Abramson Architects Merges with Global Design Firm Perkins&Will

The Los Angeles and San Diego locations of both firms unite to form Perkins&Will’s Southern California practice. Trevor Abramson, who founded Abramson Architects in 1987, becomes managing director of the two firms’ combined L.A. and San Diego studios.

Abramson Architects, a Southern California practice, has joined global architecture and design firm Perkins&Will.

“Together, we create a rare synthesis of design excellence, research rigor and cross-sector experience,” said Trevor Abramson, FAIA, who founded his eponymous practice in Los Angeles in 1987 and expanded it into San Diego in 2023. “Our combined strengths and complementary skills empower us to pursue more complex, ambitious projects and positively impact community on both the urban and human scale.”

Abramson Architects’ portfolio spans commercial, cultural, healthcare and residential work across greater L.A. and San Diego, as well as internationally. It includes such projects as Platform, a mixed-use art and design quarter in Culver City; Synapse, an immersive creative office space in Culver City’s tech corridor; The Aaron Milken Center, an early childhood educational campus in L.A.; the Lucy Curci Cancer Center in Rancho Mirage; and Dolphin Marina Apartments in Marina del Rey. The firm has won more than 10 awards from the L.A. chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and one national AIA honor award for the First Presbyterian Church of Encino.

“This is a coming-together of two deeply like-minded firms with complementary skills and experiences, both of whom are committed to making a positive impact on communities through great design,” said Lindsey Peckinpaugh, president of Perkins&Will. “We admire Abramson Architects’ track record for design leadership, excellence in client care and cultivation of talent, because we share those same values. As one firm, united, we’ll amplify our collective strengths.”

Perkins&Will has had a practice in L.A. since 1996. Today, the firm’s L.A. studio is known for award-winning multidisciplinary design across healthcare, higher education, workplace, civic and cultural, and multifamily residential. Its projects include Destination Crenshaw, a 1.3-mile outdoor celebration of Black art, community and culture in L.A.; the Kaiser Permanente Watts Counseling and Learning Pavilion in L.A.; and the Providence Cedars Sinai Friese Family Tower in Tarzana.

The San Diego studio of Perkins&Will, which opened in 2021, is a leader in the sectors of higher education and science/technology. Its projects include APEX, a high-tech research building by BioMed Realty; Franklin Antonio Hall, part of the Jacob School of Engineering at UC San Diego; and the Pepper Canyon West Living Learning Neighborhood, a student housing complex also at UC San Diego. The firm’s legacy projects in San Diego include the i3 Illumina campus and the Center for Novel Therapeutics, both developed by BioMed Realty.

Perkins&Will and Abramson Architects plan to leverage their joint capabilities to serve clients in the healthcare, civic and cultural, corporate and commercial, educational, and residential sectors. In particular, they hope their combined housing experience – from permanent supportive and low-income housing to market-rate multifamily housing – will generate expanded opportunities to meet demand in a city where over 70,000 people experience homelessness and thousands of homes were decimated in recent wildfires.

“Merging our firms enhances our capabilities, ushers in more opportunities for collaboration and expands the reach of our Living Design approach, which is fundamental to our ethos,” said Perkins&Will CEO Phil Harrison. “We believe we’re blending the best of both worlds for our clients across Southern California, and it will result in truly innovative design solutions.”

As part of the merger, Trevor Abramson becomes managing director of both the L.A. and San Diego studios, and Marco Marraccini of Abramson becomes design director. Michael Williams of Perkins&Will becomes operations director. The combined practice will retain the Perkins&Will name and employ over 110 staff.

“For me, this is not about getting bigger. It’s about elevating our potential, expanding our reach and deepening the impact we have on the people and places we serve,” said Marraccini. “It’s also a chance to continue nurturing an inclusive, supportive and vibrant design culture. What excites me most is the opportunity to touch more communities across Southern California while staying deeply rooted in the craft of architecture.”

Information sourced from Abramson Architects. To learn more, contact trevor@abramsonarchitects.com.