Brittany Desiree Dhawan has been flourishing in the architecture industry for more than 20 years and counting. Specializing in multifamily housing, single-family dwellings, commercial building, remodeling, new construction, public structures, and school construction, she believes her achievements are due largely to also building connections with the right people and refusing to give up during challenging times. By surrounding herself with like-minded individuals and developing relationships with key industry figures, she has found exceptional success in her field.
In 2019, Ms. Dhawan launched her Oakland, California-based firm, Studio 144 Architects, where, as the owner and an architect, she is responsible for bringing in clients and assembling teams of engineers to fulfill projects to her customers’ specifications. After the team is established, she works on the design and ensures coordination and compliance with regulations. Ms. Dhawan also handles the permitting process and finds contractors who can meet her high standards of quality and efficiency.
Among her professional achievements, Ms. Dhawan is especially proud of working on more than 1600 housing units in the San Francisco Bay Area prior to starting Studio 144 Architects. She cites completing a new cafeteria multipurpose building for a middle school as another career highlight. In addition to her work as an architect, Ms. Dhawan is an accomplished author as it relates to her field, writing “Rammed Earth and Wildfire” with the Façade Tectonics Institute in 2020. In Vivid Magazine, she authored “Tract Homes After Peak Oil” in 2009, “The Great Clean-Up” in 2009, “A Turn of the Tide” in 2007, “Zero Waste: Turning the Tables on Industry” in 2007, “War Crimes and a New Form of Terrorist” in 2007, “An Inconvenient Truth, a Gradual Awakening” in 2007, and “What Happens After the End of Oil” in 2006. As a prolific contributor to her industry, Ms. Dhawan is a member of the American Institute of Architects, the International Living Future Institute, the Oakland Builders Alliance, the California Native Plant Society, and the San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research Association.
Throughout her career, Ms. Dhawan has remained steadfast in her dedication to continual learning and professional development. In 2006, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in global studies from Azusa Pacific University, and in 2010, she obtained a Master of Architecture at the Academy of Art University. In 2012, she graduated from the University of Southern California with an additional Master of Architecture. Alongside her formal degrees, Ms. Dhawan became a California licensed architect credentialed by the California Architects Board in 2018 and earned her Living Futures accreditation from the International Living Future Institute in 2021. As she launched her career, she worked for various firms, including Goldman Architects, IKBA Architects, BAR Architects and Steinberg Architects. From 2005 to 2007, she gained key experience as a junior designer with Tom Nott, after which she worked with Jann Williams Architecture in the same capacity from 2007 to 2008. In 2012, Ms. Dhawan was an intermediate designer for Pfeiffer Partner while concurrently working as a consultant with B D Henderson Consulting. Just prior to launching Studio 144 Architects, she was an architect with Noll & Tam Architects from 2017 to 2019 and a project manager with MEI Architects from 2014 to 2017.
Adjacent to her primary endeavors, Ms. Dhawan has been uber-active in her community, serving on the board of her neighborhood council, as a volunteer and math tutor at a local public elementary school, and as the former director of a Sunday school program. Looking to the future, she plans to expand Studio 144 Architects and establish a larger firm that will be more conducive to fostering creativity. She strives to become even more involved in her community and give back to those around her. When she is not busy running her company and designing efficient, beautiful, and functional constructions, Ms. Dhawan enjoys spending her free time gardening.
