James Catalano

Adjunct Lecturer

James Catalano is a licensed architect and a founding partner of CICADA, an award-winning architecture and planning practice in New Orleans that works at the intersection of design, data, and the built environment. His project experience spans a wide range of scales and building types, from the Caesars Superdome and regional medical facilities to enterprise commercial retail, boutique and luxury hospitality, adaptive reuse, and historic preservation. Much of that work begins with feasibility studies and concept design, often on difficult sites or existing buildings where the first step is understanding what is already there.

Good design come out of good conversations, and I want my students to leave studio knowing how to have them.”

James began his career in disaster recovery, designing hundreds of homes for families displaced by catastrophic flooding across Louisiana and Texas. That work gave him a lasting respect for historic fabric and the communities that form around it, and it continues to shape CICADA’s work with historic buildings and sensitive urban contexts. The firm’s preservation work has been recognized with multiple awards from both the AIA and the Louisiana Landmarks Society.

Over more than a decade of practice, James has developed a bold, expressive design sensibility grounded in environmental sensitivity and close attention to each client’s vision. He has also built digital documentation into CICADA’s everyday design process, using laser scanning, drone photogrammetry, GIS mapping, and 3D modeling to understand existing conditions and test ideas early.

At Tulane, James teaches a second-year design studio, where he encourages students to approach design as both a rigorous discipline and a collaborative, human process. Outside the studio and the office, he volunteers with Habitat for Humanity, building homes in New Orleans and internationally. He is NCARB certified and licensed to practice architecture in Louisiana, Mississippi, and New York.