Message from the AIAO Executive Director

Curt Wilson, AIA
AIAO Executive Director

Capitols – Access to Democracy

Leaders of the Oregon legislature confirmed recently that the 2021 session will be in person for legislators and key staff, but the building will be closed to the public.  While I support the measures enacted in 2020 and 2021 to limit the spread of COVID 19, I’m concerned about this legislative session.  Politics and advocacy is a relationship-based endeavor, and relationships are best formed and nourished in person.  Remote engagement is something we’ve all become accustomed to the past few months, so we are learning to do it better, but the in-session legislative process happens in a building, or collection of buildings, and it is difficult to replicate virtually. 

Based on information I received today from Stateside, a government relations firm that supports AIA at the state level, Oregon is one of about seven states that will proceed with an in-person session while the building closed to the public.

I had the great fortune about a decade ago to lead the design team on the complete restoration of the Oregon Capitol Office Wings.  Our team met with a bi-partisan group of house and senate members during the session regularly as the design process evolved.  A commonly used phrase of “the People’s Building” was mentioned at every meeting and drove the decision-making process.  The Capitol is regularly open during the day and anyone can enter and wander down the halls and to the reception area of each member’s office suite.  The halls in the office wings are narrow, so chances of walking past an elected official and brushing shoulders is likely to happen.  Most of the activity in the Capitol during the session is south of the original building rotunda in the lobbying and hearing rooms area.  The hearing rooms are positioned with both the public entrance and member entrance along the same wide corridor, so it is easy to find a member and have a conversation as they come and go during the committee meetings.  Prior to taking over as the AIA Oregon EVP/CEO, I chaired in the Legislative Affairs Committee and most of my advocacy time in the Capitol was spent outside the hearing rooms talking with other architects, our lobbyist Cindy Robert, and the people on both sides of the issues we were involved in.  “Both sides of the issues” are the operative words here.  This is where different perspective come together and find common ground.  My experience of over two decades in the building as an architect and policy advocate for the profession is that the building cultivates civility, and the legislative process is better when people dialogue, compromise and are accountable to each other.

A colleague commented last week that civility is the first line of security for public spaces.  We are living in a moment unlike any time of my life, where civility has been marginalized.  I never thought I would see a time where a US Capitol was breached by rioters trying to stop the legal transfer of power, but that happened on the sixth day of the new year, the year we hoped would be better than the one before!  In Oregon, a similar event occurred with politically motivated individuals attempting to shut down the legislature and resorting to violence.  The People’s Buildings are under attack by some of the people unwilling to accept a sacred process that has occurred seamlessly every 4 years since George Washington was first sworn in on April 30, 1789.  And, unfortunately, the FBI is predicting an escalation of events the week of the inauguration throughout the country. In Salem, meetings were cancelled for next Tuesday and Wednesday and this morning Capitol maintenance staff started putting plywood on all first-floor windows. Safety is now the priority over civility and democracy.

As architects, we need to be the voice of our capitol buildings.  The People’s Building is a real thing, and it is worth preserving.  Safety protocols during a pandemic are essential and take priority, but this pandemic (we hope) is an isolated event.  While I’m sad about the impact of the COVID-19 on the legislative process, our legislative leaders have made a reasonable decision for this session.  However, we don’t have a vaccine to address the loss of civility and threats of violence against the buildings that are the symbols of democracy in our society, so I fear short-sighted stop-gap measures will be enacted as a response.  This probably will include limited access to the public, and more haphazardly placed barricades.  You may recall that a common response after the attacks of 911 was the placement of concrete “Jersey” barriers throughout DC and other capitol cities.  Similar to the design of schools to enhance safety and encourage positive learning, we can do better with capitol buildings and architects need to lead the way.

Message from the AIAO President

Amy Vohs, AIA
AIAO President

Happy New Year everyone!  I am looking forward to quite a few things this year as we close the book on 2020, a year of more crises and threats to our safety as a community than most of us would ever like to see again. We have two new executive committee members joining Misty Nelmes and myself.  Kaley Fought, AIA of the Salem section is our new President-Elect. She has extensive experience as former Salem chapter president and is also the chair of the Oregon Design Conference.  Stephanie Morales, Associate AIA has been elected as the new treasurer.  She has been heavily involved in the CoEDI committee and is currently on our Executive Director search task force.  We look forward to their leadership over the next few years.  This will be my last year as president and I have high hopes for this year. Please view our website announcement  “Meet your 2021 AIA Oregon Board” for more information on the new executive committee.

