Outside the Box: Brooks + Scarpa's Angela Brooks on Expanding the Profession and Infusing Design Into Every Community
By Amy Stone
Angie Brooks is co-principal of the firm Brooks + Scarpa and a leader in the field of environmental and social-equity design. Her firm has received over 200 major design awards, and Angie was the first woman to win the AIA State of California Maybeck Award for exemplary achievement in architectural design. Angie and her partner Larry recently received the 2022 AIA Gold Medal, the AIA’s highest honor, for their "pioneering brand of architecture that profoundly enriches the human experience." In her interview with Amy Stone, Angie talks about being in spaces where policies are set, advising those just starting their careers to do what you know you love, and to mentor.
AS: How did your interest in architecture first develop?
AB: I wanted to help people. That partly comes from both my parents being teachers and educating people. I didn’t know I wanted to be an architect because I didn’t know what an architect did. I did know I could draw. I knew that I could graphically explain things and I knew that I wanted communities to be better.
My parents knew architecture was a male profession and they didn’t want me to struggle with that reality. I started in Interior Design at University of Florida. All my professors — who were men, except for one — mentored me and encouraged me to be an architect. They said, “If you become an architect, you can do everything else.”
I met Larry, my partner and husband, while I was at UF. Larry had a job in San Francisco and we went there together. I took one year off, as I submitted for grad schools around the country and worked at SOM in San Francisco. Larry said he would follow me wherever for grad school. I fell in love with Sci-Arc and we ended up staying in Los Angeles. That’s how we ended up here.
430 Pico: 100% affordable family apartments in Santa Monica on a heavily sloped site, around a courtyard for the Community Corporation of Santa Monica.
What did you learn about yourself in school?
I’ve always been interested in the bigger decisions — the framework within which we are forced to work, like codes and policies. As architects, we are best suited to solve a lot of challenges facing communities because that’s what we’re educated to do, but we’re never really at the table. I thought that an architect planned communities and cities and worked on big development projects. I didn’t realize when I graduated that all those big-idea decisions would already be made.
Tell me a little after school — how did you get started in the field?
After Sci-Arc I started working for a small firm in Venice, California. There were two partners at the time — one was doing affordable housing and the other was creating Beverly Hills and Bel Air mansions. I remember that I worked on a closet and a library space for three months for a large single-family home; I then realized I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life doing this. I really wanted to make communities better.
To me, design has a bigger impact on people who don’t have access to architects, like under-resourced communities. I looked into working at the LA Community Design Center, a non-profit firm in LA. They weren’t hiring anyone, but that was where I knew I needed to work because I wanted to learn about development. I knew someone in the office, so I asked if I could come into the office. I ended up working for free for a week and then slipped into a position that opened. That’s where I thought I really needed to be. I spent three years there.
“Our profession is really insular and we need to be less so. We need to be like the law profession…..I want to get to a place where you can’t do anything without an architect or designer helping you navigate the world.”
Did you feel more aligned with how you wanted to help with communities?
I really loved that job. I didn't get paid a lot of money, but I didn't care. I just loved what I was doing. At the same time, I never really wanted to do only affordable housing — I really wanted to improve communities.
When I left the non-profit, I went to work for a small firm in Santa Monica that did housing, but also other projects. In the beginning, my husband and I never really thought it was a good idea to work together. When I went on maternity leave, I took stock of where I had been and what I wanted to do in the future. We thought it was time for us to try to start working together, so he and his partner brought me on as their third partner. It was an evolution, not an overnight success.
What’s your role in the partnership and how do you work together?
I love to start projects — from doing the feasibility to talking to developers. On the back-end, I love going out to job sites and overseeing the design thread. Larry's the Principal-in-Charge of design and really involved on the front end. We both work to carry that design thread throughout the project to ensure that the constructed building follows the design. I’m the one that knows the code front and back. I also go to the city to meet with officials. We both love what we do.
102 condominiums - existing building with 2 new floors added to the top for Livable Places.
Looking back, what have been the biggest milestones?
After I graduated from Sci-Arc, I kept working on my thesis around Post-Suburbia. I was rewriting the zoning code for a community in Southern California. I submitted the work to Progressive Architecture, and it won a PA Award in 1991. That was the first time that I felt so validated in what I was doing. One of the judges, Harvey Gant, who was an architect-turned-mayor, noted that my idea was not politically viable. Guess what? Working as an architect right now, we’re doing exactly what my thesis was talking about to improve communities.
After that, getting my license was a big deal, as well as winning the Young Architects award. I also won the Character Approved Award in 2010, which is an award not given by the AIA. The awards that are more publicly-accessible and outside of our field are more valuable to me. Our profession is really insular and we need to be less so. We need to be like the law profession…..where everyone knows what an architect does and everybody needs an architect – just like how you can’t do anything without an attorney. I want to get to a place where you can’t do anything without an architect or designer helping you navigate the world.
