UPenn Weitzman Architecture

Third-year students from the 704 studios presented their work during their final reviews last week. Their projects reflected the diverse locations of their studio travel. ARCH 704 Design Studio VI: Kazuyo Sejima @sanaa_jimusho and Toshihiro Oki @toshihiro_oki_architect Jing Liu and Florian Idenburg @solidobjectives and Alessandra Cianchetta @alessandracianchetta Stephen Kieran and James Timberlake @kierantimberlake and Johann Mordhorst Lap Chi Kwong and Alison Von Glinow @kwongvonglinow Masoud Akbarzadeh @masoudakbarzadeh @weitzman_arch #weitzmanschoolofdesign #weitzmanarchitecture #penndesign #upenn #universityofpennsylvania

Students in 602 studios presented their projects during final reviews last week. The proposal is for The Culture Shed on Race Street Pier: an extension of the FringeArts, an institute for the performing arts. These second year final projects for the Culture Shed contained components for public commons, a public performance center with auditorium, private rehearsal spaces, editing suites, recording studios, and art studios, public galleries, and a café. Instructors: Simon Kim, Coordinator @ibanez.kim , Annette Fierro @anettelesf , Daniel Markiewicz @forma.ny , Eduardo Rega, Andrew Saunders @andrewasaunders , and Danielle Willems @maetadesign @weitzman_arch #weitzmanschoolofdesign #weitzmanarchitecture #penndesign #upenn #universityofpennsylvania

Students of the MSD_AAD program (Advanced Architectural Design) presented their projects during their final reviews last week. They have completed the second out of three semesters in the program. Faculty instructors for all four sections: Hina Jamelle @cap_ny_sh , Ferda Kolatan @ferdak , Barry Wark @barry_wark , and Scott Lee and Ben Pennell. @weitzman_arch @penn.weitzman.aad #weitzmanschoolofdesign #penndesign #UPenn #universityofpennsylvania #advancedarchitecturaldesign

The final reviews for the Spring 2026 semester were kicked off last Wednesday with the 502 studios. Congrats to the students on completing your first year! Studio critics: David Eugin Moon @david_eugin_moon @nhdm_arch | Rossana Hu @rossanahu @neriandhu and Kristine Chung @krisse_sc | Taylor Dover @introduce.studio | Daniel Garcia @drawings.dwgs | Sonia Flamberg @soniaflamberg | Alessandra Rampazzo, Marcello Galiotto, and Costanza Favero @amaa_office | Dorian Booth @almostudio | Lane Rick @lanerick @weitzman_arch #weitzmanschoolofdesign #weitzmanarchitecture #penndesign #upenn #universityofpennsylvania

In their teaching and their practice, Weitzman faculty are helping museums in the US and abroad deepen connections to their site and community. ⁠ ⁠ 1) “Architecture’s role is to fulfill the needs of the clients by shaping the gallery spaces in the way that will work best for the institution,” says Daniel Markiewicz, an associate professor of practice in architecture, whose Master of Architecture students designed an addition to Penn’s Institute of Contemporary Art. Work by Chenxi Li.⁠ 2) Associate Professor of Architecture Ferda Kolatan leads an Advanced Architectural Design studio working in the city of Side on Turkey’s southern coast at an archaeological site with ancient architectural artifacts. Students are charged with designing a new archaeological museum using the ancient building remains that still exist on the site. Work by Eugene Chen and Xiaofeng Mo.⁠ 3) For Marion Weiss, Graham Professor of Practice in Architecture and co-founder of the firm, the competition for the Nelson-Atkins commission was “one of the most extraordinary opportunities we could think of.” WEISS/MANFREDI's design (left) follows a 2007 addition by Steven Holl (right). "Museums need to transcend their traditional bounded identities," says Weiss.⁠ 4) WEISS/MANFREDI's design for the La Brea Tar Pits Page Museum in Los Angeles⁠ 5) "We reject rigid dichotomies in favor of more entangled tensions that sustain the viewer’s attention over time,” says Ferda Kolatan of his MSD-AAD studio. (Photo: Dylan Li)⁠ 6) Yichen He and Hannah Xu's design for the site in Side, Turkey⁠ ⁠ These are just a few of the museums that Weitzman faculty have engaged with in recent years.⁠ ⁠ Read the full story. Link in stories. ⁠ ⁠ @forma.ny ⁠ @ferdak ⁠ @weissmanfredi ⁠ @penn.weitzman.aad ⁠

