Behind the Build

• Behind the Build: Andrew Kline - Workshop APD

  Andrew Kline, Principal at Workshop APD, joins Behind the Build to share a career built on craft, risk, and mentorship. Raised in rural Ohio, his creativity was first inspired by his grandfather, a graphic artist, and nurtured by art teacher Lois Bachman, who encouraged him to pursue art school. After studying at Columbus College of Art & Design and completing a master’s at Cranbrook Academy of Art, Andrew developed a practice that merges fine art, interiors, and architecture into a holistic design approach.His early career began at L Brands, where he gained experience in corporate retail and international rollouts, followed by Yabu Pushelberg, where he worked on large-scale hospitality projects and honed his narrative-driven design process. In 2016/17, Andrew joined Workshop APD—then about 30 people—as its first Design Director. He helped reshape the studio, introduce new leadership structures, and strengthen its culture. Since then, the firm has grown to nearly 100 professionals, with offices in New York and Minneapolis and satellites in Greenwich, Nantucket, South Florida, Los Angeles, California, and Colorado. Today their portfolio spans high-end residential, multifamily, hospitality, commercial interiors, and product design.Workshop APD’s hospitality work now includes projects from Manhattan and Martha’s Vineyard to Times Square and the award-winning Moxy Banff hotel in Canada. At the same time, the studio expanded into product design—licensing collections with industry partners and launching Workshop Collection, a trade line with its own showroom. Its multidisciplinary model proved resilient during the pandemic, pivoting toward residential projects as demand surged.Now a Principal, Andrew balances creative direction with business development, client engagement, and mentorship. Education and professional growth are embedded in Workshop APD’s culture, with initiatives ranging from leadership development and knowledge transfer to book clubs and creative team programs. For Andrew, guiding both projects and people defines the work. Outside the studio, he recharges through DIY projects, ceramics, travel, and time in Jersey City with his two dogs.Curated Podcast Sponsors:Caplan's Appliances: https://caplans.ca/The Doors: https://thedoors4u.com/Aquanta Pools: https://aquanta.caHenry Rotberg SteelTo connect with our sponsors, email me: [email protected] the Build on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behind_the_build_podcast

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• Behind the Build: Waterloo University Alumni - Carol Phillips, Robert Kastelic, Lisa D'Abbondanza, & Drew Mandel

  This episode was recorded live at the University of Waterloo before an audience of students, alumni, and colleagues. Four graduates returned to share their journeys: Carol Phillips (Moriyama Teshima Architects), Lisa D’Abbondanza (Arcadis), Robert Kastelic (Atelier Kastelic Buffey—AKB), and Drew Mandel (Drew Mandel Architects—DMA). Together they reflected on choosing Waterloo, the impact of its cultural history curriculum and Co-op program, and graduating into a recession that demanded resilience, initiative, and a willingness to work anywhere.They revisit formative studio critiques and the Rome term, then trace the thread into practice: Carol’s trajectory into public and post-secondary work and mass timber; Drew’s early break building a tight-lot modern house that launched a residential practice; Lisa’s move into transit architecture and leadership of large, engineer-heavy teams; and Robert’s shift from major cultural projects to finely detailed residential design with close client collaboration. Across scales, they describe the same habits: become expert in the task at hand (even a barrier-free washroom), communicate clearly, and keep joy and rigor in balance.The conversation highlights collaboration—what they’ve learned from acousticians, structural engineers, and builders—how to push for better solutions, and how to manage vulnerability when the work is public, permanent, and judged daily. In an open Q&A, they offer advice to students on Co-op, networking, office culture, and leaving gracefully if a fit isn’t right, while championing travel and firsthand experience as irreplaceable education. They close with reflections on why they’d still recommend architecture: it trains you to think broadly, work collectively, and shape places that make everyday life better.Curated Podcast Sponsors:ZinCo Canada: https://www.zinco.ca/Caplan's Appliances: https://caplans.ca/The Doors: https://thedoors4u.com/Aquanta Pools: https://aquanta.caHenry Rotberg SteelTo connect with our sponsors, email me: [email protected] the Build on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behind_the_build_podcast

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• Behind the Build: Katherine Chia - Desai Chia Architecture

  Katherine Chia, FAIA, is the co-founder and co-principal of Desai | Chia Architecture, a New York City practice she leads with her husband and partner, Arjun Desai.Her path to architecture began with a childhood immersed in creativity. Inspired by her grandfather’s woodworking and Chinese brush painting, Kathy developed an early love of making. At Amherst College she pursued a liberal arts education—studying art, math, philosophy, anthropology, and more—before spending a formative year in Copenhagen with the Danish International Studies program. That experience led her to the Master of Architecture program at MIT, where she met Arjun.Graduating during the recession of the early 1990s, Kathy began her career on small but formative projects, including three years working with Maya Lin on both architecture and art. In 1996, she and Arjun founded Desai | Chia Architecture. Their early work included a children’s learning center for a Native American tribe in California and a Manhattan apartment renovation. With no business plan but strong conviction, they grew organically—balancing risk, grit, and design excellence.Over the past three decades, the firm has produced award-winning projects across residential, commercial, cultural, and institutional sectors. Landmark works include the LM Guest House (powered by geothermal systems and recipient of multiple national awards), the Michigan Lake House (featuring dramatic inverted butterfly roofs that manage stormwater while creating vaulted interiors), and ongoing commissions for Columbia University. Their work has received an AIA Institute Honor Award, ranking in ARCHITECT Magazine’s “Top 50 in Design,” and an Architizer A+ Award for Best Small Firm.Kathy’s philosophy emphasizes trust, collaboration, and timelessness. Every project is an iterative journey that fuses clients’ aspirations with inventive, enduring design. Beyond practice, she has taught at Parsons, served civic and cultural institutions, and raised two children—balancing motherhood with the pursuit of architecture that connects people, place, and community.Curated Podcast Sponsors:Caplan's Appliances: https://caplans.ca/The Doors: https://thedoors4u.com/Aquanta Pools: https://aquanta.caTo connect with our sponsors, email me: [email protected] the Build on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behind_the_build_podcast

