Charles Rose Architects has a distinguished design history creating award-winning buildings of exceptional quality and value. As the design principal, it has been Charles Rose’s responsibility to ensure that the work remains at the forefront of American design while meeting the unique parameters of each project. After graduating from Harvard University, Rose established the architectural practice and has been dedicated to designing innovative cultural, institutional, residential, and civic projects for over 25 years. This work is located across the United States in widely varying settings, each presenting distinct physical, ecological, cultural, and historical challenges.

“With both the rigor of geometry and a commitment to ecosensitivity, his work is as attuned to the dense urban fabric of New York City as it is to the rural outback of Wyoming.”
—Linda Lee, Editor, Princeton Architectural Press

The relationship of architecture to site is a constant and central focus of the work. For each project—whether urban, suburban, or rural—the site and environment are closely studied to create an architecture that responds both formally, functionally, and materially to the surroundings. This design approach has led to collaborations with landscape architects to create buildings and structures that are uniquely responsive to program and site. It has also led to a range of planning studies for public and private institutions—from small studies for the siting and development of single buildings to comprehensive plans.

In our work for cultural institutions, we have conceptualized and realized complex buildings that successfully integrate the display, study, and practice of the visual and performing arts. One of our most well-known projects, Atlantic Center for the Arts, is home to a renowned artists-residency program that counts such artists as Robert Rauschenberg, Lukas Foss, Edward Albee, and Alice Aycock among its alumni. It was not only the firm’s first major commission, but marked the beginning of our focus on architecture for the arts. The buildings are carefully sited to correspond to points of gathering, encouraging social interaction and interdisciplinary exchange. Our work is highly collaborative, and here, discussions with artists on the advisory committee shaped the designs—visually, spatially, and tectonically.

In our work for academic institutions, we have rethought learning environments, campus landscapes, and building typologies in response to new pedagogical objectives. Fostering social interaction, establishing interdisciplinary environments, and embracing sustainable initiatives have been key goals. At Brandeis University, we transformed a parking lot at the heart of the campus into a green space and vibrant student center—establishing a new pedestrian campus core. At the University of South Dakota, we completed a new University Center and a new Business School as well as the academic and pedestrian landscape which these two buildings frame. Our work integrates all aspects of design and allows the academic environment to extend seamlessly from the building interiors into the landscape.