Karen Bala - DRAW

Karen is the youngest of seven children and spent significant time with her doctor father, who loved working with his hands. He taught her to use tools and help with home projects and gifted her a hammer, drill, electric saw, and a self-reliant spirit. These tools and adventures in home repair inspired her to build. After college, she moved to Tokyo to study Metabolism, a Japanese architectural movement focused on adaptable, modular construction that she believes could address the current U.S. housing crisis. Her deep experience of studio processes, technology as a problem-solving tool, and a passion for high-performance buildings are key components of her architectural philosophy.