Erik Mar, Principal of emar Studio for Public Architecture, focuses on buildings and spaces that enhance and encourage community gathering, education, and learning.
He has over 35 years of experience designing public and non-profit sector buildings in 5 cities on three continents. During those years, he has served as the designer, Architect, and construction administrator for projects ranging in construction cost from $1 million to more than $12 million. The project types have included transitional housing, senior housing, animal care facilities, community centers, gymnasiums, and libraries. The Owner/Operators for those projects have included various Departments within the City and County of Los Angeles, the Ventura Community College District, and Non-Profit multi-family housing developers.
Raised in New York, Tokyo, Maryland, and Boston, Erik received Bachelors and Masters degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He spent 1989-1993 working as a volunteer designer and architect for the Frente Sandinista De Liberación Nacional in Matagalpa, Nicaragua, where he helped found ODESAR.
Some of the projects shown here represent work for Carde Ten Architects.
Awards and Recognition
Municipal Green Building Award of Recognition (South Whittier Library), US Green Building Council-LA Chapter, 4/2018
Outstanding Architectural Engineering Project Under $10 Million (East Rancho Dominguez Library), ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers, Metropolitan Los Angeles Branch, 10/2013
Award of Excellence (East Rancho Dominguez Library), Los Angeles Business Council, 6/2013
Invited Speaker, Rancho Dominguez Sustainability Fair, Los Angeles County Public Library, 8/2012
Invited Speaker, Agoura Hills Sustainability Fair, Los Angeles County Public Library, 5/2012
Invited Sustainability Speaker, Staff Training Day, Los Angeles County Public Library, 8/2011
Chapter Coordinator Architecture for Humanity, Los Angeles, 2010-2014
Best New Building (La Crescenta Library), La Crescenta Chamber of Commerce, 9/2009
Project of the Year (La Crescenta Library), American Public Works Association, 9/2010
School of Architecture Commencement Speaker,University of Southern California, 5/2009
Mellon Award for Faculty Mentoring Undergraduates, University of Southern California, 4/2009
School of Architecture Commencement Marshal, University of Southern California, 5/2008, 5/2009
Faculty Advisor, USC Architecture for Humanity, University of Southern California, 2008-2014
Wilbur L. Johnson Award (Delano Park Gymnasium), Woodwork Institute of California, 9/2004
Architectural Excellence Award (Canoga Park Branch Library), City of LA Cultural Affairs Commission, 9/2003
Architectural Excellence Honorable Mention (East Valley Animal Services Center), City of LA Cultural Affairs Commission, 9/2003
Rose Award for Best New Building (Chinatown Library), The Downtown Breakfast Club, 9/2002
Commendation for Architectural Excellence (Pamela Park Gymnasium), Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, 2001
Homes Within Reach Award (Ruoff Transitional Housing), Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing, 11/1997
Francis Ward Chandler Prize For Achievement in Architectural Design, Boston Society of Architects, 6/1995
Imre Halasz Thesis Award, MIT Department of Architecture, 6/1995
AIA Foundation Scholarship, American Institute of Architects, 1/1994