CJ Martin has been a home builder for nearly forty years.  He earned his Bachelor of Science in Building Construction at Virginia Tech.  At the same time,he pursued his love of craft; learning the trade of carpentry by building new homes and apartments,  and renovating and remodeling homes 15 to 150 years old.  As  his finish carpentry skills matured, furniture and cabinetry were incorporated into projects.

CJ moved to Santa Fe in 1982 and immediately embraced the creative climate found here.  Craft and art are vibrant and essential elements in home building.  Skills little used used elsewhere were found here thriving in Santa Fe: timber joinery, interior plaster, stone masonry, forged ironwork, custom doors, cabinetry, and even handmade ceramic tile.

Shortly after designing and building his own solar adobe home, CJ set aside his tools and began his work as a construction superintendent.  There his passion for building homes found an even greater range of expression. The successful building project is collaborative; the architect, the owner and the contractor work together as a team in order to realize not only the vision of the architect, but more importantly, the dreams of the owner.  Building custom homes in Santa Fe offers challenges and rewards found nowhere else.

As the contractor’s principal representative on a project, CJ can personally select and supervises the work force that is most suited for any particular project He is responsible for not only the quality and timeliness of the work; he must also be alert to the interplay of all of the components-both physical and intellectual-that must be incorporated into any project.  His education, experience and interest allow him to actively participate in the design and execution of various systems and components, when appropriate or necessary. These include structures, HVAC, ighting, audio, video, smart home technology, water harvesting, solar, green and healthy home principles.

CJ continues with this extremely demanding work because it is endlessly creative and challenging.  It is rewarding on a daily basis as designers, subcontractors, and workers are both encouraged and allowed to personally invest themselves in their trade or craft on projects where they can take pride in their accomplishments.