Paul Westlake

Paul Westlake

Paul has enjoyed a 40+-year career almost exclusively focused on the arts. A nationally regarded expert in the planning and design of museums in the United States, he has a deep knowledge of the key issues museums face, from operational, financial, and mission-oriented considerations, and a passion for designing in the public interest for maximum community impact. With a personal dedication to design excellence and an entrepreneurial spirit, Paul was the youngest architect awarded AIA Fellowship at age 45. He has led the planning and design of museum projects with clients such as the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Renwick Gallery, the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and the Museum at Bethel Woods/Woodstock Festival Museum.
 
Paul has lectured at conferences of the International Council of Fine Arts Deans, the League of Historic American Theatres, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, the International Association of Assembly Managers, and other symposia. His projects have received numerous honors, including recognition from local and state American Institute of Architects chapters, the National Trust of Historic Preservation, and U.S. General Services Administration awards. He sits on numerous cultural arts boards, including as a Trustee of the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland, and Assembly for the Arts, a new arts organization focusing on advocacy and public policy, racial equity initiatives, research, cooperative marketing for the arts, capacity-building for nonprofits, artists, and creative businesses.