2030 Commitment: Prioritizing the Environment in Our Practice

The built environment is responsible for approximately 40% of the world’s carbon emissions. That’s a sobering statistic—especially for those of us in the AEC (architecture, engineering, and construction) community. Needless to say, we can’t simply halt all design and construction activities. But we certainly aren’t powerless when it comes to the climate crisis. In fact,…

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Designing for Little Humans: How to Connect Them to Their World

Daycare centers are places where children can play and learn in safe, supervised settings. But when our firm designs childcare spaces, we have loftier ambitions. Our team knows from experience that we can collaborate with daycare center owners to craft environments that meet kids’ baseline needs but go further to foster meaningful connections to the…

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Early Childhood Education: How To Design With Nature in Mind

If you’ve ever seen a child playing in and exploring the great outdoors, it won’t surprise you to learn that those experiences are essential to their physical, mental, and emotional development and wellbeing. That’s not our opinion—it’s a well-established fact. And it aligns with what common sense tells you as you watch a child ponder…

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Care and Collaboration: How We Design Near Sensitive Ecosystems

Buildings do not exist in a vacuum. They are part of a continual give-and-take with their surroundings. Consequently, one of an architect’s most important objectives is creating visual and functional harmony between a structure and its environment. This can be particularly challenging when a building, like a school, is situated near a sensitive ecosystem and a…

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How We Created a Flexible Design for Slate Upper School

Slate School in North Haven, CT, is an independent school established to truly “nurture each child’s natural love for learning” and “nurture lifelong learners who are deeply connected to nature”. Patriquin Architects was commissioned from the beginning to help translate the school’s pedagogy into an educational facility representative of both their vision and mission. Careful…

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Classic Forms, Modern Functions. How to Find the Right Balance in Design

Founded in 1912, Girl Scouts of the United States of America—better known simply as the Girl Scouts—is an organization steeped in tradition. Whether you were a scout, know someone who was or is now, or simply are familiar with the organization, you have to admire their long history of helping girls grow, thrive, and improve…

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Patriquin Architects Sign on to the AIA Materials Pledge

We’ve signed on to the AIA Architecture & Design Materials Pledge, which commits us to a deliberate, mindful and holistic approach to choosing which materials and finishes we put into our projects.    These choices represent a huge part of what we do as architects and construction professionals. Finishes are what we see, smell, hear,…

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Interesting Insights on Passive House Construction From Two Conferences

Recently members of our team attended and presented at two industry conferences focused on the design and construction of high-performance buildings: PhiusCon, the annual North American Passive House conference hosted by Passive House Institute US, and AIA CT CACX, AIA Connecticut’s annual conference and expo.   In particular, these events addressed Passive House design and…

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Powerful Tools for the Design of Sustainable Early Childhood Centers

At Patriquin Architects, the sustainability of the buildings we design is a top priority. Working within budgetary constraints, site parameters, and specific client goals, we strive to incorporate sustainable strategies as much as possible.   In early childhood center projects, we’re even more careful about indoor air quality, natural daylighting, and views to the outdoors,…

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