Karla Sierralta, AIA, is an associate professor in architectural design. She currently serves as the director of undergraduate studies, coordinates the first-year Design Fundamentals I studio, and leads the Design Exchange: Spaces for Peace program with the Nagaoka Institute of Design in Japan. As a first-generation immigrant and member of the Venezuelan diaspora, her professional, theoretical, and academic explorations are informed by her hyphenated identity and lived experiences. Her courses explore the process and agency of design, focusing on fundamentals, cross-cultural narratives, spatial justice, and dwelling. She has been honored with the UHM Presidential Citation for Meritorious Teaching (2020) and has been on faculty teams that received the AIA/ACSA Practice+Leadership Award (2020), a National Endowment for the Arts grant (2021), and the ACSA/Buell Center Course Development Prize in Architecture, Climate Change, and Society (2021).
At the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, Prof. Sierralta operates as an independent researcher. Since 2017, she has been affiliated with the UH Community Design Center (UHCDC) and was a key member of the start-up team. Sierralta also serves as an advisor to UHM’s Campus Design Lab and co-founded the Hawai’i Housing Lab (HHL) (www.hawaiihousinglab.org), a research-based design platform exploring holistic housing for the Hawaiian archipelago and beyond.
Sierralta is a registered architect in Hawai’i, Illinois, and Venezuela. She has served on the AIA Honolulu Board of Directors (2021-2022) and was co-president of the Chicago Architectural Club (2012-2014). In 2003, she co-founded Strawn Sierralta (www.strawnsierralta.com), a multimodal design practice and partnership that bridges academic and professional realms. Strawn Sierralta’s body of work includes pedagogical, research, and creative outputs centered on reimagining spatial typologies and architectural artifacts as catalysts for expanding understanding. Strawn Sierralta projects have been recognized for innovation, social impact, and design excellence by organizations that include the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA), the Society for Experiential Graphic Design (SEGD), Good Design, and Fast Company.
Before joining the faculty at UHM, Karla Sierralta was a Studio Associate Professor at the College of Architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, where she was curator of foundational graduate studios and taught across the graduate and undergraduate curriculum. She has also served on the faculty at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Universidad Rafael Urdaneta, and La Universidad del Zulia.
Areas of Interest
Design Fundamentals
Housing & Dwelling
Cross-Cultural Narratives
Spatial Justice
Professional Experience
Strawn Sierralta, Co-founder, 2003 – present
Illinois Institute of Technology, College of Architecture, 2010 – 2016
Universidad Rafael Urdaneta, Escuela de Arquitectura, 2007 – 2009
University of Illinois at Chicago, School of Architecture, 2006 – 2007
Norsman Architects, 2003 – 2007
Universidad del Zulia, Facultad de Arquitectura y Diseño, 1998 – 2001
License(s)
Registered Architect, Hawai‘i #19452, Illinois #024955, Venezuela #117747
American Institute of Architects (AIA) Member
National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) Certified
Design Awards
2024 Fast Company’s Innovation by Design Award – Social Justice
2024 ACSA Architectural Education Awards – Collaborative Practice
2023 Good Design Award
2023 SEGD Global Design Award
2023 Fast Company’s Innovation by Design Award – Social Justice
2023 AIA Honolulu Award of Excellence
2023 AIA Honolulu Distinctive Detail Award
2023 Graphic Design USA’s Digital Award
2023 Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Award – Art & Design
2022 ACSA Architectural Education Awards – Collaborative Practice
2020 AIA Honolulu Design Award – Institutional
2019 IIDA Hawai‘i Pacific Chapter Ho’ohuli Maker Award
2019 AIA Honolulu Design Award – Unbuilt
2017 AIA Honolulu Design Award – Institutional
2015 The Shining Maze Competition Finalist
2011 Tahoe Quarterly Modern Mountain Home Award
2007 Chicago Architectural Club Emerging Visions Award
2006 History Channel City of the Future IBM Engineering Innovation Award
2006 Global Green USA Gold Star Citation Award
2005 McCormick Tribune Foundation Sculpture Competition Finalist
2004 Ford Calumet Environmental Center Competition Finalist
2004 Green Tent Design Competition First Prize Award
2004 Paris Olympic Landmark Competition Notable Entry Award
2003 World Trade Center Memorial Competition Finalist
UH News
International, local awards for comprehensive Indigenous language campus, September 1, 2023
Mānoa signage featuring ancient place names wins international award, May 2, 2023
Architecture exchange shares culture, design with students from Japan, March 29, 2023
Student travel to Japan enriches architecture exchange, March 7, 2023
Future architects learn through design competition, October 18, 2022
New Mānoa signage features ancient place names, cultural knowledge, July 19, 2022
UH equitable housing design project earns national recognition, February 8, 2022
Indigenous urban design earns award for architecture student, October 26, 2021
Coordinated architecture, urban planning courses receive national award, February 11, 2021
Design Tank event generates ideas to improve public spaces, January 22, 2021
Micro-architecture ‘Lawn Loungers’ win award, engage community, December 2, 2020
Mānoa Awards honors best in teaching, research, and service, May 15, 2020
UH team launches new website to help public housing residents, April 15, 2020
UH Community Design Center wins two national awards, February 4, 2020
National attention for architecture graduate’s hope to ‘bridge’ Kalihi, May 6, 2019