AIA Detroit has proudly partnered with the talented folks at Illuminart for the past two years, so we were super excited to see Brienne Willcock and Robert White featured on concentratemedia.com. Illuminart is the designing force behind the lighting at Shed 3 for our 2013 & 2014 Celebration of Architecture; the cobalt blue and fuschia lighting schemes that you could see from down the street in Eastern Market are all because these guys know how to light a building. They also helped to pull in Fantasee Lighting, who brings the equipment and skilled labor needed to bring to life Brienne’s concept for the building. We are eternally grateful for these folks, they certainly deserve the media attention. (more…)

From AIA National, January 26, 2015: “The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has selected 14 recipients for the 2015 AIA Young Architects Award. Young Architects are defined as professionals who have been licensed 10 years or fewer regardless of their age. This award, now in its 22nd year, honors individuals who have shown exceptional leadership and made significant contributions to the profession early in their careers.” (more…)

This year, the Women In Architect Fund (WIA Fund) launched their Emerging Professional (EP) Inspiration Award. Working to inspire emerging professionals, one woman at a time, the WIA Fund awarded one national and one international professional with a cash grant to help further their career. Entries were shortlisted and winners were selected by both a committee and the public via the WIA Fund Facebook page.

Our very own Samantha Szeszulski was the national recipient of the WIA EP Inspiration award this year! The WIA Fund was looking for ” young ladies who demonstrate great capacity for leadership, an unwavering passion for the profession of architecture, and a willingness to contribute to society which is awe-inspiring”, and Samantha fit the description. She is the current chair of our Emerging Professionals Committee and is completing her Masters in Architecture at the University of Detroit Mercy.

Click HERE to see images from Samantha’s winning “Belong Here” guerilla art campaign.

Stay up to date on the exciting things our Emerging Professionals Committee is doing HERE, or contact Lauren at businessmanager@aiadetroit.com to be added to their mailing list.

From enterprisingwomen.com: “Monica S. Smiley, publisher and CEO of Enterprising Women magazine (www.enterprisingwomen.com) has announced the winners of the 2015 Enterprising Women of the Year Awards, an annual tribute to top women entrepreneurs from North America and around the globe. The award honorees will be recognized at the 13th Annual Enterprising Women of the Year Awards & Conference, March 29-31, 2015 at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA.”

This year, Chandra Moore and coG-studio are one of the recipients in the category of up to $1 Million in Annual Revenues. Chandra is the new Associate Director on the AIA Detroit board, and we are thrilled to see coG-studio doing well.  You can find out more about Chandra in her bio here. (more…)

Lawrence Technological University College of Architecture and Design and Design Corps are proud to announce a partnership to present the Structures for Inclusion Conference 15 in Detroit.

Background:
In October of 2000, Design Corps, a community based non-profit organization, sponsored a conference at Princeton University. The purpose of this conference is to bring together and share the best ideas and practices that are reaching those currently un-served and underserved by architecture. These efforts are often grounded on two common beliefs that communities and individuals should be included in the design decisions that affect them and architects and communities should work together to identify their shared values and goals in the collaborative process of defining quality design. Since the first SFI at Princeton University, it has been hosted at various institutions including the University of Virginia, the University of Texas at Austin, Harvard University, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the University of Minnesota at Minneapolis, and the Parsons New School for Design among others. The conference has become internationally recognized as a thought-provoking forum to learn about grass roots efforts and alternative practices making architecture more accessible. (more…)