Diverse backgrounds, dynamic perspectives.

Zach is responsible for the health and well-being of the firm and its people. He is a fierce advocate for transparency, trust, equity, and design excellence in all aspects. He believes, through design, we have the ability to work smarter, learn better, connect deeper, and live healthier while creating a robust and prosperous future for our communities.

Zach was the 2019 Young Architect of the Year for AIA Grand Rapids, a member of the 2019, 2022, and 2023 Grand Rapids Business Journal’s “40 Under 40”, and sat on the 2022 AIA National Task Force on the Framework for Design Excellence. He sits on multiple non-profit and community boards and is passionate about connecting the community to the power of architecture. Zach earned both his Master of Architecture and his Bachelor of Science in Architecture from Lawrence Technological University and is a graduate of Harvard Business School with a focus on finance.

Zach is a proud product of Grand Rapids Public Schools and die-hard Westsider. You can find him, his wife, Anna, and their three daughters enjoying time with family, visiting the lake, and splash pad at Millennium Park throughout the year. He also loves to golf and listen to music, usually while golfing.

As a Licensed Architect and Project Manager, Nick creates an environment for belonging and authentic exploration, marrying beauty and building science to best capture the true expression of a community and its people. His career spans multiple continents, design typologies, and scales, giving him a unique lens through which to observe and ask questions. Nick takes an empathetic approach to design excellence, guiding the project team to deeply understand our client’s aspirations and how they define successful outcomes. He then aligns design ideals, expectations, schedules, and budgets so everyone feels heard and has an opportunity to contribute.

Nick is deeply-rooted in the Grand Rapids community serving on nonprofit Boards, Business Associations, and he participated in the Center for Community Leadership. He earned both his Bachelor of Science and Master of Architecture from Lawrence Technological University.

Nick, his wife, Kathryn, and their three sons are very close and spend much of their time together on adventures. They love to cook, travel, and be outside. In addition to family activities, Nick spends time centering himself meditating, playing and coaching sports, and birdwatching when exploring Michigan’s great outdoors!

Aaron cultivates our design thinking and works to ensure our projects are consistently excellent for all of our clients. As an empathetic leader with many years of major project responsibility, he translates complex design ideas into simple, elegant, and enduring architectural outcomes that center people, planet, and place. As an Architect, he is a passionate problem solver, creative thinker, and skilled communicator that develops highly-innovative, effective, and integrated design solutions. Often, our projects require a deep understanding of the social, cultural, financial, and psychological implications that ripple into the community for generations to come, and Aaron is great at identifying, acknowledging, and embracing these considerations in our design proposals.

Aaron, his wife, Laura, and their family can be found on the sidelines of sports fields, enjoying a Lake Michigan beach, traveling, and sharing new experiences together.

Heather is charged with facilitating and cultivating environments that influence positive human experiences and create a sense of belonging. These ideas are rooted at the center of her approach to our work.  These types of inclusive spaces build equity in organizations, maintain open-minds, prioritize accessibility, and provide a dignified experience for everyone. She strives to take a human-centered approach to curating spaces that consistently allow people to engage in healthy behaviors and relationships. Outside of the office, Heather shares her passion for our work through professional board service, engaging with emerging professionals and community organizations, and making meaningful connections throughout our West Michigan community.

For fun, you can find Heather whipping up the best vegetarian soup, on the golf course with her hubby, Al, or rolling out the red carpet for Charlie, their cat who is the light of their lives.

Andrew believes passionately in the ability of architects to lead our world toward a brighter, environmentally sound, and just future. In addition to striving for great design, he applies the fundamentals of building physics and sustainability to all of our projects. This role in our firm is critical in championing the commitment to integrated design practices, sustainable business practices, and industry-leading research across a very diverse body of project types. After many years of successful practice and commitment to the industry, Andrew was awarded the 2020 Young Architect of the Year for AIA Grand Rapids. He is Living Future Accredited through the International Living Future Institute and represents Pure Architects in roles on various local, regional, and national professional boards. Andrew earned both his Master of Architecture and Bachelor of Science in Architecture from Lawrence Technological University.

Andrew enjoys life with his wife, Katie, and their three daughters, eight chickens, one dog, and one cat. When he is not working to improve our built environment, or reading about it, he is likely living out his love of Star Wars!

