Lyle Bradley

0:05Okay so welcome to another episode of staying stories podcast where we interview alumni about experiences at milton academy and beyond my name is giselle figueroa and i'm pleased to introduce our guest today lyle bradley a graduate of milton's class of 1995 and an architect at art architects a boston-based architecture firm that has done work in most of milton's buildings on campus um thank you for taking the time to sit down with me today so i wanted to start by talking about your time at Milton.

0:31So you're part of the Milton 13-Year Club. Can you tell us what that experience was like? Yeah, absolutely. It was a magical place. I can't be so thankful to have had the opportunity to have gone to Milton for all 13 years. It was actually my grandparents insisted that I start Milton Academy in kindergarten, and they were generous enough to pay for it, which helps. My father had died when I was really young, so my mother, as a single mother, I think, you know, that's challenging.

1:01And I think my grandparents knowing the challenges she would face sort of insisted that I go to Milton. So, you know, I think now having kind of perspective on that with children of my own and knowing how much of a challenge that would have been, I really sort of come to think of Milton as like a second parent. And so anyway, I'm just, you know, looking back at sort of, you know, preparation for this. I went back and I looked at sort of old report cards or you know end of year assessments or whatever and but you could see year over year like i was a really shy kid and and you could see them sort of you know helping to build my confidence you know and it was it was it was like having a super parent just really just a bunch of really special faculty and teachers and resources that's amazing anyway.

1:50Is there a particular Milton course or teacher who had significance, who had a significant impact on you after your time at Milton? So, yeah. I thought about this one a lot and, you know, being on the one hand, I feel like it should be an art class or something. But when I think back at, you know, my time at Milton, it really is, it's the English classes that I think were the most sort of memorable and maybe significant in ways. You know ironically i'm a terribly slow reader and you know not really much of an english student but it was it was you know i i mean just like great teachers all the way through one you know i guess one that i always kind of have come come back to is just one of my most fun classes was in i think it was eighth grade mr had an all boys english class and that was the only all single gender class i'd ever had so that's a that's kind of a crazy time and you know a young, person's life for a variety of reasons so i'm kind of amazed that they they did that but but he just does such a great job of sort of you know letting us loose but reining it in in the right in the right way and i just thought he

3:08was just a really incredible teacher and one of the things. That he would do that I remember the most and had the best time with was he would have these, what he called reaction papers. You know, you'd get this, it was just a sheet of paper with an image up in the corner and, you know, you'd just go home and you'd just write for a half hour or whatever it was. And then you'd come in and we'd all be sitting around a circle and read those to each other. And it just was so much fun.

3:36You know, a lot of like really just letting the mind loose And wherever it went, I just loved it. So anyway, that was one highlight. I could go on, but I'll just... Yeah, definitely the English at Milton. I know for me personally, it's helped me learn more about English. I think the classes are just so engaging that it's just like it sticks with you. It does, yeah. So for outside of the classroom, what activities were you involved in during your time at Milton, especially when you were in the upper school?

4:06So, I was pretty obsessed with lacrosse. I was given a stick in gym class in fifth or sixth grade, and after that, I was just absolutely obsessed. So, I loved the sport and everything about it and the tinkering with the stick and trying to string my own pockets and all that sort of thing. I loved it. So I spent a lot of time playing lacrosse as my sort of primary sport. And then, you know, I actually credit Milton with other opportunities because you had to play a sport, you know, every semester and or do something athletic.

4:50So I think, you know, I played tennis in the fall. I played soccer. I played a couple of years of middle school hockey. I did wrestling. So I really did just a huge variety of things. And then my senior year, I would say probably the best team experience I had ever. Maybe ever was being on the Milton football team. And it was when, you know, I just played only my senior year. And that was just a really phenomenal team experience that I hadn't really had before.

5:20So that was, that was nice. Yeah, for sure. I think the teams at Milton, I'm on the field hockey team. And I think having a team outside of school just kind of builds another side of community. And I know the football team is really close even today, which is amazing. Yeah, no, it was, it was, it was, it was incredible. I think we'd had a new coach and he just came in and, and, and just really brought some new energy to the, to the program. I didn't, I don't know what it was like before that, but it was, it was fun.

5:47And that, you know, you could be a senior and just play on the team. And that maybe just the way the team was at that, at that time allowed for that. But that was, that was really, that was, that was. So ever since the 1960s, Milton Sr. Spent the month of May completing a senior project, a full-time commitment to a personal passion and a project of their own design. What was your senior project? All right. So as you might expect, I did an architecture project.