DumoLab Research at the Weitzman School of Design, directed by Assistant Professor of Architecture Dr. Laia Mogas Soldevila, has partnered with Meantime, a project of Weitzman faculty member Brian Phillips, founding Principal and creative director of ISA, and uCitySquare, to activate storefronts in West Philadelphia and showcase cutting-edge sustainable architecture from biomaterials. On display are DumoLab’s newest bio-composite research on hyperlocal material cycles forming 3m-domes, chemically-interactive earthen tiles and panels, food-waste-based shingles, and furniture from juicing pulp. “Ramusumar” soundscape by Eugene Lew composed from scores of  wet and dry hardware throughout Ramus Dome manufacturing process. DumoLab’s storefront will be exhibited until May 31st at 3616 Lancaster Ave., Philadelphia. @dumolab @meantimephl @ucitysquare @isaphila #weitzmanschoolofdesign #penndesign #upenn #architecture

April is AI month at the University of Pennsylvania! This is a University-wide initiative with a focus on human-centered AI and highlights research, dialogues and collaborations that put people at the center of technological innovation. The Architecture Department in the Weitzman School of Design held two events to join in the conversation. “Intelligence by Design: The Future of AI and Architectural Education” gathered faculty from every program in the department for a panel discussion preceded by individual presentations on how they have embraced AI in their teaching and offered examples of student work on how the technology can make projects more meaningful and sustainable. The panel discussion was moderated by Patrick Danahy @pdanahy a Penn alum and assistant professor at Georgia Tech. Faculty representing each department: MARCH: Ferda Kolatan @ferdak , Danielle Willems @maetadesign MSD-AAD: Ali Rahim @penn.weitzman.aad , Hina Jamelle @cap.ny.sh MSD-EBD: Bill Braham @weitzman_ebd , Dorit Aviv @thermal_architecture_lab MSD-RAS: Andrew Saunders @andrewasaunders , Jon Penvose @penvosejon Jordan Goldstein gave a lunchtime lecture on “Human-Centered AI: Storytelling, Space, and the Future of Design” (slides 9-10). Goldstein is Co CEO of Gensler and a member of the firm’s Board of Directors. In his talk, he explored how human-centered AI can augment storytelling and spatial design to help organizations navigate complex challenges and create adaptive, meaningful experiences. #weitzmanschoolofdesign #weitzmanarchitecture #penndesign #pennarchitecture #AIarchitecture

From the Archives What if modern cities, homes, and schools were built underground? Introducing Malcolm Wells. Born in 1926 and practicing from 1953, Malcolm Wells was an underground architecture designer, writer, and advocate for building construction to support naturally occurring systems in a time of modernist and postmodern aesthetics. Known for projects including the Cherry Hill Public Library, the Clifford Ellis House, and for designing his own house to explore architecture embedded in the earth, Well’s interest in developing an environmentally conscientious infrastructure is strongly evidenced in his lively perspectives, illustrations, and notes. A project rubric published in 1968, titled “Absolutely Constant Incontestably Stable Architectural Value Scale”, challenges architects to assess their designs and site considerations in relation to its effects on water, air, natural habitats, and noise. Wells was also a writer. Books including “Gentle Architecture”, “Infra Structures” and the “Underground Plans Book” illustrate his interest and advocacy for the environment to a larger audience. Describing his own epiphany in “Gentle Architecture”, he lamented, “As I began to look back over all my…works, at all the factories, offices and churches I’d produced, I found that I’d already paved to death over 50 acres of the American land. Those 50 acres had been wiped out in order to provide a single species with shelter.” In honor of Earth Week, please take a moment to enjoy the vibrant work of Wells! Would you like to design for a world built underground? If you’d like to dig a little deeper into the Malcolm Wells collection, the Architectural Archive is open to students and non-students through research appointments and organized tours. For more information, please visit sign.upenn.edu/architectural-archives/collections or contact the Architectural Archives at [email protected] #weitzmanschoolofdesign #weitzmanarchitecture #universityofpennsylvania #architecturalarchives #architecture

