Archinect - News

Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Ruth Carter to give keynotes at 2024 AIA Conference

2024-04-05T11:47:00-04:00

Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Ruth Carter have been announced as keynote speakers for the upcoming AIA Conference on Architecture & Design 2024. Gupta will deliver his speech to the Washington D.C. conference on June 7th, with Carter delivering her speech on June 8th.

Gupta is the Chief Medical Correspondent for CNN, where he reports on health and medical news domestically and internationally. “Since 2001, Gupta has covered some of the world’s most important public health and safety stories, including the COVID-19 pandemic — reaffirming his role as a trusted guide to millions of viewers navigating between facts and fiction,” the AIA said.

Meanwhile, Carter is an Academy Award-winning costume designer most well-known for her work on Marvel’s blockbuster film Black Panther, where she made history as the first Black person to win the category. “Her career in film and television spans over three decades, collaborating with prolific directors like Spike Lee, Steven Spielberg, and Ava DuVernay,” A...

Taylor Swift to give keynote at 2024 AIA Conference

2024-04-01T08:00:00-04:00

Emerging music artist Taylor Swift has been announced as the keynote speaker for the AIA Conference on Architecture & Design 2024. In advance of the event, Archinect has gained exclusive access to a leaked version of Swift’s speech, which is titled ‘A New Architecture Era.’

Swift is expected to begin her speech by taking an adversarial tone with the AIA, questioning if her invitation to deliver the keynote speech was made as a joke. “I don’t like your little games,” she will say. “Don’t like your tilted stage; the role you made me play of the fool.”

In addition to taking aim at the AIA, Swift is also expected to use the speech to offer an atonement for her involvement as an advisor for Saudi Arabia’s NEOM project. “I knew you were trouble when you walked in,” she will say, directly addressing the project organizers. “So, shame on me now. You flew me to places I’d never been, now I’m lyin’ on the cold hard ground.”

Turning to her vision for the future of the built environment, Swift...

Jacinda Ardern, former New Zealand Prime Minister, will headline at the 2023 AIA Conference on Architecture

2023-05-04T15:25:00-04:00

Another international head of state will follow last year’s A’22 keynote speaker Barack Obama in headlining the upcoming AIA Conference on Architecture in San Francisco after the Institute announced that former Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern will be in attendance at the event.

The 42-year-old Ardern, who was inaugurated in 2017 as her country’s youngest-ever Prime Minister, will speak to attendees on June 10th, likely on subjects related to her tenure as New Zealand’s leader and her ongoing support for the rights of women across the globe.

The AIA says: "Ms. Ardern’s focus on people, kindness, and what she has called 'pragmatic idealism' saw New Zealand achieve some of the lowest losses of life experienced by any developed nation through the pandemic."

Earlier on Archinect: Obama's remarks at the 2022 AIA Conference on Architecture speak on the intersection of inequality and sustainable design

Ardern is now serving in several advisory roles, including as a board member ...

Obama's remarks at the 2022 AIA Conference on Architecture speak on the intersection of inequality and sustainable design

2022-06-27T19:13:00-04:00

Barack Obama was greeted by a packed house at the close of the Friday session of this year’s A’22 Conference in his adopted hometown of Chicago.

Speaking to the capacity audience in a Q&A hosted by new AIA President Dan Hart, the two-term former U.S. President used his platform to touch upon the crisis of available affordable housing in America.

“Chicago is a case study of times architecture reinforced inequity,” he said, echoing long-held criticism of the city advanced recently by filmmaker Jordan Peele and documented by other observers of the city for a period of decades. Obama then spoke about the role government can play in aiding the delivery of more affordable units to the residential market, claiming that, in some cases, left-leaning policymakers are to blame for the predicament facing a number of states and municipalities.

“Good planning and skilled architects are needed, but this is where government policy makes a difference,” he said. “Sprawl in America isn’t good for our...

Barack Obama to speak at the 2022 AIA Conference on Architecture

2022-05-31T17:56:00-04:00

Former U.S. President Barack Obama has been announced as the surprise headline speaker on Day 3 of this year’s A’22 Conference in Chicago.

Obama will join for a moderated conversation about a yet-unnamed topic at the close of the conference’s Friday session on June 24th at the McCormick Place Convention Center.

