Beyond the Surface

Elizabeth Blasius and Jonathan Solomon are founders and partners of Preservation Futures, a firm focused on design, advocacy, and consultancy at the intersection of historic preservation and contemporary practice.

Rana Lee is the Marketing Principal leading business development for HOK’s Chicago studio. In this episode, she talks about how her experience in real estate and business development leads to the work she does for architecture firms. She breaks down what business development and networking in architecture means, provides some tips, and explains how networking can be treated like a design project in itself.

Alzira is a Senior Design Architect at EXP focused on architecture in the public realm, particularly infrastructure projects. The conversation discusses Alzira's journey between multiple countries and settling in Chicago. Listen to her talk about how working on large public infrastructure projects can have influences on all levels, including people on daily commutes. She also talks about the opportunity to give back as a mentor to aspiring architects while appreciating the impact of having strong mentors.

In this episode, we sit down with Gabriel Ignacio Dziekiewicz, president and principal in charge of design at DesignBridge, an award-winning Chicago-based architecture firm with nearly four decades of history. The conversation covers Gabriel’s family story, including his father’s journey in architecture and founding DesignBridge, and Gabriel’s personal discovery in architecture as he moved towards leading the firm and carrying on his father’s legacy.

In this special episode, co-founders Caleb Kwok and Alex Sanchez reflect on the beginnings of Beyond the Surface. Hear about how their backgrounds, inspirations for the podcast, and how the show has changed over time.

Monica Chadha is the founder and principal of Civic Projects Architecture, a Chicago-based social impact design firm with a focus on high-quality design and long-term strategic thinking. Listen in for a conversation about how architects take perspectives from multiple parties to create a design process that drives projects forward.

Pascale Sablan is CEO of Adjaye Associates New York studio, overseeing projects in North and South America and the Caribbean. She is the 315th living African-American woman registered architect in the United States. She has previously served as President for the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA), and was awarded the 2021 AIA Whitney M. Young. Jr Award for her advocacy efforts.Listen in for a conversation on Pascale's journey, and how being an active voice means standing up for yourself, highlighting others, and bringing diverse voices when talking about the design industry.

Rafael is the co-founder and director of Duo, an innovation studio/lab that works to create built environment innovations for the benefit of society.Listen in for a conversation about Rafael's journey with immigration activism, architecture, real estate development, and human centered design and how that all comes together in Duo's multicontextual design.

Dr. Joseph Renow is a sociologist of science and technology who focuses on the intersection of expertise and society. Listen in for a conversation about how architects can think about design differently to meet societal needs.

Julie is founding partners of award winning Santa Monica based architecture firm, KoningEizenberg Architecture. Together with partner Hank Koning, Julie has been awarded the American Institute of Architects Los Angeles chapter Gold medal in 2012 and the Australian Institute of Architects Gold Medal in 2019. Listen in to hear about Julie's architectural career between Australia and the US from her "outsider" perspective.

Tom is an award-winning architect and founder of Tom Lee Studio. He has experience across a diverse set of typologies and firms including HDR where he served as Design Principal, and other leading firms including John Ronan Architects, Goettsch Partners, JAHN, Leers Weinzapfel, and Kohn Pedersen Fox.Listen in to hear how drawing influenced Tom's journey in architecture and how he uses sketching as a unique form of communicating design.

June Campbell, is a member of the National Organization for Minority Architects Council (NOMAC). She is the wife of Wendell Campbell, one of the founders of NOMA, who was the organization’s first president.This episode also includes special guests, Leslie Campbell and Bryan Hudson.Listen in to hear stories from June about her life and about NOMA's founding.

Ann Thompson, FAIA, is Executive Vice President of Architecture and Design at Related Midwest. She leads the design and planning of projects across the company’s portfolio of mixed-use, mixed-income, affordable and luxury developments, as well as all engineering, zoning and entitlement efforts. Listen in to hear about Ann's career journey from architecture to development, and about how developers take on roles in building communities.

Annabell Ren is the co-founder of the Chicago based firm, New Office. Listen in to episode to hear her experiences as an immigrant to the US, and for a conversation about making cultural designs feel genuine to communities.

Carol Ross Barney, FAIA, HASLA, is an architect, urbanist, and educator. She is the 2023 American Institute of Architects Gold Medal recipient, of which she is the first living woman to be individually honored. Listen to stories from her career journey, the mentors that inspired her, and conversation on how design should be in every day life for the public to experience.

Paola is an urban designer and partner at Borderless Studio, a design and research practice based in Chicago and San Antonio. Listen in to hear about Paola's path between architecture and urban design, and how skills in education can be translated into practice.

Michel is a Mexican architect and founder of Rojkind Arquitectos, based in Mexico City. Listen in to hear about Michel's time in music before architecture, and a conversation about how design can be rethought to improve the public.

Jason Pugh is a licensed architect, certified planner, and a Principal at Gensler, where he serves as the Global Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. He also served as the 2021-2022 President of the National Organization of Minority Architects.Listen in to the interview to hear about Jason's journey in architecture and urban planning, along with how NOMA became an integral part of his path.

