Laguna architect Mark Singer, 67, dies; known for contemporary designs

Mark Singer, an award-winning Laguna Beach architect who specialized in custom, single-family houses, died Sept. 17, after battling pancreatic cancer for more than a year.

He was 67.

Singer, who designed and built homes for nearly 30 years, became recognized for his contemporary design with timeless qualities, according to his company’s website.

Many of Singer’s recent projects included homes with an Old World, primitive character where authentic, antique-building materials are juxtaposed with today’s modern technologies.

In 2012, Singer earned the John S. Bolles Fellowship Award, which recognizes contributions to the architecture profession through service on the American Institute of Architects California Council.

Architect Marshall Ininns called Singer a “trendsetter of modern architecture in Laguna Beach.”

“He took away the typical Laguna Beach cottage look of pitched roofs, wood siding and brick trims and introduced multiple-shaped, glass-faced contemporary buildings in Laguna,” Ininns said. “He is someone I respected and enjoyed talking with him.”

It was this departure from Laguna’s beach cottage vibe that stirred some opposition to Singer’s designs, said his daughter, Jessica Berman, but no one could argue with his attention to detail and professional work ethic, gained from jobs as a contractor and concrete salesman.

Singer, the son and grandson of carpenters, moved with his family from New York’s Lower East Side to Los Angeles in 1957, the Los Angeles Times reported in a 1998 feature story.

“For a 9-year-old, the new neighborhood in Baldwin Hills was paradise, complete with a construction site that he and his pals turned into a playground,” The Times reported. “When he discovered a book in the tiny grade school library about the boyhood of architect Frank Lloyd Wright, his career path was set.”

Never one to sit for too long, Singer designed and built furniture for clients and friends, loved photography and enjoyed traveling, said Neela Kashyap, who worked with Singer for 14 years.

“He was like a father to me,” Kashyap said. “He was working to the last day. The night before, we were talking about meetings the next day.”

Singer was so excited to receive a sketch book in the mail during the final week of his life, said Berman, who lives in Costa Mesa.

“He said, ‘This gives me hope, something to look forward to, to keep drawing,’” Berman said Singer told her.

“He was a doer,” she said.

Singer is survived by Berman; a son, Ryan; his ex-wife Myriam and four grandchildren.

“[Myriam] was a big inspiration to my dad and his work,” Berman said.

Donations in Singer’s memory can be made to the Lustgarten Foundation, an organization dedicated to finding a cure for pancreatic cancer.

Funeral services were held Sunday.