His appearance follows that of his wife, First Lady Michelle Obama, who spoke at the A’17 conference about the importance of equity and diversity efforts in the world of professional design. The President’s appearance comes just a few months removed from the groundbreaking of the TWBTA-designed Obama Presidential Center complex in Chicago's Jackson Park which is scheduled to open in 2025 following years of delay.

Obama’s legacy and impacts as it relates to the fields of architecture and urban planning are still being examined by scholars, but he was influential in mandating new stan...

Venus Williams will be a keynote speaker at the AIA Conference on Architecture

2021-06-15T07:58:00-04:00

This year’s AIA Conference on Architecture just got an unexpected celebrity guest.

Tennis legend Venus Williams will be the keynote speaker at this year’s edition of the conference, where she will deliver a lecture titled ‘The Need for Change.’

Williams, who has long been seen as a champion of gender and racial equity, has made a name for herself in architectural circles lately after starting her own interior design firm V Starr in 2002. The Florida-based firm made waves earlier this year for its reworking of sister Serena’s 14,500 square foot Spanish-style mansion in Miami that included an infinity pool, 620 square foot closet, Gaggenau appliances, wine cellar, and white-walled gallery space meant to showcase the superlative collection the younger Williams has amassed over her three decade career.

The 40-year-old former grand slam champion has also partnered with Airbnb affiliate Niido on the design for the interior of their eponymous apartment complexes, which began operation in 2...

Virgil Abloh will be the keynote speaker for the AIA 2020 conference

2020-02-11T18:23:00-05:00

Virgil Abloh, the artistic director for Louis Vuitton's menswear collection who has positioned himself as quite the polymath, has been announced as the keynote speaker for the 2020 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Conference on Architecture. On May 14th, Abloh will sit for an interview with keynote host Roman Mars of 99% Invisible to discuss "democratic design and intellectualizing the mundane" at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Previously on Archinect: The Manifold Transparencies of Virgil Abloh. "...Abloh is himself trained as an architect...and has since gone on to describe the lessons learned and architecture studied during these years as crucial to his current success." - Shane Reiner-Roth. Shown: A fashion shoot styled by Virgil Abloh in the Barcelona Pavilion, by Mies van der Rohe. Photo by Fabien Montique.

Abloh has earned degrees in both architecture and engineering. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Mad...

Following criticism of the lack of women speakers at the 2017 AIA Conference, Elizabeth Diller added to roster

2017-03-06T19:50:00-05:00

Elizabeth Diller, the founding partner of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, will now deliver a keynote address at this year’s AIA Conference on Architecture. The announcement follows intense criticism lodged at the AIA last month following an initial announcement of a lineup without any women.

Many architects voiced criticism and some signed an open letter calling for the AIA to take more meaningful action to address gender inequity in the profession. Subsequently, the AIA added a panel with Nóra Demeter, Michael Ford, and Cheryl McAfee, moderated by Frances Anderton.

Diller will be sharing a stage with last year’s Pritzker Prize winner, Alejandro Aravena, as well as Francis Kéré, who will be designing the Serpentine Pavilion this summer. The inclusion of several significant architects follows criticism of last year's lineup, which favored non-architect celebrities over practitioners.

This year the AIA Conference on Architecture will be held on Orlando and will revolve around the theme ‘Antic...

Julia Louis-Dreyfus + Terry Gross replace Kevin Spacey as AIA keynote speakers

2016-05-12T13:15:00-04:00

Going for the obvious choice, the AIA has replaced Kevin Spacey, who had to cancel his appearance, with thespian Julia Louis-Dreyfus as its first day keynote speaker for the 2016 Philadelphia convention on May 19th. Dreyfus will be interviewed by NPR's Terry Gross. As the AIA noted on its official convention website, "In her personal life, Julia is a social activist who is passionate about climate change, water conservation, children’s education, and the power of design. Important topics that we connect with, too." Neri Oxman and Rem Koolhaas are still scheduled for keynote speakers on days two and three, respectively.

All the latest on the AIA:

Rem Koolhaas to deliver keynote on day 3 of AIA National Conference

2016-02-17T18:31:00-05:00

If you're planning to head to this year's AIA National Conference in Philadelphia, you're in for what should be a great talk: Rem Koolhaas, renowned founder and principal of the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), has just been announced as the keynote speaker for the third day of the conference.