6:13I designed a house, I guess it was sort of a dream house in Milton. And I had Mr. Chaney as an advisor. And it was a lot of fun. And actually, my friend, Paul Costello was right next to me and he was designing a golf course. So we just had a ton of fun. And it was in what we at that time called the link. And it was, it was this sort of connector building between Warren Hall and wig hall, you know, what you guys have now is like a, you know, sort of this.

6:45Great student center with a really special stair connecting the upper Center Street grade to the lower level. At that time, it was this really insignificant little connection between two buildings. So we were there and we had a view out to Center Street. And I think Paul brought in a little basketball hoop and put it on the wall. So we just had a ton of fun. And obviously, the project was was fun to do as well so that was that was great and for so when you did your senior project did you have to like i know now you have to like apply and like make sure like fits like the requirements did you have to do the same i i guess i think we did and mr chaney had had done an architecture class i think through milton and i actually didn't i didn't even take it i had taken this it was called career discovery at harvard they do this architecture program and so i'd done that the previous summer.

7:37And so I think, you know, I had the sort of skills to, you know, draft and draw floor plans and plans and sections and elevations and whatnot. So. That's amazing. So how did Milton help shape your career path, obviously becoming an architect? So I guess I, you know, I credit Milton with helping, you know, people think creatively in whatever field they're going into. And I think that was, you know, whether it was a creative field or not. I think there was, you know, you're kind of taught, you know, in many classes to try to see things from different perspectives.

8:12And, you know, and I think Melton just had a way of like working with all kinds of learners, you know, and as I said, I was a really slow reader. So, you know, at that time, it was just, it was, I don't know. Yeah, it was great. And I think those, yeah, I don't know. I think that was probably the main thing. And I think also just maybe there were different. I don't know. Architecture, I think, encompasses a little bit of everything. So I think that's one of the fun things about it. And I think people at Milton kind of tend to like all the subjects, just like learning in architecture can touch history, science, arts, economy.

8:53Anyway, it's fun. So I think that just sort of set me up for being enthusiastic about architecture. So now we're going to transition to your college experience. So after Milton, you continued your studies at Colby College, graduating with a degree in studio art. How do your experience at Colby expand or challenge the values you carried from Milton? Well, certainly Milton taught me to work hard and put in my best effort into anything. And that I think has carried me through today.

9:22And certainly at Colby, I was wanted to play lacrosse in college was one of my goals. So that was where I ended up at, you know, Colby was a good, a good fit for that. So I think balancing, you know, you know, being a student athlete and trying to get all the schoolwork, you know, done in a good way was, was, was helpful to have Milton's background. And Milton, you know, I think as a credit to Milton, I just love the experience of being in a really kind of tight community with a nice, like.

9:58You know, classmates that you really knew, like you could point to, you know, all the faces and at least know them. And Colby was just kind of another level up from that. And I think I just wanted that college experience, a sort of liberal, small liberal arts school. So, you know, I think, you know, obviously just Milton teaching people to pursue a passion and promote or defend an idea that you have is something that's valuable, too. So can you also tell us about your journey through college?

10:26So, I mean, ironically, I'd always wanted to be an architect growing up. And then I had done that career discovery program at Harvard, my junior to senior year to see if I wanted to go to an undergraduate architecture program. I just... It just wasn't for me. It was kind of a strange occurrence of attitude, but I didn't like it. I wasn't ready for the conversations around architecture. I just like making things. And so anyway, I went to Colby thinking that I was not going to be an architect.

11:03And I just wanted to be, you know, I was an art major and they had an engineering track to, you know, so I was a physics major with an art minor. And so I started on that path, and I soon realized that that wasn't quite the path for me either. So I eventually switched to an art major with a physics minor. And my junior year in the fall, I went abroad to Florence through the Syracuse program. And that was just eye-opening, as if you have the opportunity to go abroad, I hope you do. It was, you know, I think Colby was beginning to feel a little bit small.

11:43I mean, I wanted that small environment, but, you know, it was beginning to feel like I was really trapped in Maine. So getting out to, you know, Europe on my own was an incredible experience. And, you know, but again, I was sort of like, I'm an art major. I'm not even really looking at architecture, which was kind of a silly attitude to have as well. But, you know, that was it. But I came back from that program really energized to pursue making art and be an art major.

12:14So, I think that I credit that. When I got back to the Colby by my spring and senior year, I just really dove into being an art major. I really like sculpture. I was just making things in stone after being in Florence and then in wood, which is a passion. And anyway, and I guess my... So my senior year, I had this choice between. Colby, you could get a studio art concentration as an art major, or I could go for the physics minor. And so the two courses conflicted, and it was either take, I think it was like quantum physics, or a year of drawing.

