PRP Now! Patrick Klimaszewski // Kevin Daly Architects

PRP: Tell us about your PRP firm. Where are you working?
I am working at Kevin Daly Architects. KDA has and is in the process of working on a variety of project types. I was attracted to the firm’s work in affordable housing and education. The firm’s studio is in Crenshaw, Los Angeles.

PRP: Do you enjoy the city you’re working in? Favorite aspects?
I am really enjoying living in LA. It is a city of immense contrasts—in urbanism, climate, geography—that creates a really great place to live (aside from dealing with the car-centric infrastructure). My favorite aspects are days when I go on a beautiful hike where I can only see hills and the ocean, then end the day in a neighborhood like Korea Town that is super dense and feels like you are in a giant metropolis.

PRP: What is currently on your desk? What are you working on?
A plant, some scale figures, trace paper, pencils, Home Depot receipts, a kitsch postcard, a stack of redlined papers. I just finished working on the Houston Endowment Competition, and now I am working to finish a couple of models, one of a residence, one of a school; that I was working on before the competition. For the Houston Endowment, a coworker and I made many iterations and mock ups of how best to represent the proposal in model form.

PRP: Describe the firm culture? The office atmosphere?
The office is relaxed, and during the summer there was summer hours which allowed for ample time to soak up the sun. Two days of the week lunch is catered, which provides a nice break and time for everyone to sit together outside and talk about anything from architecture, to movies, to restaurants to try.

PRP: What is the first thing you'll tell your classmates upon your return to UT? 
Build more models, build them faster, and have you ever heard of hot glue? The big design take away I have so far is that if you can rapidly fabricate and critique your designs, you can push the design farther and faster. At school, I think we care too much about being clean. Working here has taught me that it is more important to flesh ideas out than to make every design step pretty.

PRP: As you’re finishing up the week, what are your plans for this weekend?
The weather now is perfect. So I plan on taking a nice long run, dinner with some friends, and reading outside on my patio.