Robert Dean Architects

Robert Bruce Dean founded Robert Dean Architects in 1986. By that time he had sharpened his design skills by working for noted architects and firms such as Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill, Philip Johnson, and Robert A.M. Stern. He has taught architectural design and history at the university level and is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (B.A. in Arch.) and Columbia University (M.Arch.). He lives with his wife in Redding, Connecticut, and sustains active involvement in non-profit professional and public-benefit activities.

We think of ourselves as academic architects of the old school, with a philosophy that demands an intimate knowledge of the history of architecture and a willingness to use style skillfully and respectfully in the design of each building project. We do not seek out a “signature style”; instead we use stylistic themes rigorously, to create buildings that respond to the historical, physical, and environmental contexts into which they must be placed. At the same time, canons of form and proportion are studied to make rooms and places that are inherently beautiful while being easy to live in.

While the firm is experienced in a number of professional areas, it has become increasingly specialized in the design of custom residential projects. These have included both new houses and renovations of existing houses. Geographically, the firm’s work has ranged from Virginia to Vermont, although the majority of projects are in the general area of Fairfield County, Connecticut.