Bringing deep design experience and leadership, Mallery promotes pioneering concepts that merge architecture, preservation, sustainability and resiliency for varied market sectors
LOS ANGELES, May 14, 2024 — Reflecting company growth and nationwide leadership in new architecture, adaptive reuse and preservation, Page & Turnbull has named James Mallery as Director of the Architecture + Design Studio. In his new position, Mallery directs the 40-person firm’s architecture team across offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and San Jose with a focus on solution-driven innovations for new, historic, and adaptive reuse commissions.
With the goal of expanding Page & Turnbull’s inventive, resilient building projects — cited by Fast Company Magazine as among the most innovative nationally — Mallery is known for thinking broadly and holistically about architectural and urban design solutions that go beyond Page & Turnbull’s success in historic preservation, offering opportunities to embrace contemporary design and sustainability. Also an educator and author, Mallery will debut a new book in June on San Francisco’s urban history, City of Vice.
“James Mallery has shown our team — and our clients — that adapting historic and existing buildings is an excellent opportunity for architects to think creatively,” says John D. Lesak, AIA, FAPT, principal of Page & Turnbull. “We have a half-century of experience in this, making us uniquely poised for growth and more complex architectural commissions.”
About James Mallery, AIA, LEED AP
An expert source and accomplished leader among Page & Turnbull’s nationally renowned team of prominent architects, preservation and materials experts, and planning and research professionals, Mallery’s influence in new and historic preservation projects extends to the cultural, residential, and corporate sectors. He is also spearheading Page & Turnbull’s Sustainability Task Force, which is creating best practices and shared resources for the firm’s projects and processes.
Recent works by Page & Turnbull with Mallery’s involvement include the seismic retrofit and upgrade of the iconic Capitol Records Building and The Standard at Los Angeles new plus converted student housing near the University of Southern California, in Los Angeles. Mallery led the design of an award-winning adaptive reuse of a historic mortuary and garage dating to the 1920s to create Washington View Apartments, a new affordable housing development for seniors near downtown Los Angeles.
“Working with historic and existing resources invites architects to think creatively through fresh designs that honor our cultural legacies while also transforming them for today’s most relevant uses and society’s needs,” Mallery says. “Often, these projects result in enduring, resilient buildings that embrace history while advancing today’s sustainability and climate-responsive needs.”
Examples include Page & Turnbull’s work with partner firm WHY to reimagine a 1964 library in Riverside, Calif., to become an acclaimed museum and cultural center, The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture. The adaptive reuse slashed embodied carbon by almost two-thirds as compared to constructing a new building, says Mallery, with reclaimed materials including the historic restoration of original exterior façade.
Mallery also sees a critical role for Page & Turnbull’s renowned expertise in urban design, planning, and cultural resource studies. From more responsible resource use to considerations of race, class, and gender, he sees opportunities to create more equitable and universally accessible architectural works that tell stories often not heard.
Mallery holds a doctorate in American History from UCLA, a master’s in architecture from CalPoly-Pomona, and he has taught classes in architectural history, urban theory, and architectural tectonics. Prior to Page & Turnbull, Mallery worked with Perkins&Will and WRNS Studio. His first book, City of Vice: Transience and San Francisco’s Urban History, 1848-1917 will be available in June from University of Nebraska Press.