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• Behind the Build: Evan Saskin - Blue Lion Building

  Evan Saskin is an architect, builder, and founder of Blue Lion Building, an architect-led design-build practice in Toronto and now, Halifax, Nova Scotia, dedicated to creating thoughtful infill housing. Raised in a family steeped in construction—his grandfather an engineer and his father a McGill-trained architect and builder—Evan grew up surrounded by drafting tables and construction sites. Childhood visits to his grandparents’ Montreal apartment also left a lasting impression, giving him an early appreciation for urban density, modern design, and the comfort of well-made domestic spaces.After completing an undergraduate degree, Evan pursued his Master of Architecture at the University of Toronto. While the school’s focus at the time leaned toward high-end homes and global commissions, he was drawn to the deeper question of how architects’ problem-solving skills could extend beyond form into regulation, finance, and systems. His early career took him to London, UK, where he joined a boutique practice working on intricate, high-budget residential projects. There he learned the discipline of exhaustive detailing—designing every surface and joint—and the rigor required to translate ambitious ideas into buildable realities.Returning to Toronto during the 2008 downturn, Evan joined Architects Alliance, gaining expertise in high-rise approvals and development processes. Yet his entrepreneurial drive, coupled with hands-on experience renovating his own home, soon led him to found Blue Lion Building in 2011 with his partner Cameron. The name came from their street in London, a nod to the hidden, tucked-away places that inspired their approach.Blue Lion focuses on missing-middle housing—duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes tucked into narrow Toronto lots—bringing architectural care to a scale often ignored by large developers. The firm manages the full process: land acquisition, feasibility, design, approvals, construction, and sales. Saskin’s projects embrace density while delivering bespoke quality, inventive layouts, and durable construction at accessible price points. With over two dozen projects completed, Blue Lion demonstrates how small-scale, design-driven development can address urban housing needs while enriching neighborhoods.Curated Podcast Sponsors:Caplan's Appliances: https://caplans.ca/The Doors: https://thedoors4u.com/Aquanta Pools: https://aquanta.caTo connect with our sponsors, email me: [email protected] the Build on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behind_the_build_podcast

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• Behind the Build: Gordon Magnin - Magnin Architecture

  Born and raised in Reno, Nevada, Gordon Magnin discovered his creative spark early through visits to an architect’s studio where renderings and model building captivated his imagination, his interest in art, drawing and technical design guiding him through middle and high school. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Structural Engineering from the University of Nevada, Reno, then practiced as a structural engineer before pursuing architecture. Gordon completed a Master of Architecture at the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc), transitioning from engineering to design while working and studying in Los Angeles. He returned to Reno after the birth of his first son, working for local firms before founding Magnin Architecture in 2018.He is a licensed architect and professional engineer in both California and Nevada, NCARB-certified, and a LEED Green Associate. Gordon’s technical background in engineering enriches his architectural work, enabling integration of structural systems from project inception. His firm specializes in high-end residential design across Reno, Tahoe and the Bay Area focusing on luxury, sustainability, craftsmanship and regional responsiveness. The practice has been recognized with multiple AIA awards including the 2024 Nevada AIA Citation for sustainable design, the 2022 Honor Award and other accolades for visionary architecture. Projects such as the Frantz Ski Haus embrace vernacular alpine forms, passive solar, high-performance envelopes and future-ready energy strategies, while others explore integration into high desert terrain and dramatic vistas.Gordon’s design philosophy celebrates light, form, materials and the subtle qualities of landscape. He emphasizes environmental drivers such as topography, view orientation, climate extremes, snow, wind and rain in shaping simple tectonic forms with legible construction and contemporary articulation of vernacular traditions. His goal is architecture integral to site, evolving toward net-zero practice as technology permits.When he is not designing, Gordon spends time outdoors with his family, skiing, mountain biking, hiking and exploring the Sierra Nevada and Great Basin landscapes that continually inspire his architectural vision.Curated Podcast Sponsors:Berman Stairs: https://bermanstairs.com/Caplan's Appliances: https://caplans.ca/The Doors: https://thedoors4u.com/Aquanta Pools: https://aquanta.caTo connect with our sponsors, email me: [email protected] the Build on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behind_the_build_podcast

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