Ben Small joins Jones with a background in high-end residential design and a diverse portfolio as an educator, researcher, and maker. His work explores socially and ecologically responsible design, focusing on re-used and minimally processed material assemblies and the complex entanglements of the built environment and natural systems.

Previously, Ben held a faculty position at his alma mater, the University of Virginia School of Architecture (M.Arch, ’21), where his research and teaching received the recognition and support of several awards and grants. During his time at UVA, he co-edited the academic journal LUNCH and designed exhibitions for the Anchorage Museum of Alaska and the 2021 Venice Biennale with the Arctic Design Group.

An Oregonian through and through, Ben’s approach to design is rooted in his earlier education in Environmental Studies and Studio Art at Lewis & Clark College here in Portland (BA, 2015).  He owes his love of the arts and outdoors to his childhood in Ashland, Oregon. Outside the studio, he loves to spend time exploring Portland’s food scene with his friends and partner, leaving a trail of dog hair throughout the city’s neighborhoods and parks while walking their two dogs.