ARCH 501 | Long Game | Work by Aidan Williams @aidan_doing_things | Critic: Danielle Willems @maetadesign | TA: Veronica Raga Widell | Fall 2025 Grids create permanent logic. Long Game challenges this through modular inputs and temporary forms which break the literal and figurative framework of typical institutions for this vertical museum extension. While most modern museums contain white walls waiting to receive art, this project makes its partitions an art piece worthy of exhibition; over time, materials, artwork, structure, etc. from past exhibitions layer and stack to create resonance between time. Similarly, on the facade, the modular inputs can grow and layer upward upon the structural lattice. Each module’s form mimics the motif of art, science, and research institutions throughout University City to create an extension representative of its site context and user population. Within the museum, “gallery” is an ambiguous term, interchangeable with private programs like classrooms, offices, or storage. Ultimately, Long Game asks what will architecture, through adaptive reuse, look like 50, 100, 200 years from now? How can we infer on the Institute of Contemporary Art’s transformation over time at the hand of different, unique exhibitioners? In a world where waste is a byproduct of design, our architecture must respond without following permanent grid logic. @weitzman_arch #weitzmanschoolofdesign #weitzmanarchitecture #penndesign #universityofpennsylvania #architecture studentwork

Congratulations to Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa / SANAA on being named the 39th recipient of the Louis I. Kahn Award, given by Design Philadelphia. Kazuyo Sejima is the Paul Phillipe Cret Visiting Professor in the Department of Architecture at the Weitzman School of Design. With her partner, Ryue Nishizawa, their renowned Tokyo-based architecture firm, SANAA, is celebrated for its elegant, minimalist architecture that emphasizes light, transparency, and openness. The firm creates buildings that blur the boundaries between interior and exterior, encouraging movement, interaction, and connection to the surrounding environment. Their work is defined by simplicity, clarity, and a deeply human-centered approach to space. Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa / S A N A A was selected for the 2026 Louis I. Kahn Award due to their profound contributions to contemporary architecture, and their ability to create innovative, sustainable designs that resonate both culturally and aesthetically. Their work exemplifies the spirit of the Louis I. Kahn Award, and DesignPhiladelphia is honored to present them with this prestigious recognition. Founded in 1983, the annual Louis I. Kahn Award is Philadelphia’s signature event honoring individuals who have made significant contributions to the field of architecture. The event celebrates these achievements in memory of the storied career of Philadelphia architect Louis Kahn—widely considered the most critically acclaimed Modernist American architect and designer. Past Kahn awardees include Kengo Kuma, WEISS/MANFREDI, Herzog & de Meuron, KieranTimberlake, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Bjarke Ingels, Sir David Adjaye, Lord Norman Foster, Peter Bohlin, Daniel Liebskind, Robert A.M. Stern, Rafael Viñoly, and César Pelli. @weitzman_arch @sanaa_jimusho @designphilly #louisikahnaward #weitzmanschoolofdesign #penndesign #upenn #architecture

Congratulations to Mu Cao and Gyo Sun Hwang on being selected as the 2026 winners for Metropolis Magazine Future 100! METROPOLIS recognizes the top graduating architecture and interior design students in the U.S. and Canada through its Future100 program. The class of 2026 comprises 100 exceptional young designers whose portfolios demonstrate a shared dedication to purposeful design. Grounded in research and driven by experimentation, their work addresses community, culture, inclusivity, and sustainability with care and conviction, establishing them as rising voices in the profession. Both students were nominated by Associate Professor and Director of the MArch Program Andrew Saunders @andrewasaunders . @weitzman_arch #weitzmanschoolofdesign #penndesign #studentwork #future100 #metropolismagazine

Students in the third year design studio led by Stephen Kieran, James Timberlake, and Johann Mordhorst visited Savannah, Georgia & Washington D.C. for travel week. They studied aspects of architectural renewal through site visits to SCAD, Re:Purpose Savannah, Factors Walk, MLK Jr. Library & the National Portrait Gallery. This trip provided the studio insight on how to create meaningful interventions between existing and new structures. TA: Jami Respondek @jamirespondek5 @weitzman_arch @kierantimberlake #weitzmanschoolofdesign #weitzmanarchitecture #penndesign #upenn #travelstudio