Emily supports the Pure team through her attention to detail and her thoughtful approach to serving others. She loves working with people and helps to create spaces where everyone feels welcome, heard, and valued. She grew up in a construction family building homes, including their own, embracing the impact and influence architecture and design have on her life. She loves learning, so if you invite her to your home, she’s going to want a tour of everything, closets and all!

Prior to Pure Architects, Emily led the management of multiple businesses, their staff, and spatial functions. She has a deep understanding of business logistics, planning, and management of people, things, and policies. She graduated from Grand Valley State University with a Bachelor of Science in Hospitality and Tourism Management.

In her free time, you can find Emily spending time with her husband, Tyler, and their dog, Luna. She enjoys traveling, camping, hiking, and you can typically find her listening to true crime podcasts, but you definitely won’t find her watching any scary movies!

Julia combines her people skills and her marketing background to help Pure grow with intention. Her love for community and desire to be better aligns with Pure’s mission to be a catalyst for change. Her ingenuity and attention to detail helps her stay on top of Pure’s fast growth. She received her Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing with a minor in Advertising and Public Relations from Grand Valley State University.

At one point in her life Julia wanted to be an interior designer and having grown up helping her dad with renovation projects, being at Pure almost feels like fate. She’s most inspired by charming spaces that showcase their character and appreciates when design meets function.

Her favorite office snack is Terra Bagels’ togarashi with veggie cream cheese and her ideal Saturday includes crafting, craft beer, her pup Foster, and a good book. If she wasn’t busy making marketing magic happen, she’d be pursuing her dream job of being Celine Dion’s opening act.

Brooke uses her attention to detail and love for color-coding systems to help keep projects on task and organized.  With five years of construction and rental property management experience, Brooke knows how to seamlessly work with our partners to ensure our clients are taken care of. She finds inspiration in meaningful design and loves it when spaces have a story to tell (if walls could talk!). Brooke graduated from Central Michigan with a Bachelor of Applied Arts in Sports Management and a Master of Science in Administration with a focus on Project Management.

When not helping our Project Leads stay organized, Brooke likes to unwind with a good book, spend time on the water, or hang out with her husband, Greg, and their pup, Ginny. She also enjoys being active, especially with her fellow Pure team members on the soccer field - GOOOO PURE!

Zada once dreamed of being a biologist but has found passion in the art of architecture. She is passionate about leading the design process with curiosity, creativity, and empathy. Her belief in the power of good design and its lasting impact on our everyday lives is one of the many reasons she’s an asset to the Pure team. Zada earned her Master of Architecture from Kendall College of Art and Design, where she graduated with the AIA MI Award of Academic Excellence, and her Bachelor of Arts in Biology and Studio Art from Hope College.

As a designer with a background in science, she is passionate about creating built spaces that connect people with nature. In every project, she strives to design beautiful spaces that are sustainable and healthy. Zada loves working with clients to uncover their strongest project needs and biggest aspirations. She then dives deep into the details to creatively problem-solve complex challenges.

In her spare time, you can find Zada getting creative in the kitchen, bicycling long distances, traveling around to explore new neighborhoods, or snuggled up on the couch with some science or history-based non-fiction and her boxer-hound, Watson.

Karl is a design mastermind with nearly forty years of architectural experience. His vast knowledge comes from working for some of the most prestigious firms in the country and leading many complex projects. You can see iconic influences in his design as he draws inspiration from visionary heroes Le Corbusier, Alvar Aalto, Zaha Hadid, Kieren Timberlake, and Pablo Picasso (to name a few). Karl received his formal architectural education at the University of Michigan, College of Architecture and Urban Planning, and took Health Care Planning courses at Harvard GSD.

A unique trait of Karl’s and one of the reasons he is valuable to the Pure team is his ability to work on all types of projects. His experience ranges from sports facilities to residential to education to laboratories to healthcare. A complicated renovation doesn’t make him sweat, in fact, he welcomes it! Karl holds value in project understanding and makes sure he’s aligned with client vision + goals from the start. He enjoys a team collaborative environment to reach these goals, which often makes complicated projects seem like a walk in the park.

When Karl’s not sketching out a design plan, he can be found traveling, on the water in a sailboat, or watching a PBS Masterpiece show.

Ciera is a well-rounded licensed architect with experience in custom residential, commercial, and education design. Her vast expertise gives her a thoughtful edge in design - showcasing a unique perspective on how spaces are used. Ciera received both her Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Master of Architecture from the University of Michigan.

