History

temporary construction stair in Harper-Wong Residence

Typical is to “type” as  Atypical is to  ATYPE

ATYPE is an architectural practice in pursuit of atypical design solutions and the creation of unique adaptive structures for our ever-changing world.  Architecture is the union of form and use.  Form without use is sculpture and accommodation of use only is just building and not all building is Architecture.

ATYPE /,รก’taip/ (noun): not representative of a type, group, class; not conforming to the type.  {The word ATYPE does not presently exist in the english language though the term “atypical” does.  It fell out of use in the late nineteenth century}

ATYPE was founded in 2014 by John Chu.  It is a Limited Liability Company organized effective August 1, 2014 in New York state.  It is an architecture firm specializing in high end residential and small scale commercial design.

John Chu is an award winning architect with over 30 years experience in the field. Born in Montreal Canada and educated at Cornell University’s School of Architecture Art and Planning. He has worked for numerous prestigious firms which include Santiago Calatrava, Rafael Vinoly, SOM, Perkins & Will. His curriculum vitae samples a broad swath of players across the architecture industry. He has worked on projects from tiny in size to enormous scales in firms ranging from individual and local to large and international. Throughout his extensive career he has explored conceptual, theoretical and experimental residential architecture design.  ATYPE is the venue to formalize this pursuit.

“… since my childhood, I have been fascinated with the design of houses and throughout my career I have found the challenges in building design and the pursuit of Architecture an inspiration. Nothing is more rewarding than seeing an idea that may have begun as a sketch realized in stone.”                – John Chu

The architecture of John Chu