13:02And the choice was obvious. i just i just went with drawing and i regret it a single bit think about that course all the time so anyway that was that was great so then i guess kind of connecting were there any pivotal moments at colby that helped you decide to go on to earn a master's in architecture so i guess you know it started in in sculpture class you know one first you know time i. Took that i just really loved making things i you know from as early as i can remember i've always just like making things so that was that was fun and sort of unwittingly you know i was working with the materials of architecture you know stone and wood and metal and fabrics i mean it was just you know i think that and once i you know you get exposed to a little bit of everything And so I was exposed to woodworking again, you know, after a little bit at Milton and, you know, and then once I kind of rediscovered that and I would kind of try to challenge myself with each new project and, you know, and then I would be able to do it.

14:12So then I would try to challenge myself a little bit more. And, you know, I kept going and I taught myself how to use sort of all the traditional hand tools and I got into steam bending wood and I learned how to do that. So anyway, it was just, it was a ton of fun and a very like, you know. I don't know, nurturing environment to just let me try what I wanted to do. I had a good relationship with my sculpture professor at the time. And she actually was pushing me into go into like, you know, furniture making or boat making or something like that.

14:46So I actually ended Colby wanting to pursue furniture making and make wood furniture. So... Yeah, that's amazing. It's very niche. I know architecture is a big thing, but I think kind of getting to that process from what I've heard from you and just what I've heard in general, it's definitely a unique path, which is amazing. Yeah, I think it's funny. People come to it in graduate school, you realize people come to it from very different backgrounds.

15:13We had English majors, philosophy majors, math majors. It's a great group of people. And I think, you know, sometimes people come to this sort of, I want to be an architect realization at different points. So, and I think that sort of diversity of backgrounds makes it interesting. So, moving to your architecture career, in 2005, you joined ART Architecture, a firm that has grown since its founding to be named Best of Boston. What made you decide to initially join this particular firm and what has inspired you to stay? I, well, so it was, I worked at one other architecture firm as an internship in the summer of, in architecture school.

15:55And then this was the first, the only place I've worked since. And, you know, I was looking around and, you know, the sort of the scale of the work was residential, which I was interested in. And then part of that was because, you know, I really wanted to, you know, still kind of close to this furniture making idea. And it was after it was, I had tried to go down this furniture making path. Didn't, it didn't, that wasn't for me either. And then I became a carpenter and then I get sort of back into, back into architecture.

16:24So the residential scale was sort of the scale of building that I wanted to work at. And so, you know, looking at our work, I mean, we just had a wide variety of projects that were sort of within the, you know, the context and sort of the vernacular of New England, but in, you know, just sort of a wide variety and really creative projects. And, you know, I think we got to, you know, we still do get to work with some really talented carpenters, builders, craftsmen and craftsmen.

16:51And, you know, and it's just, and it's also a fun, you know, we're continuing to, to learn every day. And so I think, you know, people will travel, they'll come back, we'll have a slideshow about, you know, different architecture and just any part of the world, we've probably seen it. And I think as our, you know, the firm ART Architects, we kind of try to keep art in the goal of the firms. Every, actually starting up probably in a couple of weeks, we do what's called ART Academy.

17:22You know, mostly everything now is sort of on the computer. You're on a computer most of the day in front of your laptop. And, you know, so we, for like, you know, four to six weeks, we'll take one day. We'll shut the computers down at four. And we'll draw and you know when i first started we'd actually had a like a figure like figure drawing that someone would come in and pose and we would we would draw that and that is just a completely different challenging experience from you know what we're doing like daily obviously but it was just it's a you know it's still looking and drawing and i think we still value that part of architecture is that you know hand drawing and communicating through drawing is still really important so you know it's it's anyway it's it's great and we still get great clients so i think that's there's no good building that gets built without without good clients and i think we're we're lucky to have to have clients that are yeah anyway um so then what was your most rewarding architectural project you've ever worked on tough tough to say i think there's there's a lot of good ones there's one

18:31kind of a a memorable one where it was a townhouse renovation in the south end you know a brownstone the client was just he just engaged completely and wanted something wild at every step you know i think we had sort of one of the craziest stairs i've always worked on i think you know like stairs. For me are one of the most fun parts of architecture and it kind of ties it back into furniture making. You know, a stair connects two spaces, you're using them constantly, they've got to be durable, they got to work, you're grabbing the handrail, it's got to be comfortable in terms of how steep or non-steep it is.

