04.06.21

Meet a Member – Angela Ryan, IIDA, NCIDQ, CID-C, EDAC

Angela Ryan, IIDA, NCIDQ, CID-C, EDAC
Ware Malcomb

Where do you work? What is your role there? What’s your favorite part of the job?:

Ware Malcomb, San Diego as the Director of Interior Architecture & Design. I oversee our interiors teams that work on a variety of projects ranging from workplace, retail, hospitality, science & technology, healthcare, and industrial.

Which City Center are you involved with?:

Ware Malcomb

What is your role in IIDA SoCal? Please include title:

Past SoCal President

What is something you’ve been doing for yourself during COVID?:

I can’t say I’ve been good about this. My husband gave me an iPad for Christmas with an Apple pencil. I downloaded Procreate, and when I have a few moments without baby hands around, I play around with it. I could watch YouTube videos of others using it for hours. I hope to improve my skills there and be able to use an app like that for work projects as well! Gotta stay on top of my game!

Favorite design styles?:

Design style, no. It’s always been hard for me to commit to a “favorite” anything. As a designer, I feel like we’re often denying ourselves of our “own style” to embody the style of our clients…or at least that’s the philosophy I have. We do serve to influence our clients, but ultimately, in deference to them.

Best memory of an IIDA SoCal event?:

Probably the first year that DesignConnect, re-debuted in San Diego at the Broadway Pier Port Pavilion. I was the committee chair at the time, and so excited and nervous about how it would turn out with such a big change of venue and marketing. There was so much energy and excitement that first year! It was so great to see the design community coming together like that. Especially now, I truly miss those days of togetherness!

Favorite place in your area?:

There is no one favorite place for me, and as much as San Diego keeps changing, so have my favorites! Back in the day, I used to go to Windansea rocks to lay out without the crowds. My free time looks a little different now with a baby. The Bernardo Winery is a sweet little, hidden gem in North County. Not many people know about it, and you really feel like you’ve been transported to another region, taking a stroll through that area

Favorite restaurant vibes in your neighborhood?:

I used to design-stalk all of the Consortium Holdings projects, especially when partnered with Basile Studios. It’s been a while since I’ve been out and about town, so I’m a little behind on the latest happenings, but I still admire all of their work.

Favorite artists/designers you follow in Instagram?:

There are so many…here are a few!
– Phil Maltz @maltzcreative if you like a good “house portrait”, especially of London buildings.
– Stefan Kunz @stefankunz
– Lisa Bardot @lisabardot for some Procreate art (on the iPad).
– Jordan Rhodes @jmr_art for some insane gouache / timelapse portraits.

How did you go from design school to this job?:

After graduation in 2006, I moved out from Missouri to California. My first job was with a firm in San Diego focused on hospitality but after a year was hired at a firm that focused on healthcare and education. I continued to update my resume and add certifications such as NCIDQ, CID and EDAC. It was the connections I had through IIDA, that landed me my role at Ware Malcomb. I met with Tiffany English and discussed my goals for the next few years. Her team philosophy and reputation in the industry was why I chose to make the change to the Ware Malcomb team, and I have been so happy with that decision ever since. I came in as a Senior Project Manager, with intention to grow into the Studio Manager, and then Director role, after building a relationship with the design team and meeting certain performance requirements.

What is your favorite creative outlet?:

Sketching and painting in a variety of mediums, whenever I can. I started to feel disconnected from my creative side a couple years ago and forced myself back in the habit when I went to Italy with my husband…sketching once a day, every day of the trip. A little over a year ago, I started doing “House-warming gifts” for some of my clients, by painting a perspective view of their finished space at the completion of their project. I have done several wall murals in my home and have an art IG profile for sharing some of my work. Follow me @angelalafica

Photo depicting your creative outlet:

This is part of an ongoing series of Member profiles. Please check our blog here and search under #MemberMondays to read more about our Members.

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