Architect Paul Raff announced his departure from the academic research-based practice RVTR, which he co-founded in 2007 with Colin Ripley, Kathy Velikov and Geoffrey Thun. Raff is leaving in order to focus on realizing projects in his own practice, Paul Raff Studio.
RVTR is a collaborative practice specifically structured to advance academic design research. It has won several prizes, including the Canada Council 2009 Professional Prix de Rome in Architecture. While with RVTR, Raff was involved with projects that advanced energy efficient building technology and site planning strategies for healthy, sustainable developments.
Paul Raff Studio is a 12 person architectural and artistic practice based in Toronto. The studio is currently working work on a number of exceptional projects including the Bioshphere Sustainability Centre in the Thousand Islands region, offices for RIM (Research in Motion), and the new Regina Gateway. Paul Raff Studio’s 2009 awards include the R.A.I.C. Allied Arts Medal, O.A.A Award of Excellence and the IIDEX Best of Canada.
“In as much as I enjoyed the rigor of academic design research, this is a pivotal moment for our practice.” says Raff. “There’s a massive, growing appetite for creative vision that addresses environmental, social, and economic realities, and at the same time makes the world more beautiful.”
Paul Raff is an architect and artist based in Toronto. Raff’s designs have been widely published internationally and domestically in Wallpaper, Architecture and Landscape Architecture among others. Raff’s work has been the subject of four television documentaries. Raff has also contributed to several journals with articles on environmental art, design and culture. He is a frequent guest professor, lecturer and critic at leading universities. In 2006, Raff represented Canada at a NAFTA sponsored lecture series at the University of Illinois in Chicago.