Deborah Berke is an architect, educator, and founder of New York-based architecture firm TenBerke, while serving as the Dean of Yale School of Architecture. Listen in to hear stories from her career in academia and practice!

Reed Kroloff is dean of IIT College of Architecture. He previously served as the Director of the Cranbrook Academy of Art and Art Museum and Dean of the Tulane School of Architecture. Reed was also Editor-in-Chief of Architecture magazine. Listen in to the interview to hear stories from Reed's life, and his journey to becoming dean at IIT.

Chana Haouzi is an architect, educator, and founder of Architecture for Public Benefit. Listen to this interview for conversations about the value of architecture and design for the public, and how mission driven work takes skills beyond traditional practice.

Katherine Darnstadt is the founder of Latent, a Chicago based design practice. Listen in to the interview for a conversation about the changing architectural profession as the next generation of designers mix architecture with other interests to influence design.

Ann Lui is an architect and founding principal of Future Firm, a Chicago based architecture and design research practice. Listen to this interview that includes conversation about architecture shaping life in the city and experiences in the built environment.

Dawveed Scully is Managing Deputy Commissioner of Planning and Development at the City of Chicago. Prior to the DPD, Dawveed was an Associate Principal in the urban design and planning studio at SOM. He is a licensed architect in the State of Illinois and AICP certified urban planner. Listen in to hear about his design philosophies bringing together architecture and urban planning.

Alicia Ponce is the founder and principal of APMonarch, a Chicago based architecture firm. Alicia is also the founder of Arquitina, a national 501(c)3 organization with a mission to increase the number of licensed Latina architects in the U.S. Listen in to hear about Alicia's inspirations and the work she does to support women in architecture with Arquitina. This episode also marks one year of the Beyond the Surface podcast. We want to thank everyone who has listened over this past year, and we hope to continue bringing great stories.

Brian Lee, FAIA is a Consulting Design Partner at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. Listen in to hear about design ideas an influences in his architectural career.

Bryan Hudson, NOMAC, AIA is a former NOMA National President. Listen in to hear about the path he took through architecture and NOMA. Bryan talks about the mentors and influences in his life, and how he now gives back to the next generation, especially with his firms and his continued NOMA involvement.

Dr. L. David Stewart is an advocate and consultant for race, equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives for companies. Listen in to hear about his path from architecture school to a doctorate, his involvement with NOMA, and more about the belief that "everything is architecture".

Daniel Mai is vice president for NC NOMA, and an HR Manager at Little Diversified Architectural Consulting. Daniel studied architecture and after exploring different careers in the architecture, construction and engineering industry, he ended up as a recruiting an HR professional in architecture firms, which we explore in this episode.

Maurice Cox is the former Commissioner for the Chicago Department of Planning and Development. Listen in to hear stories from a long career in architecture, academia, and politics spanning across locations including New York, Italy, Charlottesville, and many more.

Ernie Wong fASLA is the founding principal and president of Site Design Group, an award winning landscape architecture firm. Listen in to hear his story, and discussion about the relationship between politics and design.

Beyond the Surface has a special episode featuring Walmer Saavedra, the co-founder and executive director of the non-profit organization Human Scale. The organization was founded by a group of architecture students who wanted to make a positive impact on communities. Listen in to hear about the organization and all the great work they do!

Linda Chavez is a Principal at Future Firm in Chicago. She focuses on civic and community driven spaces. Listen to follow Linda's journey from Mexico to Chicago, and the perseverance it took to get where she is now.

Mustapha Williams is an architect at Gensler in Chicago. At the firm, he serves as the North Central Region Community Impact Leader, and a member of the regional Summer Intern Committee. Follow Mustapha's journey from getting into architecture at a young age to where he is now, giving back to inspire youth pursuing architecture.

Ashlen Williams AIA, NOMA is an architect at KOO in Chicago, and the 2022-2023 I-NOMA President. Listen in to follow Ashlen's story from growing up in Missouri, to where she is now in Chicago. Join us in a conversation about promoting diversity in the architecture profession, and how getting involved with professional organizations provides a platform for advocacy. Note: This is a candid conversation in which the views expressed are solely those of the individuals providing them and do not reflect the opinions or official positions of I-NOMA or AIA-Chicago. 

Listen to this episode to discover the remarkable life and accomplishments of Jen Park. From being an award-winning architect and co-founder of Park Fowler Plus, to receiving prestigious honors like the AIA Chicago 2019 Dubin Family Young Architect Award, Jen's journey is truly inspiring. Additionally, we delve into her vital roles as a professor and studio coordinator at Illinois Tech, as well as her influential contributions to promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion within the field of architecture.

Davey Friday is an urban designer with Perkins & Will. After studying biology, Davey went to IIT to study architecture and landscape architecture. He is a practicing multimedia fine artist, with several gallery exhibitions under his belt. Learn about his life, achievements, and values to understand what Davey envisions for the city of Chicago.

This is the first episode of the new NOMASiit Podcast, "Beyond the Surface''. Jesus is a recent IIT graduate, designer, veteran, father, and husband. In this episode, we follow Jesus's journey and learn about his life, setbacks, and achievements on his path to getting an architecture degree at IIT.