Ciera is a true ace in and out of the workplace. She has a passion for mentoring, which has led her to work closely with ACE Mentoring for several years to help high school students discover the beauty of architecture and advocate for representation in this field, with a goal of making it more accessible to women and people of color. Ciera helped found the Milwaukee chapter and currently serves on the West Michigan chapter’s board.

In her free time, Ciera can be found tending to her garden, cooking up a new recipe with her husband, Jeff, and their daughter, or enjoying her go-to brunch order of a breakfast bowl and bloody mary!

Phil is a licensed architect who enjoys leading the team through tough problems. He is a fierce advocate for improving our industry for emerging professionals, designing for healthy and high-quality spaces that are beautiful and well-coordinated. Phil is constantly in pursuit of growing our collective knowledge while intentionally making space for the team to learn with him. Phil is a critical part of our team, bringing a thoughtful approach to our work, a passion for growth, and a design accountability to our clients. Phil earned both his Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Master of Architecture from Lawrence Technological University.

Phil, his wife Carrie, and their three children have roots in southeast Grand Rapids and enjoy being outdoors, engaging their community, and adventuring together. Phil is a critical part of our team, bringing a thoughtful approach to our work and a design accountability to our clients.

Monica has an innate ability to craft beautiful and sensible interior environments for our clients. She is a passionate and active listener that asks great questions. As a designer with a background in psychology, she is passionate and fascinated about how the built environment has an impact on peoples’ emotions, perceptions, and how they function within a space. Everything from function and flow to design principles, such as color and light, can influence the well-being of individuals.

Monica earned an Associate Degree in Psychology from Northwestern Michigan College and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design from Kendall College of Art and Design at Ferris State University. She’s worked in architecture for nearly all of her career and has had great experiences designing education spaces, mixed-use developments, workplace environments of many scales, parklets, and single-family homes. As she grows in the industry, she is looking forward to growing her understanding on physical, physiological, and psychological well-being of occupants as the world gains a better understanding of mental wellness.

Being from Northern Michigan, it only makes sense that Monica enjoys hiking, kayaking, and all forms of sport and relaxation in the Michigan waters. She owns two cats and likes yoga, true crime podcasts, books, and tv shows and documentaries. She owns one square foot of land in Scotland, so she is a Lady, no matter what people might say.

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For Le, craft is really important. She strives to design materially rich, beautiful, playful, and inspiring spaces. She believes everyone should have access to good design as the impacts of an improved built environment can be felt by all. Our clients and their communities, like our team, benefit from her thoughtful approach and design savvy when leading everyone through design processes. Le furthers our design thinking and design work with great questions, techniques, and perspectives as she has worked for award-winning design firms in Michigan, Chicago, St. Louis, and Los Angeles. She earned both her Master of Architecture and B.S. in Architecture degrees from the University of Michigan.

Le is a west Michigan native and enjoys spending time with her family: her husband, Brandon, their daughter, Robin, and their pandemic cat, Agatha Listie. Together, they spend as much time as they can outside going for walks, camping, hiking, biking, and going to the lake. Le also really loves working with her hands on all types of projects from cooking elaborate meals to woodworking and crafting, such as ceramics.

Hayden is a passionate and life-long learner. Her ability to dig deep into a new topic and meaningfully relate it back to her work positions her well in our practice. She was recently involved in a year-long project partnering with Corewell Health and the Michigan Health Endowment Fund to evaluate how design affects independent pharmacy operations and access to healthcare services among rural communities in Michigan. As part of her thesis, she conducted independent research in New York and Massachusetts to understand the cultural and spatial decay of coastal cities in the wake of the looming carbon crisis. Hayden received her Bachelor of Science in Interior Design from Michigan State University and received her Master of Architecture from Kendall College of Art and Design as part of Ferris State University. Hayden plans to pursue licensure, and jokes that if higher education was free, she would never leave! Maybe later in life, she will return to teach aspiring architects.

Hayden and her partner, Alex, are proud, new owners of an Airstream and a 1966 Mustang Fastback, both of which they plan to renovate over the next few years and are very excited to get both on the road! She has two cats, Bug and Ziggy, and they are just as much her shadows as she is theirs. She loves sharing cat photos and videos with her coworkers!

