Designing with Nature provides a vivid account of a pivotal chapter in the architectural history of Northern California. Set in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the documentary examines the work of several major architects who were influenced by Arts and Crafts ideals, as well as by the reformist ethos of the Progressive Era. These designers sought to create an architecture suited to the landscape, climate, and emerging culture of the region. Rejecting Victorian excess and the artificial separation of art and craft, they strove to create an organic architecture based on unified design and harmony with nature.