19:14And also they're quite sculptural or can be. So I think they just had, they're always one of the sort of fun elements, I think, in any building. And that was, so that was a special stair and it had a, you know, crazy kitchen, a Japanese rock garden in the basement. So it was, it was a fun, really fun object. That's so cool. So last spring, Boston Globe magazine published East is Eden, an amazing feature spread about all the updates you made to your home in their renovative and refresh issue. What did the special recognition mean to you?

19:47It's nice. It's nice to get the recognition. I... You know, I think I've done this twice now. I've renovated, I bought a house in 2005 as a real fixer-upper and, you know, sort of did this design build of that. And then, you know, this time around, we've done it again, although a little bit more challenging. that had young kids, but it was, it's, it's sort of an, it's an all consuming effort. So you put in like, you know, and we probably, it probably took eight years.

20:21We renovated one floor every couple of years. And, you know, it's just, you know, it's, it's trying to find the balance between, you know, doing something, you know, challenging yourself, doing something you want to do, but also getting it done on time and within a, you're close to your budget. And so anyway, it's nice after all that effort to get kind of someone else, likes it too so yeah but it's nice I saw photos and it was like really beautiful so thank you so you have done some work at Milton what were some of the most notable projects you worked on at Milton so.

20:58And I guess, you know, a lot of the projects are kind of at this residential scale, which is our primary wheelhouse at the office. And so I guess I can go over a couple. I guess the junior building where I was in from kindergarten to third grade, we did a sort of interior renovation of that in 2012 to 13 or something. So that was fun to kind of go back to that building and be there again. And the principal at the time, Rachel, brought a ton of energy to the project.

21:33And it was a transformative project for that space. And then during COVID, we helped renovate Faulkner. The Faulkner Health Center was, when I was there, it was a dorm. And then they needed sort of a quarantine facility for COVID. It was really kind of a tight deadline project. And just, that's a beautiful building house. So that was fun to work on. And I think we got to actually add a new entry. The main entry was on the backside, on the north side of the building.

22:09And but you know all the milton buildings on that side of on that side of center street have a have a south facing entrance and it was probably the only building that really didn't have kind of a an entrance for that so that was fun to get a to get to add a new a new entryway to the milton that side of that side of campus so that was neat and then one more i guess currently was the. Working with the Outdoor Club, which I didn't even really know about when I was at Milton, but it's a wonderful program.

22:45They, you know, they were... Had you know they were storing stuff in the old salt and stall gym and what we used to call the little gym where through that maze you would get to and they had sort of kayaks stored like you know on the side of the basketball court and this clever long storage system and then you know like where the old wrestling room was they they had this complete mess of you know ropes climbing gear shoes gear like everything was just like jammed in this space and then this closet that was this long narrow closet which just was complete somewhere else and that was just overflowing with stuff so it was actually a an alum donated some money to give the outdoor club a central storage space and so then the facilities department donated this sort of old storage barn that's near where their offices are and and and we're helping to convert that into you know a much nicer storage space like an rei store or something that that you know can also serve as a launching point for their various adventures and stuff so that that was a nice i think that that was a great.

24:05Yeah, that sounds, I know the outdoor program, they have a lot of fun activities and I think it's definitely gotten like bigger the past couple of years because they've been able to like do more activities, which I think is really cool. It's amazing. I mean, you know, I just didn't know about it. And I think they must've gotten maybe some donations to get all the gear because I mean, they'll fit you out with, with anything. If you want to go ice climbing, they don't give you the pair of shoes and the right tier to go ice climbing.

24:32It's amazing. So, yeah, I've just been, I was really impressed with that program. So, as an alum, how did it feel to have the opportunity to design Milton's Future Spaces? Well, it's, I don't know, it's great. I mean, I think we want to do, you know, I mean, we are always working for and with our clients. And so, you know, our clients being, you know, also like the school of Milton, but also the, you know, the faculty. And you know i think you know when people look back at at their time at melton i think often people remember not so much the i mean the campus is nice but it's really like they remember the amazing teachers that are there now and so anyway we're kind of making spaces that support them and i think that is i do that makes me that makes me feel good so i want to i want to keep keep the teachers happy and doing their thing.

25:26So anything we can do to help the school, we'll do it. And do you have a favorite project you've worked on at Milton? Probably the... The woodworking room in the lower school, that was still kind of unbelievable to me that the school does that. But that was a really kind of transformative space for me or an important space growing up that I didn't really register until later. But it's a woodworking room. And I think starting in kindergarten, students will take a woodworking course.

