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Firm Biography
Swan Studio Architects is a Texas-based architecture and design practice founded by Simon Chen, serving clients across Austin, San Antonio, and Dallas. We specialize in custom residential design, multifamily development, and commercial tenant finish-out — work that spans from
What sets our practice apart is our background and experiences working with individual homeowners to real estate developers and restaurant operators. Our design decisions are made with an understanding of market value, buildability, and investment return built in from the earliest concept sketches.
Our work has ranged from Hill Country custom homes engineered to strict Wildland-Urban Interface fire codes, to ground-up restaurant builds, to multifamily townhome communities designed to foster a genuine sense of place. Every project, regardless of scale, gets the same level of technical rigor and design attention.
Simon Chen — Founder & Principal Architect
Simon Chen is a Registered Architect (TX #27129) and Registered Interior Designer (TX #12318) with over a decade of experience across custom residential design, real estate development, and construction. He also holds a Texas real estate license — a distinction that allows him to advise clients on design and market value simultaneously, rather than treating them as separate conversations.
Simon's portfolio includes custom Hill Country homes, comprehensive townhome communities designed for multifamily developers, and ground-up commercial builds including full-service restaurants. He has particular depth in Wildland-Urban Interface fire compliance, zoning and feasibility analysis, and coordinating complex permit sets across multiple Texas jurisdictions.
Simon founded Swan Studio Architects to give clients a single, accountable point of contact — someone who understands not just how a building should be designed, but how it performs as an asset.
Marco Antonio Cortes leads production and technical coordination for Swan Studio's projects, bringing a comprehensive understanding of architecture and construction to every set of drawings. His attention to detail and command of Building Information Modeling (BIM) workflows means client projects move from concept to permit-ready documentation with fewer surprises in the field. Marco's work spans custom residential detailing through complex commercial coordination.
Marco Antonio Cortes — Architectural Designer
Our Approach
We believe rigorous, code-compliant design and genuine architectural character aren't in tension — they're the same job, done well. Our clients include homeowners building once in a lifetime, developers building repeatedly at scale, and operators who need a finish-out done right the first time. Regardless of project size, our approach stays the same: understand the constraints — zoning, budget, code, timeline — early, and design confidently within them.
License and Registration:
Texas Board of Architectural Examiners
Architect License: #27129
Registered Interior Designer: #12318
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