Qingyun Ma has been announced as the new dean of the USC School of Architecture. More | From the Jobs archive, 10/05
On behalf of President Sample, I am delighted to announce the appointment of Qingyun Ma as dean of the USC School of Architecture and holder of the Della and Harry MacDonald Dean's Chair in Architecture. His appointment is effective January 1, 2007. He replaces Robert H. Timme, who served with distinction at USC from 1996 until his death in 2005.
Qingyun Ma -- an internationally-acclaimed architect and educator -- is the founder and design principal of the groundbreaking Shanghai architectural firm MADA s.p.a.m. His remarkable career reflects the very qualities we value most highly at USC. He is an innovative and creative thinker who can put exceptional ideas into practice. He has a reputation for architectural design of the highest distinction. He is dedicated to the education and development of the best young talent. And he is truly a world citizen, one whose life has been global in scope and impact.
His wife, architect Shouning Li, has been senior project manager for the Shanghai development company that created Xin-Tian-Di, one of the first projects in China to integrate historical urban fabric into a modern commercial leisure and entertainment development. They have two sons, ages 10 and 8.
Recognized globally for excellence in design, MADA s.p.a.m. is the most visible Chinese-based practice on the international scene. Ma's position at the vanguard of cutting-edge architecture is evidenced by the name of his firm, which places strategy (s.), planning (p.), architecture (a.) and media (m.) on equal footing.
His landmark buildings include Qingpu Community Island in Shanghai, the Centennial TV and Radio Center in Xian and Tianyi City Plaza in Ningpo.
Through MADA s.p.a.m. he has created award-winning projects such as the Longyang Residential complex in Shanghai and Creative Business Office for SOHO China Ltd. in Beijing, the tallest building in Northwest China.
Beyond his own contributions to architecture, Ma is known for helping to prepare the world's next generation of architects. He has served as a visiting professor and critic at Harvard University; the University of Pennsylvania; Columbia University; ETH in Zurich, Switzerland; Berlage Institute in the Netherlands; Universitat Karlsruheand and Berlin Technical University in Germany; and Ecole Speciale Architectura in Paris, France.
He coordinated Rem Koolhaas' first Harvard Project on Cities, which resulted in the 1993 book, The Great Leap Forward, and the two have collaborated on the Central China TV headquarters in Beijing and the Stock Exchange Building in Shenzhen.
Recently, Ma helped curate an important exhibition on Chinese contemporary art and architecture in Centre Pompidou, Paris. He is an architectural director of an upcoming show on Shanghai in Montreal and co-curator with Matilda McQuaid for an exhibition at the Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum in New York. He served as planning expert to the International Olympic Committee for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and has served on important national competition juries, including the 2008 Olympic Stadium.
He holds a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering in Architecture from Tsinghua University and a master's degree in architecture from the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Fine Art -- the first Chinese citizen to do so since Sicheng Liang, a 1937 Penn graduate and a leading figure in both traditional Chinese architecture research and Chinese national architecture during the 1950s and 1960s. Before founding MADA s.p.a.m. in 1996, Ma practiced architecture in New York City with the noted American firm Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates.
Dean Ma's appointment follows an exhaustive international search, and I would like to thank Dean Madeline Puzo of the USC School of Theatre and the other members of the search committee for their work. I would also like to thank Gerald Davison, who has served as interim dean during the past year, and who has agreed to remain in this role through the end of the year.
There has been overwhelming support for Dean Ma's candidacy from faculty, students and alumni in the School of Architecture, as well as from other USC deans and international leaders. Please join President Sample and me in welcoming Dean Qingyun Ma, his wife Shouning and their sons to the Trojan Family. I am confident that Dean Ma will both continue the school's tradition of leadership and innovation in architectural education, and extend its reach and influence into exciting new arenas.
Zelda Wong
University of Southern California
School of Architecture
3 Comments
He is also lecturing at SCIArc on Nov 8.
Chinese Deans coast-to-coast MIT (Yung Ho Chang) and USC (Qingyun Ma).
on USC appointment of Qingyun Ma
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