AD—WO is an art and architecture practice based in New York City, and by extension, between Naarm/Melbourne and Addis Ababa. The practice examines how space is imaged and valued through art, design, and curatorial interventions. Founded in 2015 by Jen Wood and Emanuel Admassu, AD—WO has undertaken projects in Ethiopia, Tanzania, Germany, Italy, and the United States. Their work has been exhibited at La Biennale di Venezia (2023), Art Omi (2023), Museum of Modern Art in New York (2021), Architekturmuseum der TU München (2018), and Studio Museum in Harlem (2017). AD—WO’s work is in the permanent collections of the Art Institute of Chicago and the High Museum of Art (Atlanta).

Jen Wood (Naarm/Melbourne, Australia) Is a founding principal of AD—WO and a licensed Architect in the state of New York. Until 2018, Wood was at Bjarke Ingels Group, New York, as a Project Leader. Wood received her Bachelor and Master of Architecture at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, and a Master in Advanced Architectural Design at Columbia University.

Emanuel Admassu (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) Is founding principal of AD—WO and Assistant Professor at Columbia University GSAPP, where he teaches design studios and theory seminars in urban design and architecture. He has previously taught at RISD Architecture and Harvard GSD. Admassu’s teaching, research, and design practices examine the international constellation of Afrodiasporic spaces. Admassu completed his Bachelor of Architecture at Southern Polytechnic State University, followed by a Master of Advanced Architectural Design and Advanced Architectural Research at Columbia University.