In Pursuit of Great Architecture

Mission

Messana O’Rorke Architects have an unassailable desire to create great architecture. In pursuit of this aspiration there are no boundaries to our creative expression from the design of a logo to the conceptualization of an urban design resolution. Through rigorous analysis of individual project variables MOA strives to create and execute compelling architectural solutions with unique and essential impact. The phenomenon of intellectual, cultural, political and aesthetic realities influence the evolving processes of our imaginations, which are drawn to the most direct and minimal response.

Brian Messana

Brian Messana is licensed to practice architecture in the states of New York, New Jersey, and California. Brian Messana attended several universities in his pursuit of undergraduate and graduate degrees in architecture. Before earning his Bachelor of Architecture degree at California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo in 1989, he studied liberal arts at the University of California at Los Angeles. During his undergraduate studies at Cal Poly he attended several programs including a years study at Virginia Polytechnic Institute in Alexandria, Virginia, a summer at the Ecoles d’Art Americaines De Fontainebleau in France, and a year at the California State University in Florence, Italy.

Brian Messana moved to New York City in 1989 to work for Richard Meier & Partners before attending Columbia University, where he obtained a Master of Science in Advanced Architectural Design and was awarded the Lucille Symser Lowenfish Memorial Prize. Upon graduation he worked in New York and Los Angeles for various architectural firms including Asymptote, Peter Marino Architects and Naomi Leff & Associates.

Brian Messana established Messana O’Rorke Architects with Toby O’Rorke in 1996. He has also pursued an academic career, and has taught architecture at Columbia University, Pratt Institute, The University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Southwestern Louisiana. He has presented academic papers at conferences, lectured at a number of universities and exhibited his work around the world. In addition, he has pursued a personal interest in graphic, furniture and product design and has been involved in a number of projects related to brand imaging.

Toby O’Rorke

Toby O’Rorke is a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects and is licensed to practice architecture in the United Kingdom. He attended Newcastle College of Art for a year before obtaining his Bachelor of Architecture Degree with Honors at Oxford Polytechnic in the United Kingdom. After spending two years working in London for the Greater London Council Department of Architecture and in Sydney, Australia, for Anchor, Mortlock & Woolley Architects, he returned to Oxford Polytechnic to complete his Post-Graduate Diploma in Architecture. His Post-Graduate dissertation, “The Palace of Culture and the Russian Avant-garde”, involved extensive investigation including a research trip to Russia. While pursuing his second degree in architecture, he attended Virginia Polytechnic Institute, in Alexandria, Virginia for six months where he met Brian Messana.

Toby O’Rorke moved to New York in 1989 and before establishing Messana O’Rorke Architects in 1996, he worked for several architectural firms including Margaret Helfand Architects, Henry Myerberg Architects and Thierry in store development. In addition to his architectural career he has pursued interests in furniture, textile and product design, and has designed costumes, been a colorist, and produced silkscreen prints for several theatrical productions. He also developed a product line of ‘Patch Caps’ to raise money for AIDS research.