Brwarchitects

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Brwarchitects Compassionate, collaborative design. Est. 1985. Partners:
Bruce Wardell, FAIA
Kurt Keesecker, AIA

For over thirty years, brwarchitects has told the stories of our clients through architecture. We are known for our compassionate, collaborative approach and our diverse portfolio in urban, commercial, religious, and residential design.

Check out Broadaxe Studio in C-VILLE Weekly Abode Magazine! Designed by BRW Architects, built by Alloy Architecture & Co...
10/06/2026

Check out Broadaxe Studio in C-VILLE Weekly Abode Magazine! Designed by BRW Architects, built by Alloy Architecture & Construction, and photographed by John Bennett Fitts.

🗞️Extra! Extra! Read all about it! For congregations that have considered housing on their property, Virginia’s Faith In...
10/01/2026

🗞️Extra! Extra! Read all about it! For congregations that have considered housing on their property, Virginia’s Faith In Housing Act removes one of the biggest obstacles: the time, cost, and uncertainty of asking a local government to change the zoning. Read our latest newsletter, or visit our site, to learn about who qualifies, what the law allows, and what it means for faith communities in Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Links in bio.

BRW’s Kurt Keesecker, AIA, & David Timmerman, AIA, hit the trail yesterday for the Rivanna Trails Foundation Loop De’Vil...
09/28/2026

BRW’s Kurt Keesecker, AIA, & David Timmerman, AIA, hit the trail yesterday for the Rivanna Trails Foundation Loop De’Ville Festival! Both biked the full 20 mile loop through parks, up hills and over streams before celebrating at Rivanna River Company! We love our trails at BRW, and the event reminds us of Leo Wehner’s 2025 Erwin Ramsey Fellowship project on the future of the Rivanna Trail System Leo Wehner. Thank you to everyone who makes this epic event possible!

BRW’s Taro Matsuno spent Sunday morning at Emmanuel Episcopal Greenwood for the Grand Opening of Bocock Pavilion, or or ...
09/22/2026

BRW’s Taro Matsuno spent Sunday morning at Emmanuel Episcopal Greenwood for the Grand Opening of Bocock Pavilion, or or what Pastor John called “God’s Back Porch.” Here Pastor John stands in front of a table crafted from a historic tree on church grounds. Swipe through photos of Sunday’s celebration to learn about more of this project’s lovely details!

Designed by friend-of-the-firm Doug Gilpin, FAIA, brwarchitects was the architect of record on the project. The project was timber-framed by Blue Ridge Timberwrights without any nails - Pastor John shared that he installed one of the pegs with the inscription “be swift to love, make haste to be kind.”

View of the new pavilion from the existing church.

The Grand Opening celebration included barbecue and bluegrass! 🎻🎉🪕 The mantle in the background was also carved from a historic tree on church grounds.

Happy Friday! 🎉🥳 Thank you to the AIA Virginia and Jury for selection of The COLBY Building at Mountaintop Montessori fo...
09/18/2026

Happy Friday! 🎉🥳 Thank you to the AIA Virginia and Jury for selection of The COLBY Building at Mountaintop Montessori for recognition in this year’s Design Excellence Awards! This addition and renovation of Mountaintop Montessori’s Middle School is honored with a Merit Award in the Adaptive or Continued Use Category!

“This brilliantly subtle extension of an existing school building derives contemporary expression from the reinterpretation of the existing structure’s form and materiality. While maintaining continuity with the existing building, the addition deftly forms a range of interstitial and threshold spaces. The new entryway ingeniously occupies the joint between old and new, while blurring inside and out.” - AIA Virginia Design Awards Jury

Read more about the project at the link in our bio.

All photos by LINCOLN BARBOUR.

Bruce in Boston last week visiting with friends of over six decades, and touring iconic Boston sites and architecture of...
09/17/2026

Bruce in Boston last week visiting with friends of over six decades, and touring iconic Boston sites and architecture of similar longevity! Swipe for scenes of

The Great Elephant Migration on the tree-lined Commonwealth Avenue Mall.

Make Way For Ducklings scultpure in the Boston Public Garden !

Phillips Exeter Academy Library Phillips Exeter Library designed by Louis Kahn. First opened to the public in 1971.

Phillips Exeter Academy Library Phillips Exeter Library designed by Louis Kahn. First opened to the public in 1971.

Bruce’s tour guide around the light filled spaces of Phillips Exeter Academy, Beth Kelley !

Best way to beat the blues in the Dog Days of summer? Bring the pups into the office!!
09/03/2026

Best way to beat the blues in the Dog Days of summer? Bring the pups into the office!!

Hafsa & Kurt visited First Baptist Church on Park Street to check in on progress of the renovation to enclose the breeze...
08/25/2026

Hafsa & Kurt visited First Baptist Church on Park Street to check in on progress of the renovation to enclose the breezeways, creating new gathering and circulation space for church members.

Back To School 🍎📚 for most of Charlottesville and the County this week and last. Here’s a look at K-12 projects designed...
08/17/2026

Back To School 🍎📚 for most of Charlottesville and the County this week and last. Here’s a look at K-12 projects designed by BRW Architects over the years! First pictured, Frost Montessori classroom.

Entranceway, Frost Montessori.

Covenant Campus, designed in collaboration with Boney Architects.

Addition & Renovation of Mountaintop Montessori Middle School.

Addition at Mountaintop Middle School.

Cubby Room, Marymount University Early Learning Academy.

During her fellowship research, this year’s Erwin Ramsey Fellow, Taylor Baskin, investigated how the material culture - ...
07/27/2026

During her fellowship research, this year’s Erwin Ramsey Fellow, Taylor Baskin, investigated how the material culture - everyday materials and construction practices - used in Charlottesville’s affordable housing market quietly shapes the lived experience of residents—impacting durability, maintenance burdens, health, and long-term building performance. Drawing from a survey of local affordable housing developments, her presentation highlighted key patterns and missed opportunities. As a result of her month long research effort, she proposed a framework, in the form of a design toolkit, for leveraging strategic material selection and architectural detailing to create more resilient, dignified, and enduring residential environments.

Thank you to newcityartsinitiative for a perfect space for such a cool and thoughtful presentation. ✨

As part of her presentation, Taylor 3D printed examples of modular details for elevated resident experiences in housing projects.

Address

112 4th Street NE
Charlottesville, VA
22902

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+14349717160

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