Patrick fashioned his first architectural model for Centerbrook in 1990 when he was a freelance design consultant. He earned his bachelor of science degree in industrial design from the University of Bridgeport, and prior to becoming the firm’s master model maker and industrial designer in 2006, he worked as a mason, a toy designer for Hasbro, a welder/metal artisan, and an exhibition designer.

In addition to intricate and often quite large scale models of Centerbrook projects, Patrick fabricates and creates prototypes of lighting fixtures, furniture, and custom architectural features, such as a fountain for the School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University. His six-foot two-inch replica of the historic powerboat “Aphrodite,” a gift from the firm to the client, is on permanent display at the Ocean House in Watch Hill, Rhode Island. He has been a visiting instructor at the University of Bridgeport’s Industrial Design Department and leads the Centerbrook workshop on handcraft and making for the architectural staff.

Patrick credits a high school art teacher, a stonemason, and his father for instilling in him the determination to make and to fix things the right way. “My interest in design came from my dad, who is very artistic and handy,” he says. “Growing up, I was always interested in watching him work, whether he was making built-in cabinets for our bedrooms, fixing the lawnmower, tuning the car, or painting the house. By necessity and talent, he could do that whole Yankee self-sufficiency thing. I have found that what is simple and practical can also be beautiful.”

• Judge of urban park furniture competition sponsored by Architecture for Humanity’s New Haven chapter
• Centerbrook Travel Grant recipient
• Designed, built, and donated Chitty Chitty Bang Bang to local high school thespians
• Plays ice hockey
• Mantra: “Don’t overthink it.”