We staged a well attended month long pop-up exhibit in the vacant commercial space on the first floor of the Commerce Tower promoting our passion for memorable design and our belief that Architecture is Art! The exhibit featured photographs, renderings, drawings, and models throughout a 4,000sf space conveying the breadth of our work, our interest in designing for all segments of the community, and our commitment to mentorship. We promoted the Architecture is Art! pop-up exhibit with a 30 second video, which you can find at link below:

Exhibit Teaser Video

Article in The Burg Magazine

Ava Helm (Syracuse), Antonio Ugarte (Catholic), and Aparajita Rao (Syracuse) all held internships at CDA this summer filling our studio with a youthful buzz and besides being instrumental in preparing a competition entry and making the pop-up exhibit a reality they greatly increased CDA’s study model output. Vladimir Sturm joined our Czech contingent in Ostrava at the beginning of the year as a licensed architect with 5 years experience and the sensibilities of a practicing fine artist. Darius Hopkins joined our Harrisburg office in May as a recent graduate of Penn State’s architecture program with interests in social justice and affordable housing. Osama “Sam” Al-Hazaimeh joined us via the State Department’s J-1 Cultural Exchange Program from Amman, Jordan on the heels of completing his Bachelor of Architecture.

CDA is honored to be recognized again this year with design awards by the American Institute of Architects (AIA). On 10/11/18 we received two awards: for the design of the Amber Road Trekking Cabins and for renovations to the Office of the President at a private philanthropic boarding school from a jury of Charlotte, NC architects. The jury only recognized 5 projects this year & CDA was the only firm to receive multiple awards.

The jury commented on the boarding school office renovation that, “the detailing was refined with a very intentional material use… the architect knew exactly what historic details to preserve and what to remove to make the older special pieces stand out and sing.” Commenting on the cabins the jury noted that, “we love this project, it is lovely, and tells a compelling story… with an experience that is well laid out.”

CDA has been honored to work with the Hershey Public Library and the new Executive Director, Laura O’Grady, over the last year as they look to update their building to better meet the needs of the community. We developed a renovation design in response to a thorough stakeholder engagement and feedback process that creates a new family / accessible entrance on the north façade of the building leading to a re-imagined Children’s Department. Our design materials supported the Library’s successful application for a $500,000 matching grant from the State and is the natural next step from the modest new Children’s Desk we designed several years ago for the Library.

CDA worked closely with professor Rios and staff at Penn State Harrisburg to develop a design for spaces for collaboration and prototyping at the entrance to the library. We have become skilled at renovations by quickly discerning which existing conditions should be respected and which need to be be overcome to transform spaces into memorable new places. Although this project was not built this program is slated for a forthcoming new building on campus and Penn State hired us to design a similar but larger renovation within their Downtown Harrisburg Eastgate Center.

CDA makes a point to take at least one architecture/art trip each year and on October 12th we visited the new Glenstone project in Potomac, MD. We have visited Glenstone several times over the last dozen years to take in the magic there of a setting that harnesses the power of landscape, architecture, & contemporary art and has become even more memorable with the recently completed expansion. It is a hidden gem in our midst and I encourage you to visit to see an unrivaled collection and thoughtful display of contemporary art.

CDA, now in our 10th year, continues to be driven to find clients, staff, & collaborators who aspire to bring more beauty into our world’s built environment. I am grateful to have had the good fortune to be able to surround myself with talented professionals and receptive clients striving for the power that comes from clarity and authenticity in architecture.

Chris Dawson, AIA