A third generation Californian, Grant Kirkpatrick, FAIA, draws his energy and inspiration from his home state’s optimism and progressive ideals. Since its founding over 36 years ago, Grant has been the visionary force behind KAA Design Group and he and his team strive everyday to elevate the human spirit through the benefits and authenticity of warm contemporary residential design.

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Raised in Palos Verdes, Grant earned his Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Southern California and became a licensed architect at age 24. His entrepreneurial spirit and passion for design led him to found KAA Design just a few years later in 1988. Since then, the firm has completed projects for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Christie’s auction house, Hugo Boss stores across the nation, master plans and renovations for the Jonathan Club, Santa Monica Beach Club, and Manhattan Country Club, and other award-winning commercial and hospitality projects. The firm now focuses exclusively on custom homes, having notably worked with high-profile clients like Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Kirk Kerkorian, Matt Damon, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and The Pritzker Family, among others. Coastal retreats, city-view estates, and distinctive vacation properties for a broad range of passionate clients round out the firm’s impressive portfolio.

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Community service and academics are a core part of Grant’s practice. He serves as Board Chair for ArtworxLA and the Board of Councilors for the USC School of Architecture. Grant teaches at the annual XED Executive Education Program at USC and frequently lectures on topics surrounding Southern California residential architecture. In 2021, Grant was awarded the USC Architectural Guild Distinguished Alumni Award along with 4 other extraordinary individuals. His community involvement has included numerous industry appointments such as two-terms as a planning commissioner for the City of Manhattan Beach, membership on the Bel-Air Architecture Review Board, and juror for the Santa Barbara AIA Design Awards. Over the past three decades, KAA Design has won numerous AIA awards, the “Good Design is Good Business” award from Architectural Record, the 2009 PDC Stars of Design award for Architecture, Azure Magazine’s “Best Product” award, as well as several Los Angeles Design Council, LA Business Journal, and City of Beverly Hills Architecture awards. The firm’s work has been extensively published in over 30 design magazines and books including Architectural Digest, House Beautiful, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Coastal Living, Sunset Magazine, and The Robb Report.

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Outside day-to-day operations of KAA Design, Grant has developed a comprehensive line of outdoor furniture for Design Within Reach and a line of prefab homes. He enjoys spending his time off tending to his vineyard in Central California. Grant and his family are longtime residents of Manhattan Beach.

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Visit William Robert Wines to explore the wines and the story behind them.