Life at All Scales: Trahan Architects’ Trey Trahan on the Business of Architecture, Meaningful Relationships, and Complex Ecologies

By Julia Gamolina

Victor F. “Trey” Trahan, III, FAIA, is the founder and CEO of Trahan Architects, established in 1992 with a belief that bringing humility and awareness into the design process helps create authentic spaces that elevate our lives. His approach to architecture begins with his conviction that a building can create something that goes beyond its walls—that when we build, we are shaping our landscapes, communities, and cultures. Since 1992, Trey has led Trahan Architects to expand from its New Orleans roots to open a second office in New York City, and rise to be ranked the number one design firm by Architect Magazine.

Trey has established several innovative conservation projects, including Fundo Tic Toc in Patagonia, Chile, which is part of a protected property acquired by Trey from the late Doug Tompkins, founder of North Face. An avid art collector, Trey lends his collections to museum exhibitions around the world. His meticulous curation includes an extensive series of Chawan tea bowls crafted by revered Japanese artist Shiro Tsujimura. He divides his time between New Orleans and St. Francisville in Louisiana, New York City, and Patagonia, Chile. In his conversation with Julia Gamolina, Trey talks about project pursuits and client engagement, advising those just starting their careers to seek balance and peace.

JG: Trey, tell me about how you grew up and how that planted the seeds for what you’re doing now.

TT: Absolutely. I grew up in Crowley, Louisiana, to a family of six - mother, father, and three sisters. I was the second. We lived in a small, rural community, where farming was the leading industry, and where rice, soybeans, and crawfish were part of the economy and the culture.

At a very young age, I became aware of the uniqueness of the landscape there, and how the high clay content in the soil led to a condition that allowed the farming community to flood the field for rice. Obviously this resulted in the unique cuisine of place, the unique cultivation of the landscape of place, and things like the International Rice Festival. I was very much aware of how the specific physicality of landscapes contributes to your cultural experience of living in that place.

I love that. How did you come to start Trahan Architects?

I was working with a Baton Rouge, Louisiana firm, and I had expressed an interest in business development fairly early on. At a very young age — I was twenty-six — they made me head of business development. I was interested in how one builds client relationships and successfully secures commissions.

After a few years of leading the pursuits for this firm, I decided that it would be fun to do it on my own! I started the firm with a partner, called the Holden Trahan Group, which lasted a few years. I had a wonderful partner, but my design aspirations grew a little more than his, so I started Trahan Architects, still in Baton Rouge. Like most firms, we were pursuing any and all work in those early years, and doing all that it takes to financially stabilize the firm. Within a few years, we were working on an addition to a stadium at LSU, an academic center at LSU, a number of church projects, and we were also master planning a number of Catholic Church communities, and finally, a number of warehouse projects. We would do anything and everything to stabilize and advance the firm. At the same time, I was always aware of my personal design ambitions, and developing my personal skills and a culture of the firm that privileged design, but design with tremendous value at the core of the practice.

What were those personal design ambitions?

At first it was about visible beauty in a building, but over time, I’ve evolved to question that. Now, I’ve arrived at a place of considering how we create spaces that encourage human-to-human interaction, as well as the engagement of people with the natural world. I think a lot about what types of spaces are appropriate for these values and levels of engagement.

“...the specific physicality of landscapes contributes to your cultural experience of living in that place.”

— Trey Trahan

Trahan is coming up on its 30th year. What do you make of these thirty years? How have you and the firm evolved?

There have been a number of moments that have contributed significantly - we’ve really privileged and attracted young and talented graduates, who have always contributed to a freshness in our work. I also think that balancing the business of architecture, with design aspirations, and shifting constantly from seeking projects that are of a scale that provide a relatively long-term financial security to the office, and at the same time, pursuing projects with high design aspirations, has been of value to us.

