Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) co-founder A. Eugene “Gene” Kohn has passed away today in New York at the age of 92.

Kohn was a graduate of his hometown University of Pennsylvania and went on to found KPF along with his classmate Sheldon Fox and architect William Pedersen in 1976 after working for Welton Becket Associates' operation in New York. 

From there, early commissions for One Logan Square in Philadelphia and 333 Wacker Drive in Chicago helped shape the firm’s trajectory through the 1980s, eventually ending the decade with a slew of major corporate commissions – 900 North Michigan Avenue, the CNG Tower, and 311 South Wacker Drive – included in its growing international portfolio.

By that time, the firm had become a known entity among other commercial giants such as SOM and Gensler. An AIA Architecture Firm Award followed in 1990 and would help Kohn and his partners expand into new practice areas with commissions for the Petersen Automotive Museum, the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, and several airport terminal projects.

A boom in high-rise construction across Asia led the firm through its next decade, yielding signature designs for the International Commerce Centre (ICC) in Hong Kong and Shanghai World Financial Center (aka “The Bottle Opener”) that embraced the same kinds of postmodern compositions championed by Kohn since the early days of practice.

Outside of the office, Kohn also taught at both Harvard Business School and the Graduate School of Design in addition to serving on the board of trustees for his alma mater, the National Building Museum, and Urban Land Institute, to which he was just named the first-ever architect Life Trustee. Kohn was a U.S. Navy veteran and avid watercolorist known to take interest in young people as evidenced by his support for Publicolor, a designed-centered non-profit organization for which he served as Chairman. 

"Gene was universally respected in the community for his ability to achieve consensus,” KPF President James von Klemperer remembered fondly. “His seemingly limitless interest in other human beings gave him powerful insights into the social aspect of building programs and larger urban agendas. Without his easy charm and focused intensity, such notable projects as Roppongi Hills in Tokyo, the World Bank in Washington DC, One Vanderbilt in New York, and the reinvigoration of Covent Garden in London would not have realized their full success.”

“Gene was known throughout the architectural world for his ability to promote the services of KPF,”  William Pedersen added. “As valuable as that has been to the growth of our firm, his value within the firm, counseling our staff, has been even greater.”