Architecture | Lecturer

Thomas Bitnar was born in the Czech Republic (the former Czechoslovakia). He was awarded a B.A. and an M.S. in Architecture from the Czech Technical University (CVUT) School of Architecture and Town Planning and an M.S. in Architecture from the Academy of Fine Arts (AVU) in Prague. In 1980, he moved to the United States. He received his Master of Science in Real Estate Development from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation.

His background encompasses a broad range of projects in Europe and the U.S. Before moving to New York, he worked in the Prague architect studios of Atelier Gama and Prazsky Projektovy Ustav and for offices in Munich, Germany. In New York, he was a designer, job captain and project manager for such prestigious firms as HOK, Perkins & Will and Spector Group before opening his own office, Bitnar Architects, in 1990. He has completed projects in Prague, New York, and, since 1997, the Pacific Northwest. Thomas has received several AIA awards and awards for historic preservation. He is a twenty-year member of the American Institute of Architects, the Czech Chamber of Architects and the Royal Institute of British Architects. He is a certified LEED Green Associate and member of the U.S. Green Building Council. He is on the board of directors of the AIA Continental Europe Chapter where he will be vice-president in 2011 and president in 2012.

Thomas has been an architecture educator for nineteen years. He is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Montana State University and is currently teaching the Fall 2010 Sustainable Architecture Studio at the Prague Institute.