Kevin Daly Architects

Kevin Daly Architects (KDA) is Kevin Daly's architecture firm in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1990 as Daly Genik. Daly has taught architecture and is a fellow at the American Institute of Architects (FAIA).

Kevin Daly
Daly received his Bachelor of Architecture degree from the UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design and his Master of Architecture degree from the Rice University School of Architecture. Daly began his career a designer at Hodgetts + Fung and then an associate at Frank O. Gehry and Partners (1986-1989).

Daly was selected as one of eight "Emerging Voices" by the Architectural League of New York (1999) and held distinguished visiting chairs at both the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning (2001) and Berkeley CED (2007-8). Daly currently teaches at UCLA and has taught at USC, SCI-Arc, Arizona State, and other architecture schools. He has lectured at Stanford, Cornell, Rice University and RISD.

Daly was selected a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in 2012 and serves on AIA awards juries.

Exhibitions and recognitions
KDA's work has been exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), shown most recently in "A New Sculpturalism: Contemporary Architecture from Southern California" (2013). The SFMOMA acquired original drawings and models of one of the firm's earliest projects, The Topanga Canyon House, for their permanent collection. KDA was on the cover of Metropolis in 1999 and was featured in All American: Innovation in American Architecture in 2001. In 2005 the firm was selected as one of five American architectural practices to be included in Phaidon's 10x10_2, a book featuring 100 of the world's most exceptional architects to have emerged internationally over the past five years. Their work has been noted in the New York Times, Dwell, Architectural Record, the Los Angeles Times, The Architectural Review, A+U, Domus, Azure, and others.

Work






KDA has designed educational, residential and institutional buildings. The firm designed the Camino Nuevo Charter Academy Schools project— a series of five projects designed over the course of a decade. Architecture critic, Nicolai Ouroussoff, called KDA's the school's design as “one of the most inspiring projects built in Los Angeles in years” and as "a thoughtful, low-cost work of architecture that embodies the kind of civic purpose and progressive ideals that so many public institutions give lip service to but rarely fulfill".

The AIA described Daly's architecture as a combination of “innovation in technology and fabrication, economy and livability, materiality and form” as executed in the characteristics of an affordable housing apartment complex at 2602 Broadway in Santa Monica (2013). The project uses high-performance, sustainable materials and design elements that offer private, interior spaces for residents along with a "community zone" that maximizes every corner of the 1.5 acre site. Transforming infill properties, like 2602 Broadway, into buildings that become community landmarks, is characteristic of the firm's public work.

According to Daly, architecture can be "performative on every level: environmentally, structurally, economically, and aesthetically."

The Valley Center House and the Palms Residence are examples of the firm's residential work   Daly's practice includes pro bono work; most recently he designed UCLA Medical Center Santa Monica's new Stuart House, a program of the Rape Treatment Center, and was on the advisory board of USC's Center for Sustainable Cities. In 2009, Ouroussoff said that Daly belongs to the younger generation of architects contributing to the country's westward shift from New York to Los Angeles as the center for innovation and creativity in architectural thought (along with established architects Frank Gehry, Thom Mayne, Eric Owen Moss, Robert Mangurian and Craig Hodgetts). KDA projects in process include expansion of the UCLA Ostin Music Center and the new Edison Language Academy for the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.

