Sfumato Architects

Sfumato is a Los Angeles-based architecture and design practice founded on the idea that inspiring surroundings elevate the human spirit.

Sfumato is committed to designing buildings, spaces and objects in harmony with place, site and climate; respectful of land and people; with authenticity and beauty rooted in practicality; calm, confident, honest, timeless.

We strive to deliver exceptional design service with professionalism, integrity and unwavering positive attitude. We invite our clients to be active collaborators in a design process of discovery, learning and growth for everyone involved.

Irina Tehrani, AIA

Irina received her Master of Architecture degree from the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy in Sofia, Bulgaria, where she was born and raised. After several years of experience on multifamily residential, commercial and hospitality projects, Irina relocated to the United States and joined the team at Studio SHIFT Architects in Los Angeles where horizons and scale expanded through rewarding work on ambitious international competitions.

A deeply-rooted passion for knowledge, learning and desire for engagement in the critical discourse of contemporary architecture led her to New York and Columbia University where she earned a Master of Advanced Architectural Design degree. Upon graduation Irina was awarded the Lucille Smyser Memorial Prize for best final semester studio design project and the William Kinne Fellows Prize.

Opportunity to work with the typology that most intrigues her - the home - brought her back to Los Angeles where she joined the award-winning firm Warren Office for Research and Design. There Irina worked on a number of complex, highly detail- and craft-oriented projects, both commercial and residential.
Shortly after earning her California license, Irina founded Sfumato Architects in 2018.

Irina’s work as an architect is intrinsically connected to her work as an artist:

“In my art studio, I find a more immediate and unrestricted medium of expression. Often ideas that inform my architectural work are first explored on the canvas or through writing. What defines a space? What is boundary? What makes a place? What is home? I attempt answering these questions through visual meditations on the elemental: composition, contrast, light, dark, white space, negative space, form, line, surface, texture, material, color.”

The rich blend of old-world sensibilities, East Coast academic training, West Coast life and practice, along with her commitment to art making, results in Irina’s unique process and response to design problems.