Terra firma : solid earth
FIRMAH is an Austin-based architecture and design firm dedicated to crafting the grounds for connectivity and engagement across communities and landscapes. We build upon foundational principles of holistic environmental and social wellness, leveraging our unique design expertise in creating innovative, resilient, and inclusive environments for mixed typologies and programs. Committed to building strong community relationships, we design spaces that not only stand firm in their aesthetic and functional excellence, but also uplift and enhance the well-being of the people and contexts they serve. We believe in the transformative power of design to create lasting impact, rooted in the enduring strength and connectedness of the spaces we inhabit.
We are all on one common ground, one shared earth, one terra firma.
Let’s build connections.
FIRMAH is a woman-owned small business and a State of Texas certified HUB.
Team
Collaboration is fundamental to our process. We are deep listeners and quick to iterate ideas. Most importantly, we consider you — whether you are the client, the user, the visionary, the facilitator — to be integral as an active participant on our team, helping progress the vision at every step.
Ashley Heeren | AIA | LEED AP
Principal | Founder
Ashley works to celebrate communities and places with resilient, inclusive design. She believes that powerful connections made through the design of shared architectural spaces can inspire both individual and societal wellness.
Ashley's strengths have been recognized most recently with an AIA Austin Honor Award for Emerging Professional Achievement and as an Austin Under 40 Finalist. With over 15 years of experience, her professional expertise focuses on benefiting communities and ecosystems across diverse scales and typologies, including award-winning development, hospitality, and educational projects. In addition to this, Ashley serves on committees for The Trail Conservancy, ULI Austin, and other local groups working to improve the Austin community. She has been a featured speaker at AIA and ASLA events across the U.S., locally, and on international media. She ardently promotes education and mentorship, especially efforts to amplify female voices, and is a regularly invited school critic and lecturer.
Ashley received her BA from Yale and her M.Arch from Harvard GSD. She previously worked at Low Design Office and Lake|Flato, leading projects that aim to prioritize societal equity and sustainability.
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Advanced Studio / Studio Instructor
UT Austin. 2024
Urban Future Lab / Studio Co-Instructor
UT San Antonio 2017
Career Discovery / Instructor
Harvard GSD. 2009
Invited Design Critic
UT Austin / UT San Antonio / TAMU / Trinity / Penn State / UC Berkeley / California College of the Arts / UH Manoa -
“Everything Is a Prototype” co-presenter
Texas A&M University Lecture Series. 2023
“Innovative Fabrication and Construction Technologies” presenter
AIA Houston CK Leadership Development Program. 2023
“Inventing Architecture: Designing with New Construction Technologies” presenter
AIA Austin Design Excellence Conference. 2022
“House Zero: Inventing Architecture” keynote presentation co-presenter
AIA Ohio Technology Summit. 2022“Why is it so hot and how can we adapt?” panelist
Nexus TRT World . 2022“Disruptive hotels: how hotels contribute to the health of development in Austin” moderator
Austin Design Week. 2019“Culture of Comfort: Designing for Extreme Heat” co-presenter
ASLA National Conference. 2019“Design for Community” presenter
AIA Austin COTE Top Ten Series. 2019 -
“Midcentury Meets Modern Technology” design project feature
Austin Home Magazine. 2022
“SAY IT LOUD” with Beyond the Built Environment + AIA San Antonio Women in Architecture
Texas Society of Architects Conference. 2021
“Provocations: Exploring Urban Green Spaces in Austin-San Antonio” co-author
Lake|Flato R&D program. 2016
“Get Low” design project feature
Austin Monthly Magazine. 2013“Blankets for Hope” TEDx SA set design and installation using blankets later donated to local shelter
TEDx San Antonio. 2012
xi jin
Designer
Xi Jin is an architectural designer dedicated to crafting creative and poetic spatial experiences. Her work is grounded in a deep sensitivity to detail and materiality, with a particular interest in adaptive reuse and the opportunities that arise from working within constraints. Xi approaches design as a form of problem-solving—exploring spatial possibilities through thoughtful, idea-driven solutions. She is especially drawn to responding to existing conditions with clarity, creativity, and simple yet impactful gestures, always seeking to move beyond convention and challenge existing orders.
Xi holds a B.Arch from Penn State University and a MS in Architecture from Columbia GSAPP. With experience spanning interior design, office, and residential projects, she strives to create meaningful connections and environments that linger in memory.
bridget knudtson
Design intern
Bridget is a Master of Architecture student drawn to the rich dialogue between architecture and historic preservation. Her academic work centers on adaptive reuse and site-specific design, exploring how existing structures and histories can inform meaningful, contemporary interventions that honor memory and place. Guided by a strong sensitivity to context, Bridget sees each project as a layered investigation: one that balances research, intuition, and a commitment to place.
Bridget earned her BS in Design from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. She has worked with architecture firms of various sizes and missions, often focusing on publication design and visual storytelling. Bridget is especially drawn to projects that engage with and strengthen the identity of the communities they serve.