APPROACH
Our studio focuses on a fundamental unit of the built environment: the home.
Whether an apartment, row house or freestanding villa, we design homes as places for both living and doing. A well-designed home should support daily life, adapt to change and foster lasting well-being.
Each project begins by asking how we want to live: how shared spaces can coexist with privacy, how homes can adapt to changing households and how design can improve energy use, outdoor connections, lighting, acoustics and solar control—while remaining affordable.
DESIGN, BUILD, REUSE
Working with existing buildings is one of the most effective ways to conserve resources, reduce emissions and make construction more affordable. Renovation extends this principle across the entire structure, while individual components can be repaired or replaced as needed.
We begin by understanding what is already there and identifying its spatial and structural potential. Our designs balance energy requirements, construction constraints, historical context and changing needs, with careful planning and budget forecasting throughout.
TEAM
Tiffany Melançon
Dipl. Architektin M.Arch, SIA.
Contact, LinkedIn
Tiffany has been practicing in the Basel area since 2003. Before partnering with Paige Mader, she practiced independently as Melançon & Co. and worked with Flubacher–Nyfeler + Partner and Herzog & de Meuron in Basel. Tiffany is a frequent organizer of architectural education initiatives in Switzerland, including the inaugural Architecture During Art Symposium at Laufen Forum, the Innovators and Maintainers Conference for the AIA Committee on Design, and from 2014 to 2025, the Tulane University School of Architecture Swiss Travel Study Program. Tiffany has served on the boards of AIA International, AIA Europe, the Swiss Society of Engineers and Architects Frau + Net, and Tulane School of Architecture Dean’s Advisory Committee.
Paige Mader
Dipl. Architektin M.Arch.
Contact, LinkedIn
Paige has over twenty years of professional experience in Switzerland and abroad. Before co-founding Melançon Mader with Tiffany Melançon, she worked with Staehelin, Gisin + Partner AG in Basel, where she focused on the design and construction of residential developments and single-family homes. Her experience also includes commercial and hospitality projects, ranging from new construction and renovations to bespoke residential interiors. Paige holds a Master of Architecture from Columbia University, an Associate of Applied Science in Interior Design from Parsons School of Design, and a Bachelor of Arts with Honors from Stanford University.
Jennifer Bruner
Contact
Originally trained as an organizational and behavioral psychologist, Jennifer is passionate about supporting well-being through interior design. Utilizing her cross-industry experience, she brings thoughtfulness and craft to building the studio’s interior design services.