2019 Women Who Build: Karin Patriquin, Patriquin Architects

Name: Karin Patriquin

Position: Principal

Company: Patriquin Architects

How many years have you been in your current field? 23 years

What motivated you to step out on your own? I was inspired by work experiences in previous offices. The variety of work environments and locations was tremendous – from helping a solo architect to working in a 325-person firm, from designing in a rural environment to working with teams in Helsinki, Paris and New York. I found myself analyzing not only the type of projects we had designed, but also how design teams were successful, how design processes were successful, how to engage clients in the process, essentially how projects came to be. I would think, “If I were to create the ideal environment for design, what would I do?” At this time, I had taken some time off to design and build our own home. I had learned a tremendous amount from directing the construction process. I started taking on small projects on my own and loving the variety of projects I found locally – new construction and historic renovation. Project types grew organically and when I needed a team to help with the work, I rented a small office space.