The aptly-titled talk, "Delirious Philadelphia", is described as a "a kick in the pants from Koolhaas" in the announcement. Besides riffing on the title of his seminal 1978 book, scant information on the specifics of his address is given, with organizers instead favoring copy like: "Explore your imagination and share ideas that catch fire—with inspiration from one of the world’s most visionary collaborators."

The 2016 annual AIA National Conference will be held this year from May 18-21 in a "171,000 sq ft temporary built environment" in Philadelphia. The other keynote addresses will be given by the actor Kevin Spacey and the architect Neri Oxman of MIT's Mediated Matter research group...

Keyser Söze keynote speaker at 2016 AIA convention (okay, Kevin Spacey, but still)

2016-02-11T14:50:00-05:00

What can architects learn from an award-winning producer and actor whose Netflix Original Series made appointment TV obsolete? A lot.

Kevin Spacey will be the keynote speaker for the upcoming 2016 AIA Convention in Philadelphia, partly because he is described on the AIA's website as having a "talent for disruption and drive to challenge the status quo." Disruption seems to be trendy in the architectural community of late. Apparently, "This keynote is where you learn to be a game changer from a master innovator, collaborator, and disruptor." Here's Mr. Spacey with 2015 AIA Convention keynote speaker, President Bill Clinton:

Here's what happened at the 2015 AIA Convention, as covered in person by Archinect:

President Bill Clinton to deliver keynote address at 2015 AIA National Convention

2015-01-06T15:14:00-05:00

President Bill Clinton will deliver the keynote address during the 2015 AIA National Convention and Design Exposition in Atlanta on May 14th. The theme of this year’s AIA Convention is Impact, focusing on how architects impact their communities both locally and globally. Through learning the essential skills to become successful entrepreneurs, the AIA Convention will provide attendees the skills to grow, sell and promote their firm’s business.

Last year, it was Pharrell Williams, artist and urban planner Theaster Gates, and Jeanne Gang. 2013's keynotes were a professionally diverse set, including former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Architecture for Humanity co-founder Cameron Sinclair, and Blake Myoskie, founder of TOMS shoes. 2012's included a 6-piece set of architects involved in 9/11 memorials or rebuilding projects, along with the historian David McCullough and Hon. Shaun Donovan, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

2015's National Convention will take place May 14-16 in Atlanta, Georgia. The AIA has yet to announce whether it will flesh out 2015's keynote line-up with representatives from the architectural or urban planning professions.

Pharrell Williams Will Give the AIA 2014 National Convention Keynote Address

2014-03-24T13:39:00-04:00

Williams joins artist and urban planner Theaster Gates and MacArthur Genius and architect Jeanne Gang, FAIA, as speakers who will deliver keynote addresses. ARCHITECT Live host Stephen Chung, AIA, and 2014 AIA President Helene Combs Dreiling, FAIA, will also give talks. And Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel may put in an appearance as well, but who ever knows with that guy.

Colin L. Powell, Blake Mycoskie, and Cameron Sinclair to speak at 2013 AIA National Convention

2012-12-04T12:41:00-05:00

General Colin L. Powell, USA (Ret.), former Secretary of State (2001 – 2005), joins Cameron Sinclair, co-founder and chief eternal optimist of Architects For Humanity, and Blake Mycoskie, founder and chief shoe giver of TOMS, as keynote speakers for the 2013 AIA National Convention. The nation’s architects and design industry meet June 20-22, 2013 in Denver.

The AIA Convention is architecture’s largest annual gathering to keep current with innovative design solutions and the latest products and services that architects specify for the clients and communities they serve. The 2013 “Building Leaders” theme will give architects and design professionals opportunities to learn, share, and demonstrate the essential qualities that define leadership today. Learn more at the AIA Convention site.

“Architects are more likely leading teams of talented professionals than working in the isolated, stereotypical way we see them in popular culture,” said AIA President-elect, Mickey Jacob, FAIA. “The ‘Building Leaders’ convention theme is focused on better preparing architects to contribute creative solutions with lasting positive impact on the health and well being of society. General Powell, Blake Mycoskie, and Cameron Sinclair will inspire us through their insights and experiences to bring more to our roles in business, architecture, and civic li...

Al Gore to address nation’s architects

2006-11-30T15:59:00-05:00

Vice President Al Gore will be partying with the American Institute of Architects (AIA) in San Antonio, Texas over Cinco de Mayo (Saturday May 5, 2007) next year as the keynote speaker to the AIA’s 2007 National Convention, Growing Beyond Green. Inhabitat