Quent, “Q”, leverages his imagination, interests, and lived experiences in our work. He is very socially conscious and this awareness has led him towards human-centered endeavors. He has a strong sense of duty to people and the planet and some of his ever-growing passions in the industry include mixed-use development, sustainable design, environmentally just materials, and connecting humans to nature. Q earned his Master of Architecture from Kendall College of Art and Design at Ferris State University, his Bachelor of Science in Biology and Allied Health Sciences from Grand Valley State University, and is an active Second Lieutenant and Platoon Leader for the 1433rd Engineering Company in the Michigan Army National Guard. He is a life-long learner and has Licensure and LEED Certification on the horizon.

Outside of the office, and Army, Q enjoys traveling with his wife, Erin. His other longtime love is sports, specifically playing basketball. He likes biking and once even swallowed a live goldfish for a fundraiser; not at the same time as riding a bike though, don’t worry!

Libby is a Designer and Visualizer driven to contribute to the creation of spaces that promote social equity through intentional and thoughtful architectural outcomes. She is passionate about sustainable, beautiful, and walkable experiences for everyone and feels compelled to deliver long-lasting, contextually relevant projects. Libby’s empathetic approach to design deeply resonates with clients as it is rooted in her lived perspective and unique ability to communicate with clients through powerful visuals. Libby earned both her Bachelor and Master of Architectural Design and Urbanism from Notre Dame. She studied in Rome, Italy, before practicing in San Francisco and Los Angeles, California. Since moving back to Michigan, she’s taken multiple trips back to Europe. These experiences make her a life-long student of the industry and inspire her to create opportunities to bring others along in the design process.

Outside of the office, you can find Libby, her husband, Peter, and their dog Banjo out on a hike, reading comic books, knitting, and enjoying a craft brew while laughing too hard together!

Brian is a licensed architect with well over twenty years of experience working on prominent architectural projects throughout the region. He is a fierce advocate for improving our industry for emerging professionals, designing for safer transit options, and keeping high-quality design accessible to everyone. He has a long history of serving on professional and non-profit boards including the American Institute of Architects, the City of Grand Rapids, Garfield Park Neighborhood Association, and Kendall College of Art and Design. He was the Advocacy Director for Grand Rapids Bicycle Coalition and a trail coordinator for the West Michigan Mountain Bike Associations with a mission of providing a unique riding experience that accommodates bikers of all ages and ability levels. For all of these reasons, Brian was AIA Grand Rapids’ 2019 Young Architect of the Year. Brian earned both his Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Master of Architecture from Lawrence Technological University.

Brian, his wife, and their two adopted boys have roots in southeast Grand Rapids and enjoy being outdoors, specifically biking, camping, paddle boarding, kayaking, and rock climbing, to name a few. His award winning home is a reflection of his commitment to the practice of sustainable architecture. Brian is also a self-proclaimed nerd, but lucky for us, he is our nerd!

Kirk is a Detroit native and assists in leading the Detroit Studio. He manages our projects and pursuits in Southeast Michigan. He brings a robust, culturally competent perspective to our team. His educational and professional experiences abroad afford him opportunities to infuse those insights into the design process everyday. He is fluent in Spanish, creating space for us to meet clients and communities where they are. Kirk believes that architects serve a larger purpose in the design and construction process and he constantly pushes everyone to be their best self. Kirk attended the University of Michigan’s Taubman College of Architecture to earn his Bachelor Degree and went on to earn his Master of Architecture at University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras’ School of Architecture.

Kirk is also a professor at the University of Detroit Mercy bringing his passion to connect and inspire young people to his everyday experiences.

Blaine strives to really get to know our clients. He believes that when we understand their passions and how they will measure success, it helps us better process information and develop effective design solutions. He is constantly in pursuit of understanding the story of how we live each day and how it is distinctly influenced by the spaces we inhabit. Clients trust him to develop design strategies through this process and, in-turn, he becomes increasingly intentional, conscious, and reflective in each attempt. Over the last ten years, including time abroad practicing in Australia, he developed a strong understanding of how cultural, social, and economic conditions create opportunities for architects to be thoughtful in their work. Blaine received his Bachelor of Science in Architecture from Lawrence Technological University and is on the path to Licensure.

Blaine enjoys traveling, specifically around Europe, which is where he met his wife, Vesna. For him, sitting still is not an option! When he is in the States, he enjoys river kayaking trips, hiking, camping, and watching Formula One and Manchester United.