Years ago, we met Nick in Miami and connected over our dogs (bull terriers!). Last summer, when this site was created, Nick was one of the first people who came to mind for a feature. With his incredible renderings and massive projects he is always working on and usually sharing on Instagram, we wanted to know more about his journey and his method. Along with his two-decades long career at some of the biggest firms in Miami, Nick sits on the board of the Miami Center for Architecture and Design (MCAD). Nick’s been busy, but we finally snagged some time with him. Meet Nick.

DS: Hi Nick! Welcome to Design Storytellers. We’re excited to dig in and learn more about your architectural journey. Let’s start with your education, where did you study?

NG: Hi! Thank you. I’ve been an architect for 20 years now. I studied architecture at Pratt Institute and practice in Miami, focused on high-rise residential design.

DS: Wow, Miami is such a great place to be focused on high rise design. What project are you most proud of?

NG: It really is. I would say I’m most proud of the project I’m currently working on, which is going to be one of the largest developments in the City of Miami for low-income housing. It’s going to fill a much needed sector of real estate, providing over 3,000 affordable units for people that live within $10k/year of the poverty line. Imagine what Midtown Miami did for Wynwood, that’s the potential of this development. That’s about as much as I can comment on it for now!

DS: That’s exciting, congratulations. I’m sure it must be rewarding to work on projects that serve people in a needed way. On that note, what do you love most about your job?

NG: Oh definitely. In architecture, there’s an abundance of opportunity to contribute towards a meaningful spatial experience.

Design is multi-sensory…its poetic, its calming, its intentional, and its liberating. As an architect, you are required to investigate the user experience, understand cultural paradigms, individual preferences, and ultimately remain engaged at a humanistic level.

Its a technical and geometrical exploration at various scales, when there's a deep understanding of the site specific paradigms, there is a physical manifestation that follows. It can be described as a hidden relationship that must be uncovered from the ethereal to the tangible.

I do a ton of 3-Dimensional modeling, I would think it to be the equivalent of an exceptional sketch artist…extremely therapeutic and rewarding.

visualization by nick garate — *Visualization by Nick Garate*

DS: Wow we love that perspective. So well articulated. Do you prefer any specific architectural design style?

NG: I prefer a Mid-Century Modern influence, looking more towards what will be considered Mid-Century Contemporary. Open space, clean lines, increased efficiency that will require a decrease in clutter.

DS: Where do you find inspiration for your work?

NG: Oh, so many places, and in specific ways for my area of focus, from a pragmatic approach and really asking questions. I’ll begin with the urban context of everyday life, things like access to transportation, demographic data, infrastructure, access to amenities. What problems are there to solve? What existing paradigms are there to embrace?

Often times, when designing a large scale project, the main objective is to build with drivers influenced purely on efficiency and profit. There is no sociological exploratory work being done, at least not for the sake of designing, but instead to understand where variances can be purchased to increase development density.

DS: That’s so important, and you raise such good points. So, how do you approach this type of exploratory work?

NG: A site analysis is critically important and uncovers the components that make up your building both programmatically and physically.

You can begin to notice hints when you go places. For example, the obsession with blind efficiency is so common, that if you’re ever in a high rise with a max pool depth of 3’-6,” what you can learn is that it is because the tower density was completely maxed out and to provide code-required parking for those units, the garage also had to increase in floors. Ultimately, what you’re left with is this tiny sandwiched area at the amenity level that is code minimum depth for a pool that sits at waist height.

This method of thinking requires a deep understanding of the existing contextual problems and is in most cases providing solutions to reach towards a more inclusive future.

DS: I love how you connect all of the facets of design into a learning experience. I think many (most!) people don’t pay attention to details or contemplate why things are built how they are. The same goes for sustainability. What are your thoughts on sustainable design?

NG: I absolutely find the environment to be a source of inspiration for the designs I create. I like to consider regional climate and living conditions. I think we are all familiar with green roofs and solar panels, but these are merely components based features, a true sustainable approach will literally sculpt your building.

For example, solar orientation of openings, which will provide a long term efficient energy consumption that is less severe. Design that optimizes shade in the summer, sun in the winter. Or the west to east orientation of the pool.

LEED accreditations are all components based achieved, Performative Glazing, and MEP systems will get you a Gold accreditation while still following your max profit model of design.

If you combine these components, it will create a completely different vertical vernacular of the city. The building is no longer oriented and accessed on “what is more profitable.” The entry points might change, and the parking garage won’t be the primary driver for structural stacking.

It is, in a sense, an inverted method of thinking of what creates a building: the physical manifestation of profit or of sustainability. Very rarely is it both.

This is not to say that certain methods are not valid. Every site offers unique characteristics, and in some cases the view angles are your primary moment.

DS: Thank you for that expanded explanation on the approach to high rises and the questions that lie in the balance. What other considerations go into your work?

NG: I like to think about the mundane. Everyday tasks that we take for granted, standardized methods of living that require generational re-interpretations. Kitchens, for example. Would you consider under mounted refrigerators and freezers if it meant an additional 40% of usable counter space? Or closets. Would you consider adopting a lifestyle that would require you to store only items that you use frequently if it meant an additional 200 square footage of livable area?

And of course, work from home. The standardized square footage per unit design was established before the pandemic, and never intended for a significant percentage of the workforce to exclusively work remote. Does this mean that the majority of unit owners are bound to the kitchen table for 8 hours a day?

Highrise units are developed with an excruciating level of efficiency, and the result is minimum dimensional living areas, that if re-wired, could expand and transform the living condition.

DS: These are such interesting things to consider in a living space. I imagine some of these questions also must come up visiting other countries and during travel, seeing how other countries and cultures utilize floorplans and space. Do you find that to be the case? What places do you find most interesting?

NG: Absolutely. I would have to say Delphi, Greece. The Ancient Theatre, which sits nestled on a mountain side overlooking miles of landscape below. It is the best performing arts center of the hellinistic period. Also Mount Yoshinoyama, Japan, the small town in Nara, just one single avenue sitting on the top ridge of small mountain. Amazing nature hikes and the japans most famous cherry blossom destination. And of course New York. I lived and studied there and created some of the most authentic friendships one could ever ask for. And studying Architecture at an art school in Brooklyn….its exactly what one would imagine it to be.

DS: Amazing, thank you, Nick for your thoughtful insights and persepctive. Anything you want to add specificially for those who may be considering a career in architecture?

NG: Thats it is a beautiful profession. I’d tell them to appreciate the rigorous approach to design, and to remember that it is not about how amazing your project is, it is really about how wonderful your expression of what you have uncovered becomes.

DS: Who are some creative people you look to from throughout time? Who do you find interesting?

NG: I’m hooked on Paul Nakazawa lectures, Reinier de Graaf, and Tatiana Bilbao.

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Find Nick:

Instagram: @nickgarate

Website: https://www.studionag.com

Linkedin: Nick Garate

Nick Garate

Millie Johnson