Barbara Bestor (born 1966) is an American architect based in

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. She is the principal of Bestor Architecture, founded in 1992. Examples of her work include the

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Headquarters in Culver City, Blackbirds, small lot housing in Los Angeles,

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in Los Angeles, the revitalization of Silvertop, originally designed by John Lautner and the Toro Canyon House in Santa Barbara. In 2017 she was elected to the AIA's College of Fellows.

Early life

Barbara Bestor grew up in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

, where her father was an anthropologist and her mother was a college administrator.Emily Young
Building a Name for Herself
''

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'', March 14, 2002Kimberly Stevens
House Proud: A Simple Playhouse At Cut Corners
''

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'', March 20, 2003 She interned for Cambridge Seven Associates through college, with a study-abroad year at the

Architectural Association School of Architecture The Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, commonly referred to as the AA, is the oldest private school of architecture in the UK. The AA hosts exhibitions, lectures, academic conference, symposia and publications. Histo ...

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, eventually graduating from

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in 1987. She then received a master's degree in architecture from the

Southern California Institute of Architecture Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) is a private architecture school in Los Angeles, California. SCI-Arc was founded in 1972 when it was initially regarded as both institutionally and artistically avant-garde. It consists o ...

in Los Angeles in 1992.Southern California Institute of Architecture: Alumni

Career

Bestor began her architectural practice in Los Angeles in 1992. In her early career, she renovated many private residences in the Los Angeles area. She also designed the Actors' Gang theater in

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with fellow architect Norman Millar. In 2001, she taught architecture at the

Harvard Graduate School of Design The Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) is the graduate school of design at Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It offers master's and doctoral programs in architecture, landscape architecture, urba ...

. She returned to Los Angeles a year later, in 2002. She has taught architecture at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

.A Conversation With Architect Barbara Bestor
, TheAgencyRE, July 11, 2014 Bestor has taught at the

Woodbury University Woodbury University is a private university in Burbank, California. Founded in 1884 with initial campuses in Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown and Central Los Angeles, Woodbury University is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in Sout ...

School of Architecture in

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, where she is also the executive director of the Julius Shulman Institute.TED: OlympicBoulvdWomen: Speakers & Performers
She was the founding Chair of the Graduate program. In 2014, with Catherine Gudis, Thomas Kracauer, and Shannon Starkey, she curated an exhibition about the environmental graphic designer Deborah Sussman at Woodbury.Christopher Hawthorne
She Loves L.A.
, '' Metropolis Magazine'', March 2014 She has been a TEDx speaker. In 2017 the exhibition Albert Frey and Lina Bo Bardi: A Search for Living Architecture, designed by Bestor Architecture, opened at the Palm Springs Art Museum.The Many Surprising Parallels Between the Architecture of Lina Bo Bardi and Albert Frey
Metropolis, 14 September 2017 Bestor has designed private residences in

Echo Park Echo Park is a neighborhood in the east-Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles, California. Located to the northwest of Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown, it is bordered by Silver Lake, Los Angeles, Silver Lake to the west and Chinato ...

, Pacific Palisades,

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, Silverlake,

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, Topanga Canyon, and Santa Barbara. She has also designed stores and restaurants in Los Angeles,

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, and

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.Erin Feher
Ladies of de LaB Dig Deep Into the LA Design Scene
''California Home Design'', 12/12/13 In 2011, she was the recipient of the LA Restaurant Design Award from the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

for her design of the Pitfire Pizza in LA. She was also nominated for the James Beard Foundation Award for the same restaurant that year. The Floating Bungalow house in Venice, CA was featured in MOCA's 2013 survey of contemporary Los Angeles architecture. In 2015, the Beats By Dre Headquarters was recognized with a National AIA Honor Award for Interior Architecture. In 2017 two new projects opened, the Ashes & Diamonds Winery and Event Center and the

Silverlake Conservatory of Music Silverlake Conservatory of Music is a nonprofit educational organization formed in California. It was founded in 2001 by Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea and Chili Peppers collaborator Tree to foster music education. Chili Peppers vocalist Anthon ...

. Since the opening of Blackbirds Bestor has explored a variety of housing solutions for Los Angeles, ultimately receiving second place in the city's Low Rise competition.

Personal life

She has two daughters from a previous marriage.

Bibliography

*Barbara Bestor. ''Bohemian Modern: Living in Silver Lake''. New York City: HarperCollins. 2006. 272 pages.Google Books
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References

External links