MASS Design Group Presents Work Preserving Indigenous Communities

Shawn Evans, Garron Yepa to deliver 2024 Knowles Architecture Lecture at Tyler

PHILADELPHIA, PA (March 13, 2024) – MASS Design Group Principal Shawn Evans and Senior Designer Garron Yepa will present the 2024 Knowles Architecture Alumni Lecture on Wednesday, March 20 at 6 p.m. at the Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University.

Evans and Yepa will discuss their focus on community-based design and cultural heritage preservation, particularly in Indigenous communities, and their work with the federal government on standards for Indigenous housing and settlements.

The presentation, entitled “From Kigali to Santa Fe,” will include actionable approaches for purpose-built design that can be adopted at all scales of practice.

MASS Design (Model of Architecture Serving Society) is a non-profit mission-driven organization founded to support partners by leveraging architecture, as well as inclusive design and construction processes, to create better health, justice, equity, and long-term sustainability.

With offices in Kigali, Rwanda and across the U.S. in Santa Fe, Boston and Poughkeepsie, the organization traverses geographic, typological, and disciplinary boundaries. 

Within the Santa Fe studio is the Sustainable Native Communities Design Lab (SNCDL), an initiative committed to narrowing the wealth gap and advancing justice and dignity in Native American territories. By collaborating with tribal community development corporations and housing authorities, MASS Design facilitates philanthropic investment in culturally responsive, resilient infrastructure, and spaces that resonate with the community's needs and aspirations.

“MASS Design Group is interdisciplinary, and our speakers who work out of the MASS Design's Santa Fe office will speak from their areas of expertise and experience that includes community planning, historic preservation and affordable housing - all areas of study here at Tyler.” said Kate Wingert-Playdon, Associate Dean and Director of Architecture and Environmental Design. “Most importantly, the integration of these and other areas of planning and design practice makes a bigger whole and better serves our communities and environments. This is such a good model for our students to understand.”

The Tyler School of Art and Architecture is located on Temple University’s Main Campus at 2001 N. 13th St. Philadelphia, PA 19122. The Knowles Architecture Alumni Lecture will take place in room ARCH 104 and on Zoom. 

About the Knowles Architecture Alumni Lecture

The Knowles Architecture Alumni Lecture was established in 2013 in honor of Professor Emerita Brigitte Knowles in the Department of Architecture and Environmental Design at the Tyler School of Art and Architecture. Through her teaching and leadership since the co-founding of the Temple Architecture Program in 1971, Knowles has deeply impacted the lives of hundreds of students. Initiated by alumni of the program, the lecture series has welcomed renowned visionary creatives from fields across the built environment to share innovative work and processes with the Philadelphia community. Past lecturers include Sharon Johnston, David Adjaye, Craig Dykers, Walter Hood, and Clive Wilkinson.

About the Tyler School of Art and Architecture 

The Tyler School of Art and Architecture is a collaborative community of bold thinkers and makers studying art, design and the built environment at Temple University that educates and inspires students to be active participants in society with the highest aspirations for creative and social achievement, individual expression, scholarly discovery and innovation. 

CONTACT: Tyler Strategic Communications Office at tylercom@temple.edu.