B e n N e s b e i t t

Ben Nesbeitt | LEED AP

Partner | Linkedin | ben@worksbureau.com | +1 602 324 6014

Ben Nesbeitt joined the studio in 1995 and has guided much of the firm’s growth and culture, to its present life as WORKSBUREAU. Experienced in working with diverse cultural and design contexts, his focus is on architecture that responds sensitively to social and environmental influences. His knowledge of building systems, design process, and delivery quality is engaged in all phases of the work. As partner-in-charge or acting in support to other project teams, Ben’s deep interest in making, movement, and light is aimed at realizing ideas to their fullest potential.

Ben has managed all phases of mixed use, residential, civic, and university projects in regions across the USA and several international locations. This includes projects realized singularly by the studio, commissions done in collaborative associations, and master plans in consortium with architects and consultants of all disciplines.

With over twenty years of experience in the profession of architecture, education, and construction, Ben received a Master of Architecture degree from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1993. He was greatly influenced by mentor and friend Henry Plummer. Earning the University Thesis Award and AIA Central Illinois Award for his full-scale constructed experimental studio, Ben also received multiple fellowships and was Finalist for the AIA Henry Adams Medal. His studies included one year in the Paris region and travel studies throughout Europe. This continued a lifelong interest in world cultures which began at an early age, with several childhood years in Java, Indonesia—living with less, where things were made rather than bought.

Committed to education as well as practice, Ben has taught design courses and graduate independent studies at the University of Illinois and at Arizona State University, and has served as guest critic at Yale University and the University of Oregon. In 2012 he was invited professor and lecturer at the Istituto Universitario di Architettura di Venezia (IUAV) Workshop, and continues to speak at other universities. Connected to the arts, he presented at Summer Institute for the Visual Arts, University of British Columbia, and has served on the artist selection panel of the Phoenix Arts Commission.

A LEED accredited professional, Ben pursues environmental solutions with longevity and versatility, connected to a love of the outdoors. In life beyond architecture, Ben enjoys raising four amazing kids, volunteering with a children’s group, and testing his limits in climbing and distance mountain running.