Tadd Heidgerken, RA is a licensed architect in Detroit Michigan who investigates contextual works through architecture, installation, fabrication and illustration. He earned a master's degree in architecture from the Cranbrook Academy of Arts (2008) and his Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Detroit Mercy (2001).

His current works include a soon to be launched artist residency space located in Detroit's Eastern Market, a collaboration with Mira Burack and Kate Daughdrill on the Edible Hut, a residential addition in Livonia Michigan and the historic renovation of a façade located in Detroit's Eastern Market. Recent works include designs for Astro Coffee, the conceptual design for the Spiral Collective and facility searches for the Bogg's Educational Center and DIAL.

As a faculty member at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Architecture, Heidgerken instructs design studio as well as courses dedicated to architectural graphics and the incorporation of computer software and digital fabrication techniques into the design practices. In 2010 Heidgerken particpated in the UDM SOA International Program by teaching design at the Politechnika Warszawska in Warsaw Poland.

Heidgerken actively seeks partnerships with diverse local, national and international teams, bringing the necessary expertise to design problems. Current collaborative projects include the Roosevelt Park Master Plan and the Slows To-Go commissary with uRbanDetail and English Village Townhouses and Williamsburg condominiums with Volume1.

He's a co-founder of the design collective etal Collaborative and is director of the etal Collaborative-D. a development company located in Detroit, Michigan.

The act of building is the most effective method to investigate our spacial ideas. His built works and installations have recently been exhibited at Daimler Financial HQ (2008), the Review Contemporary Gallery (2009), the Detroit Artist Market (2008), Cranbrook Museum as well as with showcased work as a faculty member at UDM (2007). Heidgerken participated with Jeannine Shinoda in the development of two storefronts enhancements for the AIA Detroit and Downtown Detroit Partnership (2009).

Iteration and observation are techniques used to challenge and hone original design intentions. Rarely do we discover the most effective solution first. A project's comprehension of social and physical context will inform the design and programming solutions. Trends and identities are critical in performing design - they empower designers to remain relevant to the project and communicate their intentions clearly to all involved parties, from the user to the investor.

Recent publications include a co-authored paper on Detroit development strategies in the Italian magazine The Plan, a feature of the Roosevelt Master Plan in the book The Power of Pro Bono: 40 Stories About Design for the Public Good by Architects and Their Clients by Metropolis Books and an article by Jonathan Oosting for Mlive.