25:59And, you know, first you're just nailing two pieces of wood together, scraps of wood, and then you're making a box. And anyway, so. You know, when I took it, it was Mr. Bennett Smith. And if there isn't a better name for a woodworking teacher, I don't know. But, but anyway, he sort of, you know, ran that for a long time. And then it was taken a, when I worked with it, it was taken over by a woman named Jenny, and she was doing a wonderful job and they just needed to update the space. And so that was, that was, that was fun.

26:30And, you know, I think some of the same, you know, like beta melamine boards were on the tables with probably the same splatters of paint that were on there, you know, 45 years ago. I mean, that was really, that was, that was special for me. I really, I really like that. I've been in the woodworking because like in the summer, there's a summer camp and they'll use it. And it's definitely really cool, which I think it's good because not a lot of kids that young will have experience that.

26:57So it's definitely a cool space. No, I mean, I think there's a ton of value in that program, obviously. I think obviously the school does too. They keep doing it. But anyway, it was just a really, I just have a lot of good memories. And I got a lot out of that part of my lower school education there. So how do you keep, when you're working at Milton, how do you keep the balance between the strong history at Milton and the future when making design choices here?

27:23Well, good question. I think that, you know, we're, as an office... You know, I think we often take a sort of, we'll call it contextual approach to kind of take cues from the buildings or the architecture that are around that area to make decisions. And I think, you know, when we're working at Milton, Milton's got like a variety of buildings. So I think part of it is taking cues from the building itself to kind of keep the sort of original design intent.

27:54And so, you know, it adds, you know, variety. I think, you know, a couple, probably like a decade ago before the new mass center was a mass center, it was the library. And it had on the second floor, there's that sort of screen that's up there. And I've always liked that building as one of the best from that era. I'm not going to say they're all great, but that one I really, I've always liked. Those that screen was actually like there's i don't know like 180 mullions there now these vertical fins you know when i was there it was 180 single panes of glass in between these vertical wood mullions which you know from like an energy standpoint it's like you know it's a kind of a thermal bridge between you know the wood just going cold transferring right inside and then you know, obviously around each window is a chance for air leakage and whatnot.

28:53So anyway, we kind of separated the windows and then that screen on the outside. We kept, you know, that was just an example of where I think we kind of kept the design intent and improved the system that was, that's there to make it more effective. So anyway, that was, I don't know, that was good. I mean, it's just any, it's fun to... Work on the different types of buildings. You know, Greenleaf is very different from, like, Goodwin, for example.

29:26So I think the different buildings have different flavors, which is nice. So just wrapping up, so what advice would you give Milton students interested in learning more about career and architecture? So, well, I guess keep, I guess draw, for one thing. If you like making anything or you like drawing, just you know look at something go out and draw and look and draw and it's a it's really a just a valuable experience like you don't really understand something until you kind of see it through drawing and i think it helps you really look at something so that is always a value and then there's obviously just making things i mean if you want to be an architect that makes buildings or other types of structures, like just start tinkering and make things and help your mind sort of think three-dimensionally.

30:21And also just say, I think architecture on its own is a great education, whether you want to be an architect making buildings or not. I think it's just a valuable, I think the way it kind of helps you think about problems creatively and holistically is just a nice, it's just a good education. I think so. And for my last question, what is something you wish you knew when you were in high school? So I always, you know, it's having gone, having gone back to Milton for like, you know, reunions and things I've seen faculty and you see them later in life as sort of a, you know, a friend and a, and a peer.

31:00And, you know, I think I always had, I was sort of timid in a way. And I, I always sort of had this sort of student relationship. And I wish I had maybe a little bit more confidence to kind of. Think of them also as you know mentor but sort of peer friend too i mean obviously that there's you want to respect your teachers but i think they they really are looking out for making you the best you so i think you know working with them to kind of you know help help that is something and then one one other story i i have was i think in eighth grade we had to i found this paper like probably 15 years ago but it was it was like a future you project and so it was like what do you want to do with your life me as an eighth grader i i said i wanted to i wanted to be an architect i wanted to play lacrosse in college and i wanted to design a house and live in it with my family and like you know flash forward to like you know i found this thing in like 2015 or something and i was like damn i've i've done all these things so this is this is great and i really hadn't thought of it you know at all and you know

32:15as i kind of took this like circuitous path to. Architecture but there i was i sort of like wrote it down in eighth grade didn't even think about it until you know whatever 20 years later and there i was so i guess say you know maybe i should have dreamed bigger so i guess to you dream big and at least at least make some make some goals and dreams and who knows they they might come true anyway that's amazing so thank you so much for taking the time to talk today and we hope to see more of your projects and a few other things you do on campus so much all right good so well yeah thank you to milton for doing this and it was just a great experience and nice to meet you.