SM Architect Wins Fourth AIA Award:

The Board of Directors of The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has named Santa Monica architect Patrick J. Tighe as one of six recipients of the 2006 AIA Young Architects Award. The award is given to people “who have shown exceptional leadership and made significant contributions to the profession of architecture at an early stage of their career.”This is the fourth National AIA Award that Tighe has received since opening his firm, Tighe Architecture, in 2000.“It is an absolute privilege to receive this award,” said Tighe. “I am humbled to be in the company of the other recipients and of those who have received this honor in the past.”Among Tighe Architecture projects that have won National AIA honors are the Collins Gallery, for Interior Architecture (2003), and the Jacobs Subterranean project (2001), a 1,200-square-foot gallery beneath an existing post-and-beam structure on a steep hillside site. The firm also received a 2005 Small Project Award for a residence called The Black Box, and has received local AIA awards for an affordable housing project in Norwalk, Connecticut and the Live Oak Studio in Hollywood. Tighe also won American Architecture Awards in 2003 and 2004.Tighe provided pro bono services to design and build a community center for a non profit organization in South Central, Los Angeles. The design process became a catalyst that enabled the organization to raise money to build the summer. Last summer, the office won a competition to design and build an art installation in Santa Monica’s Clover Park. The office is now working on several commercial projects, including a flagship retail showroom for Los Angeles eco-fashionista Linda Loudermilk on Melrose Avenue.“His exploration of angles of experience using complex combinations of planes and voids has become more sophisticated with every project without losing the freshness of discovery.” said Ann E. Gray, FAIA, Balcony Press (publisher of L.A. Architect) in her nomination letter. Michael Collins, president of The Collins Gallery, said, “What sets Patrick apart from the others is his ability to analyze a situation, provide solutions, communicate effectively, and ultimately get the job done. He is capable of offering unique, practical, and beautiful solutions to complex problems and overcoming obstacles that might otherwise lead to the predictable and the tried.”Tighe was selected to design the 2006 FineLiving: 2026 case study installation that wll make its debut in March at NeoCon® West at the L.A. Mart Design Center. His work has been published in Architectural Digest, Architectural Record, Interior Design, and L.A. Architect magazine.