Early on, we found ourselves in a place where we had secured a number of collegiate stadium expansions, the interesting thing about sports is that the schedule drives them more than any other projects. They’re season-driven. The Superdome was a significant project for us to secure after Hurricane Katrina, and we’ve also master planned the larger sports district surrounding the Superdome. That’s a three to five billion dollar project if you think about the full context. Additionally, a significant contribution to the firm is our idea of rootedness, and how we, almost as archaeologists, explore and unearth the uniqueness embedded in the histories of the soils of place. This has allowed us to build relationships with some of the country’s top landscape architects, that are now important collaborators to the practice, and at times, are the lead in introducing us to work, which has expanded our profile on a national level.

Throughout all of this Trey, who mentored you along the way?

I think the most important mentor has been my father. My father graduated in geology, but was really interested in investing and the search for business opportunities. The importance of realizing a profit, but then investing that profit into something that makes money on your money, but does not require your every day, all day focus. Stabilizing your personal and professional life in that way has played a significant role for me, and in his mentorship to me. I’ve at times invested in a bank, in land, and I’m often thinking of ways to invest. In more recent years, I’ve given a lot of thought in investing in community, and that has been really important to me. That I learned from both my mother and father.

In turn, how do you mentor? And how do you choose who you mentor?

It’s fun to mentor, and I think I’m pretty open in sharing my professional and personal interests, whether its in art or architecture or most recently, truth and justice seeking. I share very openly, whether the recipient is my age or much younger, and I enjoy sharing those personal interests and experiences, hopefully as a way of expanding the way they think, but also engaging in conversation with a much younger mind, that has had different experiences and might challenge some of my thinking or approaches. To me, there’s a very meaningful dialogue in mentorship. I especially like being in the office where those mentoring opportunities are very dynamic and immediate. You mentor by the way you go about your day.

Speaking of mentoring, in addition to your identity as an architect, I know that you are also a father. Talk to me about that.

I’m very fortunate that my parents are sill alive. It’s such a gift to grow up with two parents that you respect and admire, because the physical and emotional security that comes out of that type of relationship is very important. As a result, as a father, I’m very aware of that role.

In some ways, I hope I’ve succeeded, in other ways I think I could do better - I don’t think we’re ever a perfect parent - but I love my daughter and I’m very proud of her accomplishments, and of who she is. If there’s some small but meaningful way in which I’ve contributed to her emotional and physical security, and in hopefully encouraging her to find herself, but also making sure she knows that there’s a safety net, so to speak, in me and with me, that supports her individual search for how she can create her most meaningful life, and family, and community.

You’re also a grandfather!

Yea, that kind of scared me at first, but it's a beautiful place. You get to enjoy all of the upsides, right? It’s amazing to watch a young child grow, change, and evolve since birth. It happens so quickly too, which is a reminder to all of us to enjoy every day and to find balance in life. It’s also a reminder of the significant contributions we make to each other - children and grandchildren - in building safe and secure environments.

“...there’s a very meaningful dialogue in mentorship. I especially like being in the office, where those mentoring opportunities are dynamic and immediate. You mentor by the way you go about your day.”

— Trey Trahan

I’m glad you touched on balance, because obviously there are other things that you do outside of architecture, outside of your practice. How do you integrate everything that’s important and enjoyable to you, into your life?

Architecture at times is about the physical built work - craftsmanship, materiality - and so I’m interested in art and how to human hand crafts things made of lacquer or clay or steel, and how those materials are extracted from the earth. I’m interested in other ways that man cultivates the landscape, or uses the materials of place, to create pieces that reflect or inform our identity, and how we each uniquely define beauty. I mentioned that earlier in my career, beauty was about the physical, but now it’s much deeper and more meaningful than that, and you can’t have physical beauty without an attitude of empathy. Bringing compassion and dignity to everyone’s life that we interact with is something I think a lot about now.

