RAIC names five notable architects as 2019 Honorary Fellows

Today, the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada announced five notable architects as 2019 Honorary Fellows, who are distinguished for their leadership, innovation, and extraordinary achievements in the field. The title also highlights the role of architects in public life around the world and the evolving diversity of the profession.

The Honorary Fellows are: Renzo Piano, Denise Scott Brown, Ivenue Love-Stanley, Elizabeth Chu Richter, and Vishaan Chakrabarti.

“This year’s Honorary Fellows have been rightfully recognized as leaders and creative thinkers,” said Diarmuid Nash, Chancellor of the RAIC College of Fellows, in a statement. “We are honored to have iconic figures such as Denise Scott Brown and Renzo Piano become members of the RAIC, and at the same time to welcome leaders and role models such as Love-Stanley and Richter, and a provocative thinker like Chakrabarti who is challenging our ideas about cities and urban life.” 

Read on for more about the Honorary Fellows:

Renzo Piano: “Renzo Piano was born into a family of builders in Genoa in 1937. He graduated from the Politecnico di Milano in 1964, and during his studies he worked with Franco Albini. He collaborated with Richard Rogers from 1971 (Piano and Rogers), and with Peter Rice from 1977 (Atelier Piano & Rice). Piano and Rogers designed the Centre Pompidou in Paris, an icon of 20th - century architecture. In 1981, he established the Renzo Piano Building Workshop, which currently employs 150 sta ff and has offices in Paris, Genoa, and New York. Piano has left his mark on buildings all around the world, from the London Bridge Tower (The Shard) in London to the new Whitney Museum of American Art. He has received numerous awards, including the RIBA Royal Gold Medal (1989), the Praemium Imperiale (1995), the Pritzker Architecture Prize (1998), and the Gold Medal AIA (2008). He is an Italian senator for life and head of the Renzo Piano Foundation , dedicated to the promotion of the architectural profession. In May 2014 he received a Columbia University Honorary Degree.”

Denise Scott Brown: “Denise Scott Brown is an architect, planner and urban designer, theorist, writer and educator whose work has influenced students and architects worldwide since the 1960s. She studied architecture in South Africa, London, and at the University of Pennsylvania, where she received a Masters degrees in both city planning and architecture. As principal with Robert Venturi at VSBA, Scott Brown participated in major architectural projects for the National Gallery London, the Conseil General Building in Toulouse, the Nikko Kirifuri Spa and Hotel in Japan, and academic buildings across the US. She was principal for the firm’s projects in urban planning, urban design, c ampus planning and programming. Her published writings include Urban Concepts , Learning from Las Vegas (with Rob ert Venturi and Steven Izenour), and Architecture as Signs and Systems (with Robert Venturi). At 88, Denise continues to write and lecture. Her recent awards include the 2016 AIA Gold Medal (with Robert Venturi), the 2018 Soane Medal Award, and the AIA 25 Year Award for the National Gallery Sainsbury Wing (with Robert Venturi).”

Ivenue Love-Stanley: “Ivenue Love-Stanley is a pioneer who has ventured into uncharted waters and paved the way for others to follow. She has inspired countless others to dare to achieve. She was the first African-American woman to graduate from the Georgia Institute of Technology College of Architecture in 1977, and the very first African-American woman to become a registered architect in the Southeast. Forty years ago, she and her husband, William J. Stanley III, FAIA, NOMAC, Hon. FRAIC, started their architectural practice, Stanley, Love Stanley, P.C. The firm has grown to one of the largest African - American practices in the country and has been responsible for many of Atlanta's landmarks. As Managing Principal, Love - Stanley has received numerous awards . She lectures widely across the country and serves as a mentor and role model for scores of young women of all races in the pursuit and practice of architecture.”

Elizabeth Chu Richter: “Elizabeth Chu Richter is CEO of Richter Architects , based in Corpus Christi, Texas. The firm is a recognized leader in the profession and received the Architecture Firm Award from the Texas Society of Architects in 2011. For decades, Richter has championed the power of architecture to impact lives and lift the human spirit. In addition to her design work, writing, and speaking, she conceived and produced The Shape of Texas , a radio series on architecture broadcast on NPR-affiliate stations. The series ran for 11 years, broadcast over 500 episodes, and reached millions. Richter has twice chaired the AIA Gold Medal/Firm Award Advisory Jury, and most recently lectured at the 90th anniversary of the School of Architecture at Southeast University in Nanjing, China. A Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Elizabeth was elected as the 2015 national AIA President, the fourth woman and the first Asian - American woman to hold the office.”

Vishaan Chakrabarti: “Vishaan Chakrabarti is the founder of Practice for Architecture and Urbanism ׀ PAU and teaches design and urban theory at Columbia University. His highly acclaimed book, A Co untry of Cities: A Manifesto for an Urban America (Metropolis Books, 2013), argues that a well - designed urban world would result in more prosperity, sustainability, equity, and joy. Chakrabarti and his team are designing distinctive projects that reflect and rethink global urban life in the 21 st century, including the Domino site in New York, the beginnings of a new downtown for Philadelphia, and a remarkable urban village and cultural centre in Ulanbator, Mongolia. Prior to founding PAU, Chakrabarti was t he director of planning for Manhattan after the tragic events of 9/11 and helped to plan the High Line, the reconstruction of the World Trade Centre, and the expansion of Columbia University. Chakrabarti has lectured on the main stage of TED and across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. He has been profiled in The New York Times and The Financial Times.”

Piano, Love-Stanley, Richter, and Chakrabarti will be inducted into the RAIC College of Fellows at a ceremony during the RAIC 2019 Festival of Architecture in Toronto from October 26-30. Piano will deliver the keynote address at the College of Fellows Convocation, and Chakrabarti will speak about the future of architecture. Scott Brown will be honored at a later date.