Project list

 * UCLA Mo Ostin Basketball Center, Los Angeles, CA (2017) - new basketball practice facility for the men's and women's teams
 * BIHOME, Los Angeles, CA (2015) - affordable architectural models for infilling Southern California's single-family residential fabric
 * UCSB San Joaquin Housing, Santa Barbara, CA (2016) - 50,000 sf low rise student apartments and social space.
 * UCLA Ostin Music Center, Los Angeles, CA (2012) - 30,000 sf recording studio, practice and teaching facilities on the UCLA campus.
 * Edison Language Academy, Santa Monica, CA (2014) - New 35,000 sf K-5 Spanish/ English dual language school. Sustainability practices include solar thermal ventilation for classrooms and an extensive storm water storage cistern.
 * Galisteo House, Santa Fe, NM (2014) - Studio for a photographer.
 * Broadway Affordable Housing, Santa Monica, CA (2013) - A 33 unit affordable housing project arranged around a courtyard.
 * Stuart House, Santa Monica, CA (2013) - Concept design for a new one stop wellness center.
 * Dulwich College, Saadiyat Island, United Arab of Emirates (2010) - Master plan for an expansion campus of the historic UK college to be located on Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi.
 * Harvard Art Museum, Allston, MA (2010) - Planning and concept design for a new 100,000 sf museum on the Harvard University campus.
 * Venice/Palms Residence, Venice, CA (2010) - Perforated metal screens surround a single family residence, garden and guest apartment in Venice.
 * Harvard College Library Media Center, Cambridge, MA (2010) - Archive and media conversion workspace is located in the James Stirling designed Sackler Museum on the Harvard University campus.
 * W Hotel & Residences, Hollywood, CA (2009) - Interior design, planning, and layout of the residences and sales studio.
 * Tahiti Housing, Santa Monica, CA (2009) - A 33-unit affordable housing for families in Santa Monica.
 * This Side of Paradise, The Huntington Library, San Marino, CA )2008) - Design and fabrication for an international exhibition of Los Angeles photography.
 * Art Center College of Design Housing Complex, Pasadena, CA (2007) - Proposal for 240 student housing micro-lofts and live/work units.
 * Camino Nuevo Charter Academy Early Learning Center, Los Angeles, CA (2007) - Renovation of a warehouse facilities to create classroom and outdoor play areas for a 50 student preschool facility and after school dance program.
 * 100 Rooms/5000 Cells, SCI-Arc, Los Angeles, CA (2007) - Honeycomb cardboard packing material was machined and then expanded to form a labyrinth in the SCI-Arc gallery.
 * Artist's Studio, Los Angeles, CA (2007) - Upper level clerestory glazing provides natural light and ventilation for an artist’s studio on a steep hillside overlooking Silver Lake.
 * BMW DesignworksUSA, Newbury Park, CA (2007) - An open, collaborative work space for an industrial design studio.
 * Winnett House, Los Angeles, CA (2007) - Custom private residence.
 * Studio for a Painter, Los Angeles, CA (2006) - A double height painting studio completes a compound of live/work buildings for a noted Los Angeles painter.
 * Lawrence House, Hermosa Beach, CA (2006) - Renovation of the Morphosis-designed Lawrence House.
 * 34th Street Guest House, Hermosa Beach, CA (unbuilt) - A guest and entertainment pavilion above a lap pool, adjacent to the Morphosis-designed Lawrence House.
 * Camino Nuevo Charter Academy High School, Los Angeles, CA (2006) - National AIA Award winning design for a 30,000 sf high school campus on a linear, island site.
 * Santa Monica Parks, Santa Monica, CA (2005)
 * Art Center College of Design South Campus, Pasadena, CA (2004) - Renovation of a 100,000 sf World War II-era wind tunnel structure for use as the South Campus of Art Center College of Design.
 * Camino Nuevo Charter Academy Middle School, Los Angeles, CA (2003) - Phased renovation combining a warehouse and a boulevard office building for use as a 12 classroom middle school.
 * Beverley House, Santa Monica, CA (2001) - A renovated bungalow was turned into a terraced hillside house in the Ocean Park district of Santa Monica.
 * Camino Nuevo Charter Academy Elementary, Los Angeles, CA (2000) - 12,000 sf conversion of an abandoned mini-mall retail center for use as a 12 classroom elementary school.
 * ASU Campus Cafes, Tempe, AZ (1999) - Planning and concept design for series of cafes on the ASU campus.
 * Pico & Main, Santa Monica, CA (1999) - Renovation of an office building.
 * Slot Box House, Santa Monica, CA (1999) - Custom residence for a family.
 * Valley Center House, Valley Center, CA (1998) - A 2800 sf house on a citrus ranch employing a range of fire-resistant building strategies.
 * Mar Vista House, Los Angeles, CA (1998) - A translucent cube housing a library and textile gallery is added to an historic Gregory Ain house.
 * Topanga House, Topanga Canyon, CA (unbuilt) - Fire-resistant design of a house in a rural canyon setting.

Awards

 * Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence Gold Medal — Camino Nuevo Charter Academy (2003)
 * AIA National Awards
 * Housing Award — Broadway Housing
 * CAE Educational Facility Design Award — Camino Nuevo High School (2009)
 * Honor Award — Camino Nuevo High School (2010)
 * American Architecture Award — Venice House (2011)
 * AIA Arizona — ASU Campus Cafes (1998)
 * AIA California Council Awards
 * Design Award — Camino Nuevo Charter Academy (2007)
 * Design Award — Art Center College of Design South Campus (2006)
 * Honor Award — Broadway Affordable Housing (2013)
 * Honor Award — Camino Nuevo High School (2009)
 * Honor Award — Valley Center House (2003)
 * Merit Award — Tahiti Affordable Housing (2012)
 * Merit Award — Palms/Venice House (2010)
 * Merit Award — Camino Nuevo Charter Academy (2004)
 * AIA Los Angeles Awards
 * Firm of the Year Award — Daly Genik (2009)
 * Design Award — Broadway Affordable Housing (2013)
 * Design Award — Palms/Venice House (2011)
 * Design Award — Tahiti Housing (2011)
 * Design Award — Art Center College of Design South Campus (2008)
 * Design Award — Camino Nuevo High School (2008)
 * Honor Award — Camino Nuevo Charter Academy (2000)
 * Honor Award — Valley Center House (1999)
 * Honor Award — Mar Vista Residence (1997)
 * Interiors Award — Rioport.com Offices (2000)
 * Interiors Award— Windmill Lane Productions (1998)
 * Merit Award — Horses in the Hood (2000)
 * Next LA Award — Harvard University Art Museum (2008)
 * Next LA Award — Art Center College of Design Housing Complex (2008)
 * Next LA Award — Palms/Venice House (2007)
 * Next LA Award — Camino Nuevo High School (2006)
 * Presidential Nominee — City Rebuilder Award — W Hotel & Residences (2010)
 * Presidential Nominee — City Rebuilder Award – Art Center College of Design (2005)
 * AIA Pasadena & Foothill Sustainability Award — Art Center College of Design South Campus (2004)
 * AIA Pasadena & Foothill Honor Award — Art Center College of Design South Campus (2004)
 * Boston Society of Architects Honor Award for Interior Architecture/Interior Design — Harvard College Library (2010)
 * Global Green Millennium Award —W Hotel & Residences, Hollywood (2010)
 * Social Impact Design Award Citation — Broadway Affordable Housing (2013)
 * Zerofootprint Reskinning Awards — Palms/Venice House (2011)