Emerging Voices Winner Profile
LA-Más
LA-Más | Image from conceptual proposal "Backyard Basics: An Alternative Story for the Accessory Dwelling Unit." Credit: LA-Más
The Architectural League’s annual Emerging Voices program spotlights North American architects, landscape architects, and urban designers who have significant bodies of realized work and the potential to influence their field.
LA-Más won the award in 2018.
Nonprofit urban design group LA-Más focuses on underserved Los Angeles neighborhoods. It collaborates with community members, government agencies, and developers to create locally driven, contextually appropriate solutions for systemic challenges.
Directors Helen Leung and Elizabeth Timme both grew up in Los Angeles. Leung holds a master’s degree in public policy and urban planning from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. She previously worked for the city’s mayor, Eric Garcetti, and interned at the White House Office of Political Affairs and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. She has also worked at Living Cities.
Timme studied architecture at the University of Southern California and Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. She has worked for MASS Design Group, Ball-Nogues Studio, and Zimmer Gunsul Frasca.
Recent projects include:
- “Backyard Basics: An Alternative Story for the Accessory Dwelling Unit,” a conceptual proposal exploring how collectively developed accessory dwelling units could serve as a model for affordable housing
- Go Avenue 26, which combined community engagement and physical design improvements to enhance the experience of connecting to public transit near a major highway overpass
- Small Business Support Program, an effort to promote economic development via business and design assistance.
Learn more at the firm’s website.
