Dean Nota, FAIA
2023 Lifetime Achievement Award
Born, raised and educated in Southern California, Dean Nota received his Bachelor of Architecture degree from the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI ARC) in 1976, where he was a founding student and a member of the first graduating class. He interned, and over a period of ten years, rose to the position of senior associate architect in the internationally acclaimed office of Raymond Kappe FAIA, prior to opening his own office in Los Angeles in 1982. Concurrent with the establishment of his practice, he served on the design studio faculty at SCI ARC from 1982 to 1988.
His professional experience includes architectural, planning, transportation planning and urban design projects. He is the recipient of national, regional and local design awards from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and has served on design awards juries sponsored by the AIA. His built work and drawings have been published and exhibited nationally and internationally.
In 2010, the American Institute of Architects elevated Dean Nota to its prestigious College of Fellows (FAIA), one of the highest honors the AIA can bestow upon a member for contributions to architecture and society on a national level.
Dean Nota’s professional career includes over 40 years of experience in the design of client, site specific, residential and commercial projects in Southern California, the western United States and Central America. The work continues to be guided by a design methodology rooted in the belief that context, structure, natural light, and spatial experience are the essential ingredients of architecture.