Another milestone was when Larry and I won the Cooper Hewitt National Design award in 2014. We met Michelle Obama and she mentioned the impact our work had in getting design into under-resourced communities. That’s a big part of what we do.
On top of that, you were awarded the AIA Gold Medal, Angie! Congratulations!
Thank you! It’s given by peers and colleagues, which is so great. It also says that we’re a good example that others can follow. We don’t have a line of work we call ‘our bread and butter’…..everything we do is important, and we design it well.
“We wrote letters to Capitol Hill. I met with senators and staff...One of the politicians told me they had never had true architects who sit at the table. We need to do a better job about being present when these policies are being made.”
Looking back, what have been some of the biggest challenges?
There were times we felt like there was nothing we could do to create work for ourselves. Everyone wants you to specialize. When we were doing housing, we kept getting asked how many housing projects we had done, specifically affordable housing, and more specifically permanent supportive housing projects. It’s hard to get in the door. But then once you’re in, at least you can say, “Yes, I’ve done five” The next year, “Yes, I’ve done six.” After thirty-five years of work, we have a robust list of work we can show clients.
As we were building up our portfolio, we started thinking about how to create work for ourselves. We’d find work with developers we were already partnered with — showing them opportunities with their properties they hadn’t thought of. We accepted invitations to do art exhibits, park benches, and other unconventional work. A lot of connections and opportunities have come from doing something a little out of the box.
When the economy tanked, we were working four days a week with just a few people, thinking work was going to completely dry out, but we survived because we were so diverse. The non-profit work we had at that time — the affordable housing — is what carried us through that recession because of that long timeline. We came out strong and more diverse. We are doing parks, art installations, museum exhibits, and more affordable housing.
Where do you see yourself in your career today?
We’re at a place where we are known for doing a good job and are known for doing challenging things. For example, we had a client call to say they needed to get a permit in three months. They had been told by other architects it was impossible. We said, “Sure. We can do it.” We had to strategize, but we got the permit on the very last possible day. If they hadn’t gotten that permit, they wouldn’t be allowed to develop for another three years. We got it done. Architects are problem solvers but also ‘problem setters’. We can identify the problem and we know what to do to fix it.
You’re incredibly engaged in the industry and in your community. Tell me how that aligns with your interests.
I’m engaged on committees that are community facing. It gives me the opportunity to advise planning commissions and city councils on how to meet their density and housing goals for the future. I really love doing that — and I’d rather be in that seat and staying in the profession than becoming a politician.
I was involved for several years on AIA’s Committee for the Environment. I’ve always thought that the environment was important. I joined the committee the same year Donald Trump was elected as president and when he decided to eliminate the EPA. We wrote letters to Capitol Hill. I met with senators and staff. We were in Bernie Sanders’s office and Nancy Pelosi’s office to answer questions about the DOE and EPA and why we should save it. One of the politicians told me they had never had true architects who sit at the table. We need to do a better job about being present when these policies are being made.
The Six: 52 affordable apartments over computer lab around a courtyard for the Skid Row Housing Trust.
I completely agree. I appreciate that perspective and confidence in all this profession has to offer.
Who are you admiring now and why?
MASS Design, the 2022 AIA Firm Award winner, because they are trying to do things that no one has ever done before – things that our profession is really well-suited to do. I admire Ed Mazria, a recent gold medal winner, who is especially focused on 2030 and ways to meet our climate change goals.
I think our profession is so great! We can silo ourselves, but we need to be everywhere in society. We need to explain to people what we can do for them and we need to capitalize on that.
Also, architects can work beyond the traditional practice and do so much good. My friend, Deborah Weintraub, is an architect who has worked for the city of LA controlling billions of dollars in construction funding. As we served together on the AIA board, we talked about the need to have architects work outside of traditional practice. There was push back to the idea that people should go out of the profession to do other things. Deborah raised her hand and said, “Angie’s talking about me and people like me. I haven’t been practicing as a traditional architect for twenty-five years, but I still have my license. I’m on the board with you all. I hire you to do projects.” And we looked at her and said, “Yeah, she’s right!”
What is your core mission? What’s the impact you want to have on the world?
To bring design into people’s lives to make their lives better.
What do you wish you knew starting out that you know now?
I wish I would have known to have more confidence in my abilities – more confidence knowing that I could do it early on.
Finally, what advice do you have for people starting out?
There’s a lot going in the world today, so don’t listen to the noise. Have a goal and do what you love to do. Don’t allow anyone to tell you no. Also, mentor. I started a group mentoring program, specifically for black women. My goal was to partner ten young black architects with ten established architects. It’s been incredible.
Finally, when I look back, I always knew what I really wanted to do and loved doing. You’re always best when you love doing what you’re doing. Just got for it, and ask for help when you need it.