. is following best practices that aim to slow the spread of the virus. Our team is working from home or alone in our Omaha studio, and we will continue this practice until this critical period passes. Our cloud-based IT setup enables our … Continued
Actual Architecture Co. wins 3 2019 AIA Central States Design Awards
Announced in St. Louis on October 11, 2019, Actual Architecture Co. won 3 AIA Central States Region Design Awards. Hexad won a Distinguished Award in the Unbuilt category, Cochran Park Bench\Sign won a Merit Award in the Small Projects category, and The Grocery, a collaboration with FACT, won a Merit Award in the Unbuilt category. … Continued
Jeffrey L. Day is elevated to Fellowship in the AIA
On June 7, 2019 Jeff was invested as a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) at the convention in Las Vegas. The AIA elevated 115 member-architects to its prestigious College of Fellows, an honor awarded to members who have made significant contributions to the architecture profession. The fellowship program was developed to elevate … Continued
Houzz publishes two stories about Actual Architecture Co.
The design platform Houzz recently published two stories about Actual Architecture. “Design Detail Q&A: Architect Jeffrey L. Day” is a broad-ranging interview about Actual Architecture and the future of architecture, while “Design Detail: An Architect Explains His Use of Slotted Cutouts” focusses on a particular detail motif a at the Bucktown House. Both articles were … Continued
The Grocery wins a 2019 P/A Award
The Grocery, a collaboration with FACT, is winner of a 2019 Progressive Architecture Citation Award from Architect Magazine, and the cover feature. This is the first P/A Award for Actual Architecture Co. and FACT, and the first major award for The Grocery. The project was one of 10 selected from over 200 submissions. Annually the … Continued
Groundbreaking announced: Santee Sioux Nation Family Resource Center
The Santee Sioux Nation Family Resource Center will celebrate an historic groundbreaking on January 10, 2019. A collaboration of Actual Architecture Co. and PLAIN design-build (a parallel program with FACT at the University of Nebraska College of Architecture), the SSFRC facility encompasses a Child Advocacy Center and a Services and Support Center for residents and members of … Continued
AVA © wins AIA Nebraska Design Award
The American Institute of Architects, Nebraska chapter conferred an award for “Excellence in Architectural Detail” to AVA ©, a produce of our furniture line, MOD. AVA © is a stackable display system to highlight collections, books, and other precious possessions. The unit’s recursive geometry allows for multiple stacking options from the simple and repetitive to the … Continued
Artist Lofts wins AIA Central States Region Design Award
The Artists Lofts on Lake Street, a design collaboration with SO-IL, won a Merit Award in the “unbuilt” category from the AIA Central States Region. The award was announced on Friday, October 12 in Tulsa, Oklahoma and is one of 43 awards given in the central US region. See the Artist Lofts on Lake Street … Continued
Soft Stones at Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA)
MOD’s Soft Stones are featured in Design for Good: Architecture for Everyone at the Museum of Design in Atlanta (MODA). Curated by John Cary and based on his book Design for Good, the show features work by several important architects and offers people-driven, real-world stories about buildings that are designed and created with and for the people … Continued
New FACT website launches
www.factlab.org is now live! The site features current and past FACT (Fabrication And Construction Team) projects with information about external partners and student participants. The home page highlights selected projects, news and an Instagram feed affording students an opportunity to promote work in progress as well as completed FACT projects. FACT will add more work to … Continued
Archinect profiles Actual
As part of its ongoing feature series “Small Studio Snapshot” the popular architecture website Archinect has published an interview with Jeffrey L. Day and a profile on Actual Architecture Co. Check out the story here.
Wanaka Wedge House construction starts
The first built version of the Wedge House is on site and under construction in Central Otago on the South Island of New Zealand. The project remains close to the original design but reoriented and with some alterations to meet local planing requirements, codes, and construction standards. We relied on local architect Ian Perry of … Continued
Soft Stones, Stones Table, and FLOCK Win 2018 IDEC Awards
MOD products Soft Stones & Stones Table won the “Best in Category – design as idea” award at the 2018 IDEC Conference in Boston. FLOCK won “Best in Category – design as interior”. IDEC, the Interior Design Educators Council represents American interior design practice through the advancement of interior design education, scholarship, and service. MOD is … Continued
Sylvan Lake House in the latest Residential Design Magazine
Min Day’s Sylvan Lake House featured in Residential Design Magazine (v3.2017). View the online version.
Min | Day reorganizes
To our friends, clients and colleagues, Min | Day is becoming 2 firms: Min Design and Actual Architecture Company. We would like to share the news we are retiring Min | Day. We started our practice as young ambitious and slightly naive designers with one guiding principle, just say yes. Yes to starting a practice … Continued
Emerging Voices 2016
The Architectural League of New York selected Jeffrey L. Day and E.B. Min for the 34th annual Emerging Voices award – one of the most coveted awards in North American architecture. The Architectural League’s annual Emerging Voices Award spotlights North American individuals and firms with distinct design “voices” that have the potential to influence the disciplines … Continued