THE STUDIO
JMDS is an interdisciplinary design studio operating across architecture, interior design, architectural lighting, and furniture design and fabrication. The studio was founded on the conviction that these disciplines are not parallel tracks but a single, integrated practice – each informing and elevating the others.
The work is grounded in decades of experience spanning large-scale art installation, landmark civic and cultural infrastructure, and the intimate architecture of the everyday. That breadth – from public works reshaping the fabric of cities to bespoke furniture conceived and built in-house – gives the studio an unusually wide lens through which to read a project, and an unusually precise hand with which to execute it.
Architecture is understood as a means to induce awe and to foster pause, reflection, and connectivity – between people, communities, nature, and the built environment. Light is treated as a primary material, harnessed to reveal hidden narratives, dissolve normative thresholds, and locate enchantment in the ordinary. Research, material innovation, and deep site-specificity anchor every project, weaving history and culture into experiences that are fully embodied in physical space.
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THE TEAM
JORDANA MAISIE
Jordana Maisie Goot is the founder and principal of Jordana Maisie Design Studio (JMDS), an interdisciplinary practice operating across architecture, interior design, architectural lighting, and furniture design and fabrication. With a career spanning more than two decades, she brings an exceptionally broad foundation to every project – one built equally from artistic practice, technical mastery, and the hard-won experience of leading work from first concept through final construction.
Before turning to architecture, Jordana spent a decade as a practicing artist, designing and building gallery-based installations and large-scale public art commissions. That formation gave her something architectural training alone rarely provides: an instinctive fluency with space, light, and material at the scale of the body and the scale of the city simultaneously. She subsequently earned dual master’s degrees in architecture and lighting design, before joining Diller Scofidio + Renfro – one of the most influential architecture and art practices in the world – where she contributed to landmark civic and cultural projects reshaping the public fabric of New York City.
She founded JMDS informally in 2013, formalizing the studio with a relocation from New York to Los Angeles in 2018. Since then, she has built the practice into an agile, integrated studio known for its design intelligence and its ability to manage complex, multi-disciplinary projects with the attentiveness of a small team and the capability of a much larger one. Jordana leads a core team of four, expanding fluidly to ten with consultant collaborators on larger commissions – a structure that keeps client relationships personal, decision-making fast, and design quality uncompromised at every stage.
Her project experience spans single-family residential, multifamily, boutique commercial, and custom furniture and lighting commissions for both residential and commercial clients. She is known among clients for the clarity and trust she brings to the client relationship – guiding projects through concept development, design development, documentation, and construction administration with consistent communication and hands-on leadership throughout.
Jordana has taught at architectural institutions for a decade. She is currently an Adjunct Professor at the USC School of Architecture and serves as Director of Education for the Regenerative Rebuild Collective in Southern California, where she is actively engaged in the future of sustainable design practice and education.
MICHAEL DESBARRES
Michael Desbarres is a licensed architect with over two decades of experience in architecture and design education. Born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin, he earned a bachelor’s degree in Geography from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. From 1999 to 2005, he apprenticed under architect Bruce Severson at Architectural Arts, Ltd., where he fabricated museum-quality architectural models for architects, developers, and cultural institutions.
In 2008, Michael received his Master of Architecture with honors from Taliesin, the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture. Following graduation, he remained at Taliesin through 2016, serving as faculty, core faculty, and ultimately in administrative leadership roles, helping to shape the school’s educational mission and culture.
In 2017, he relocated to Los Angeles, where he served as a project architect with firms including Walker Workshop, Ryder Design & Architecture, and PHX Architecture in Beverly Hills. Licensed in both California and Wisconsin and certified by NCARB, Michael is also an active member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).
His portfolio spans a wide range of high-profile projects, including bespoke residences, private clubs and resorts, luxury hotels, retail spaces, tenant improvements, and restaurants. Michael combines deep design expertise with a strong foundation in education and craft, bringing thoughtful vision and technical rigor to every project.
CALEB SILLARS
Since landing in NYC in 2011, Caleb Sillars has participated in a wide variety of design and building pursuits, from graphic design and 3D compositing work to adventures in construction, carpentry and fabrication. He entered the world of architecture through his education at the Parsons School of Constructed Environments where he received an M.Arch in 2016. His practice experience has included positions at Rice+Lipka and LEVENBETTS, and six years at Bernheimer Architecture, all in NYC, before becoming the first east-coast hire of LA-based Jordana Maisie Design Studio (JMDS) in 2024.
JESSICA GOMEZ
Jessica received her Bachelor of Architecture from Woodbury University where she worked alongside a team to permit and build LA’s first 3D printed home, being featured on Dezeen, LA Times and various news outlets. Since then she joined JMDS in 2023 and has been involved in various project phases while intersecting architectural, interior and lighting design for residential and commercial projects in Los Angeles and New York. She also enjoys learning how to expand her culinary knowledge during JMDS’ weekly Staff Lunch.
SERVICES
- Architecture
- Interior Design
- Lighting Design
- Furniture Design
- Exhibition Design
- Public Art Commissions