ERW Design Information

ERW Design is a multi-disciplinary architecture firm whose work is based on the intersection of the built form and the landscape. With a small staff of architects and designers, ERW Design has completed more than fifty institutional, residential, and landscape projects throughout the Los Angeles area. Our design strategies are developed in response to a matrix of conditions and voices. We are especially attuned to opportunities to integrate architecture and landscape, formulating sequences from interior to exterior: primary structures, transition spaces - terraces, paths, courtyards - and gardens and accessory buildings. Client wish lists naturally have various starting points, but we find common ground in the desire for clarity of form, and attention to detail. We transform these words into three dimensional constructs. We encourage and welcome our clients' participation in the development of their projects, and our services are calibrated appropriately. We provide comprehensive design services, as well as specifically tailored stand-alone services, such as Master Planning, facility services, and design consulting. Elaine René-Weissman is an architect whose education and work experience reflects her background in the arts. She studied painting and art history, and worked in the applied arts and theater design in New York City. The transition to architecture established a course of work that was utilitarian, full-scale, and collective in spirit. She received a Master of Architecture from the Yale School of Architecture in 1988, earning the Sielaff Award, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the School of Visual Arts, New York City. René-Weissman is also a LEED Accredited Professional, which recognizes her understanding of sustainable building principles. She is currently a consultant to the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. Numerous staff and consultants have participated in ERW Design projects, including: Phillip Collins, Robert Adler, Lana Ung, Ariel Asken, Safura Salek, Hsuan-ying Chou, Nat McDiarmid, Garth Ramsey, Chun-Wai Ho, Sarah Moylan, Hiroyuki Yamamoto, Nic Rousset, Catherine Mancusi, Courtney Blanton, Graciela Busignani, Taeko Takada, and Jorge Marien. A number of our projects have been published in the LA Times, W magazine, InStyle Home, House and Garden magazine, Malibu Times, and various design blogs. In 2009, Vista Hermosa Park received the Civic Award and Grand Prize from the LA Building Council, and the AIA LA President's Award for Best Public Space.