2024-05-07T17:48:14-04:00 https://archinect.com/features/article/150250845/op-ed-paul-r-williams-the-complexity-of-being-an-architectural-icon-and-black Lance Collins 2021-02-23T10:42:00-05:00 >2021-03-19T11:31:05-04:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/2a/2a967041a42c3a5bf1c13f1c13e6bcc7.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p>When asked to reflect on the impact that Paul R. Williams has had on my career as an architect, I was initially hesitant. How do you quantify the importance of such an icon of the profession? I did not grow up in Los Angeles. I grew up in Seattle. I always wanted to be an architect. Architects and designers are in my family. Paul R Williams was not the first Black Architect that I was exposed to. I went to a majority architecture school in New York. PRW was not covered in our euro-centric architecture curriculum. I was only exposed to PRW through the <a href="https://archinect.com/firms/cover/150230590/national-organization-of-minority-architects-noma" target="_blank">National Organization of Minority Architects</a>, while I was in college. Immediately upon learning about his works, I felt woefully behind. Since that time, including a move to Los Angeles, I have experienced some of his works in person, met some of his family members, and had conversations with colleagues who knew him directly. His icon status is undeniable, and should be amplified and celebrated exponentially, however, for me his legacy ...</p>