Howard J. Backen, FAIA
Principal
Notable Projects:
Sundance InstituteProject Location: Sundance, Utah
Year of Construction: 1985
Architect: Backen Arrigoni & Ross
Design Architect: Howard J. Backen, FAIA
The Napa Valley Reserve
Project Location: St. Helena, California
Year of Construction: 2000
Esperanza
Project Location: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Year of Construction: 2003
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Howard J. Backen, FAIA
After completing his education at the School of Architecture at the University of Oregon in 1961, Howard J. Backen, FAIA, along with fellow graduate, Robert V. Arrigoni, FAIA, decided they wanted to launch their careers in the city of San Francisco. In 1967 the two of them along with another University of Oregon graduate, Edgar B. Ross, FAIA, started their own practice called Backen Arrigoni and Ross (BAR). Howard remained in the highly successful firm for 35 years and saw it grow from the three of them to a staff of over 100.
The firm developed both small and large scale housing projects, high and low density, high and low income housing, student housing, and senior housing. Design also included urban, suburban, rural, and wilderness housing. In the 1980’s Backen Arrigoni and Ross (BAR) designed high-profile projects for the entertainment industry, which included Robert Redford’s Sundance Institute, a summer lab for independent film makers, playwrights, choreographers, composers, and the Institute for Research Management. Howard helped Redford design a master plan for the community of arts which provides the framework for integrating existing facilities with new facilities into a cohesive planned environment. Howard designed the new facilities for the institute including a 150-seat screening room, a rehearsal pavilion, dining facilities, a general store, a base building for the ski hill and Sundance cottages which provide guest services for Sundance Institute participants and residents. Also included are the Disney’s Sound Studios in Burbank, and a score of other theaters. In the mid 80’s Howard had the privilege to design the headquarters for the Delancey Street Foundation in San Francisco, an innovative and highly successful rehabilitation institute for former convicts and drug abusers. That project has not only won many awards for the humanitarian services it provides, but has also been recognized for the beauty and unique design it offers to the city of San Francisco. Most of Howard’s work on the project was pro bono as a service to the community. He was awarded the 1992 Award of Excellence by the Urban Land Institute for Delancey Street. The project’s success has been featured on ‘60 Minutes’ and numerous other TV programs and publications.
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Also during this time, Howard designed the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies, the home of the Aspen Music Festival, the International Design Conference in Aspen, and the Aspen Center for Physics. Additional projects included a Graduate Student Housing project on the Stanford campus in Palo Alto, and the Thoreau Hall Student Residence complex at the University of California, Davis campus. While at Backen Arrigoni and Ross (BAR), Howard designed a number of prototype stores for a then new store called Pottery Barn. The international projects Howard has designed include a ski resort in Korea, the Teacher’s Training Institute in Tehran, Iran, and Stars Restaurant in Singapore. The firm won a large number of AIA, HUD, and building industry awards, and has been published in numerous magazine articles and books.
In 1996 Howard made the decision to take his career in a slightly different direction and started an entirely new firm in the Napa Valley. That decision proved to be one of the most exciting decisions of his life. He remains 100 percent engaged in his new company and has no plans for retirement while he is still enjoying his work.
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Howard's career achievements include:
1. University of Oregon Design Scholarship Award - 1959
2. Selected to be a member of the FAIA
(A Design Fellowship with the American Institute of Architects) - 1992
3. Presidential Design Award for the National Endowment of the Arts -1994
(The awards were given by then President Ronald Reagan and
Jury Chairman I. M. Pei at the White House)
4. Selected to be jury member of numerous State and National AIA Design Award Contests
5. Appointed to the board of trustees for the School of Architecture and Allied Arts
at the University of Oregon – 1995-1997
6. Visiting lecturer at University of Oregon and University of Southern California
7. Awarded the Ellis F. Lawrence Medal from University of Oregon - 2006
(The Ellis F. Lawrence Medal is awarded each year by the dean and the faculty
of the UO School of Architecture and Allied Arts to a distinguished alumnus or
alumna. Recipients are individuals whose professional and personal
achievements embody the integrity, educational philosophy, and commitment
to their chosen fields as exemplified by Lawrence, an outstanding teacher,
leader, and nationally respected architect).
8. Featured in Architectural Digest's Top 100 Designers, January 2007
(Published ten times in Architectural Digest)
9. Featured in Robb Report's World's Top 30 Architects, Summer 2007
10. Received over forty AIA Design Awards, 1960-2008
11. Published in over fifty magazines and books, 1960-2009