I think more and more in recent years about our marginalized communities in the south - the descendant of what were our slaved communities. I think about how that time in our history has informed our financial system, our healthcare system, and architecture! Both physical and as a process of design, and the possibility of finding embedded in our built environment, some form of reparation. Maybe the act of design is an act of reparation. I think a lot about if there’s a tax structure that we should think about as it relates to encouraging architects, contractors, and developers, to think more about a built environment that reflects a place of equity, and the importance of a diverse place. It’s like a rich forest - that rich, diverse ecology - and if society could reflect that kind of diversity, the potential for a much more meaningful and beautiful life is much greater.

What have been the biggest challenges for you throughout it all?

Securing work is a really complex process. Then, when you elevate design to the level that we have, there are really very few clients that aspire to do great work — most clients want to do good work. But also, one of the challenges is that in seeking to give clients the greatest value for their dollar, there’s a tremendous complexity in that. It’s more of an inductive process, where you commit to a search and a process, and embedded in this process are unique opportunities that are important to realizing projects that are rooted in place and do respond to unique program, as well as meet the financial agendas of the client. There is so much complexity in that.

So the challenge that I’m speaking to is when you choose that journey, it’s not always a linear process. It’s important from day one, to expose what the complexities will be to the client, so that they’re better positioned for this journey. It’s all worth it in the end though, because it results in important, unique, and beautiful buildings, as well as really rich and meaningful relationships between all of the collaborators.

What do you think needs to be done to further advance women in the field? What would you encourage your male peers to do?

I feel really privileged in this area, having grown up with a mother and three sisters, that I just love, respect and admire, and I grew up with the unique sensibilities and perspectives of women. I feel that it’s vitally important to engage in all aspects of the practice, and in business, with women. What’s important in my position is to create opportunities at all levels, and elevate women to a place where their leadership is most impactful. That is to the benefit of all of us, as individuals, participants, and especially to our clients. Once again, the reference is the diversity of the ecology of a forest - it’s critical to our work to create tremendous diversity. Until we achieve that level of diversity, our work is less than it can be.

“...you can’t have physical beauty without an attitude of empathy. Bringing compassion and dignity to everyone’s life that we interact with is something I think a lot about now.”

— Trey Trahan

Who is an architect that is a woman that you admire?

I really admire Zaha Hadid, and the confidence she had in a very male-oriented world, to truly push things, challenge the profession, and really think about different types of spaces and their relationship. I also really admire and respect Neri Oxman, and how she, at that scale, has explored a unique world. I think the architectural world should spend more time exploring her work, and how her work can inform a different process, as well as a different way of making, building, and thinking. Zaha and Neri are two brilliant designers and architects whose contributions will be effective for a long, long time.

Finally Trey, what is the best piece of advice that you’ve gotten? What advice do you have for those just starting their careers?

The best advice I’ve gotten is to seek balance, but as importantly, to seek a peaceful life, and to find that place within that is unique to oneself so that whatever and whoever you touch, you can share in an open and authentic way who you are. And, create relationships where you’re granting access to who you are in meaningful ways, which hopefully results in relationships with people that make you feel safe and secure, and them too so that they can truly share who they are.

As far as advice to those starting out in the industry, I think in architecture it’s about stating the importance of all forms of life. The gift of life is something that we tend to forget, and we need to think more about it. I learned some of this from Doug Tompkins, who started North Face and Esprit, and him and his wife Chris moved down to Patagonia, Chile, and created eleven national parks. I’m reminded of an evening in their home where a reporter asked what drove Doug to give away his entire fortune to creating these national parks, and Doug spoke about the importance of life at all scales. But then he also reminded all of us at the table of the inevitability of death, and asked us, “What drives a man to die with more than a dime in his pocket, when there’s so much need in the world, and when the impact you can have on life and all forms of life is so great?” We need to think about life at all scales, and how interconnected they are, and the importance of them. At times, for me, it begins with healing the soil of a place, because in healing the soil, we are healing life.