Some things are meant to be.

Just ask Brian T. Stratton. He graduated with high honors from Rutgers University with a Bachelor of Science degree in landscape architecture. He went on to pursue that line of work and, in the process, discovered that his greatest passion is designing artistic and custom pools.

“Projects without pools are boring,” Stratton said. “A gunite pool is literally a sculpture.” So it is that he came to specialize in landscape projects that not only contain pools, but showcase them as focal points.

Stratton is known as The Pool Artist, a consultant with more than 16 years’ experience in landscape architecture and design. Based in Hackettstown, N.J., he is a creative force, working with clients to come up with landscape and pool designs that fit their needs and desires. However, he does not construct the projects.

His work has attracted industry notice. For example, he received nine design awards from the Northeast Spa & Pool Association in 2015: “Best of Competition” winner and five golds, one silver and two bronzes.

Stratton designs 15 to 20 pools annually, with 10 to 12 seeing fruition. The average pool costs $100,000; add landscaping and the average price rises to $200,000 or more. One of his most memorable projects was on Eleuthera Island, Bahamas — three small, all-tile infinity-edge pools for three cottages, set just 50 feet from the ocean.

He finds his job most rewarding when he gets a text or email from a client, sharing sentiments such as: “The kids are in the pool eight hours a day! It’s like a resort.” It’s times like this, when families truly appreciate what he’s created, that mean so much, Stratton said.

In off hours, he likes to hang out with his wife, Audrey, who works as a birth doula; and their daughter Alexa, 7, and son Fox, 5. Stratton’s also active at his church, serving as the head of grounds.

Acknowledging that friends probably would describe him as a Type A personality with nonstop energy, Stratton said he’s planning to do very big things in the future: “I want to spread my wings, say, design pools in China. I’m reaching out to other countries, trying to form contacts.” He paused, then added, “One of my career aspirations is to have a pool in every state in the U.S.” He’s already completed projects in six states.

It sounds as if he’s gotten a solid start.