Trahan Architects is a global architecture firm with offices in New Orleans and New York founded on the belief that the mindful design of everyday spaces can elevate the human experience.
With our roots in New Orleans and our global perspective in New York, we have risen to be ranked the number one design firm by Architect Magazine, the official publication of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).
Both on a personal and collective level, often our experiences mold and shape our approach to architecture. At the core of our pursuit of rootedness is a transcendent act of melding understanding, empathy, and compassion which guide us to change our design processes, product, and impact.
We bring a poetic approach to our work, considering each project as part of a unique ecosystem. We use the tools of our architectural practice—artistic expression, technical innovation, and the mindful selection of materials—in our search for designs that are socially impactful, sincerely sustainable, and aesthetically sublime. This process enables us to shape our communal environments in new and meaningful ways and has led to work that has received over 100 national, regional, and local awards, an ASLA Honor Award (as a client) in addition to several international design competitions, including five National AIA Awards.
We believe the success of our designs is rooted in the ethos that guides our approach. We strive to create structures that reflect the uniqueness of people’s lives. Beginning from a place of openness, we engage in a meaningful dialogue with our clients, colleagues, and the context in which we are building, and continually question how our process can contribute to the health of our ecologies, communities, and landscapes. By working with compassion, conscience, and curiosity, and pausing to listen and leave space, we can discover meaningful responses that expand the definition of beauty and resonate across time.
Founded in New Orleans by Victor F. “Trey” Trahan, III, FAIA in 1992, our firm has developed an extensive portfolio of work that spans the realms of the cultural, academic, athletic, residential, ecological, and beyond. Notable projects include the Coca-Cola Stage at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia; the Caesars Superdome (formerly the Mercedes-Benz Superdome) in New Orleans, Louisiana; and conservation and preservation undertakings in St. Francisville, Louisiana, and in Corcovado National Park in Patagonia, Chile.