About

Architecture Research Office is a New York City-based firm led by Stephen Cassell, Kim Yao, and Adam Yarinsky.

We founded the firm in 1993 believing that curiosity and inquiry could be the basis of a new type of architecture practice.

Our research gives our work purpose and intention. Our architecture unites beauty and form with strategy and intelligence. Our office creates buildings that inspire people, further institutional missions, and advance equity and resilience.

Today, Architecture Research Office is a diverse collective united by a collaborative process, commitment to accountable action, and social and environmental responsibility.

ARO is an ILFI Just organization. We work with imaginative leaders and communities to design cultural, educational, commercial, and residential projects revealing the hidden potential within complex architectural and urban constraints.

In recognition of their vision, artistry, and dedication to craft, ARO’s Principals have been elected to the National Academy of Design. Additional firm accolades include the 2020 AIA Architecture Firm Award, the AIA New York State Firm of the Year Award, the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award for Architecture. The firm’s work has been exhibited widely and is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. The firm’s new book, entitled Architecture. Research. Office. was published in October 2024.

For more, see Leadership, People, Culture, Action, Sustainability, Work, Research, and Writing.