Richard Best, who has been a resident of California for over 28 years,
first came to Los Angeles in 1980 to study under the world renowned architect,
Charles W. Moore, FAIA, pursuing a Master of Architecture degree at the
Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning at UCLA. Charles Moore soon became Richard's mentor -
heavily influencing his approach to design, sensitivity to materials, and
respect for the built environment. While
at UCLA, Richard was awarded a scholarship to attend the 1981 session of the
International Laboratory of Architecture and Urban Design, organized and taught
by Italian architect Giancarlo DeCarlo.
Having completed his Master's degree, in 1983
Richard became a member of Charles Moore's winning design team for the Beverly
Hills Civic Center Competition. This
international design competition, a contextual challenge, is composed of
central fire facilities, central library, police headquarters, parking
facility, and gardens. The design,
respectfully positioned to emphasize the existing Chariga-esque 1930's city
hall, organizes itself around a diagonal axis of Baroque shaped gardens and
arcades which generously welcome the public into the various facilities. The individual structures – uplifting and
grand in scale - are composed in a formalistic vocabulary derived from the
splendor of the existing historic city hall with pilasters, arches, and tile.
The national historic landmark, Mission Inn, was
Richard's next major project, in 1985.
This treasured ensemble of Spanish structures built over 30 years, soon
swept Richard off his feet and carried him to new heights of intimacy in
architectural practice. The complexity
of a nationally historic renovation/ restoration can only be surpassed by the
richness and depth of sensitivity required by this unusual structure, the pride
of southern California's Inland Empire.
Richard became licensed as an architect in1986,
and subsequently became nationally registered by NCARB in 1989. With a full
breadth of professional experience, in 1988 Richard began his own private
practice, Richard Best Architect, in Hollywood with the intent of freedom to
express his own design preferences and specializing in eco-friendly design.
Richard's work is exemplified by relentless pursuit of sculptural clarity,
skillful articulation of natural and artificial lighting, the use of natural
warm finishes, and an intuitive understanding of material/technology and
sustainable design.
In 2008 Richard lived in the Abu Dhabi for
nearly five months during the filming of a television show on which he was a
contestant. This experience provided Richard with unparalleled opportunities to
establish local Emirati relationships with developers, engineers, government
officials, bankers. Most importantly Richard has gained a deep understand the
business climate in the UAE.
For
his career-long commitment to eco-friendly design, The United Nations
Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Organization (IREO) awarded Richard with
their “Best Practices Award” for 2009. Also in 2009, IREO selected Richard to
establish and Chair a new IREO committee – “The Sustainable Development
Commission,” to serve the UN/IREO in support the UN’s Millennium Goal #7 –
Ensure Environmental Sustainability, fostering carbon-neutral global
development through the uses and implementation of renewable energy strategies.
