In their architectural integration of social organization, complex programmatic functioning, place making, and regional fit, the projects shown here reflect concerns that are central to the work of Barton Phelps & Associates. Founded in 1984, the firm provides planning and design services for new public and private projects that range broadly in function and scale. Our design approach takes physical and social contexts as primary generators of built form and demonstrates the potential of modernist buildings to interpret their surrounding landscapes in ways that are at once accessible and elegant. The result is an approachable, articulate architecture that we like to call modernism with a difference.
The firm also is recognized for its work in renovation and expansion of institutional facilities involving issues of design compatibility, alternative programming, seismic strengthening, digital technology and media systems, sustainability, interior design, and historic preservation. Recent projects include the renovation of Royce Hall – UCLA's landmark performing arts center, an expansion of the Frank Gehry-designed Cabrillo Marine Aquarium for the City of Los Angeles, a sequence of three public libraries, the international headquarters of financial consultants Dimensional Fund Advisors Inc. and private residential projects on both coasts and in the midwest.
The effectiveness of BPA's interaction with clients and user groups and its approach to project management are demonstrated as much by repeated commissions from institutional clients as by international publication of their projects and the many national and regional design awards which they have received.