We also welcome several new Section Directors this month.  Samuel Uccello, AIA moves up to the Southern Section Director and Sara Bergby, AIA is the new Bend Section Director. Both have been extremely involved over the last year in program development and leadership as Directors-elect. Lastly we welcome Kathy Austin, AIA of Bend as the Director-at-Large.  She has an extensive housing background and has been extremely involved in shaping the Bend Section. We look forward to her insight as we work to create a new Housing Committee this coming year.

As a chapter, we will continue to move AIA Oregon to a better normal with on-line education programming, expanding the People’s Choice Awards to all sections and getting to improved hybrid events when we are able to meet in person. There are several different technological advancements we have learned of from the successes of other chapters with digital programming we hope to adopt. 

We are also looking forward to expanding upon the Social Justice Action Plan. Last year the board voted to spend time on Bias and Equity training to better understand where we are as a board to assist in moving forward the Action Plan to move our industry to a better, more inclusive and diverse profession. The AIA SJAP Framework further defines our goals as a chapter to expand our network, influence and education.  This will be a heavy focus for several of our committee members and we welcome any and all interested in getting further engaged. This is a long and expansive process to work towards changing the Architecture community with avenues for all to explore. 

I write this on the same day that we have protestors storming the Capitol building and I pray we all get a little peace for 2021. I look forward to seeing you all again in person as the state rolls out vaccinations and maybe we will only have one or two major crises to work through this year.  We will also say goodbye to Curt Wilson later this spring but will move forward with a solid foundation for the new Executive Director. One thing is for sure, being resilient has never been more important for AIA Oregon.

I wish you all a healthy and prosperous New Year!

 Amy E. Vohs, AIA

Message from the 2020 AIA NW+PR Director and Strategic Council Representative

Rod Ashley, FAIA
2020 AIA NW+PR Director and Strategic Council Representative

As the year 2020 comes to its close, there is no doubt that this is a year that we will never forget. And as the year ends, so does my tenure as the Region Representative to the Strategic Council and as a director of the AIA Northwest and Pacific Region. It has been a privilege to both lead the Region and represent its members on the Council. The last three years have been some of the most rewarding and gratifying times I have experienced working within the AIA, and I hope that much of my work along with other members of the Council’s Work Groups will have had a lasting impact upon the Institute. I urge any of you interested in serving on the Council to please contact me and consider your opportunities as a Strategic Councilor.

Most members know very little about the Strategic Council and many members have never even heard of it. Next year it is anticipated that the Council will be recognized on the Institute’s website with more than a single page with a simple mission statement and list of members. After six years in existence, the Council is expecting to have the opportunity to share its work with all AIA members. To date, annual work has been presented to the Board to inform them of opportunities, disrupters, and issues the Institute should be examining to stay healthy and impactful.

My classmates, the Class of 2020, have often joked about all of us having “perfect vision’ when approaching our duties on the Council, and have used the phrase often around other Councilors. However, we now humbly acknowledge there is no way we ever saw this year playing out the way it has - this year being a different year than I have ever experienced. The last time the AIA met in person was in New Orleans at Grassroots in the middle of February; the annual Conference on Architecture to be held in Los Angeles was cancelled, and all other meetings were held virtually throughout the year. And the end of year meetings and celebrations were no different.

If you have paid attention to discussions among leadership, you may have heard mention of Governance Week at the Institute. The name itself sums up the purpose of those five days spent in Washington DC – a week spent reviewing accomplishments and disappointments of the year, planning for the next year, and of course end of the year transitions to the next year. And this being the year 2020, even virtual Governance Week was different. The Strategic Council started early and met on Friday, December 4.  Robert Ivy, FAIA and AIA EVP/CEO gave an encouraging update about the Institute, followed by a review of the 2021 Operating Plan and Budget which was approved by the Council. After summarizing the past year and welcoming the new Council Class of 2023, end-of-year reports from the five work groups were presented to the Council. Each work group assessed their work with alignment to the Strategic Plan, the Big Move, and other Institute initiatives.

 Topics researched and reported on this year, and edited descriptions from work group abstracts included:

• Climate Leadership Beyond 2030 – “explored the consequences to the profession and the built environment if AIA meets the 2020 Climate Action Plan goals – and if they are not met. Given the events of 2020, the focus was on the nexus of climate change with other critical issues, including environmental justice, structural racism, equity, pandemics, human health, and geo-political instability. Scenarios were developed that specifically examined the interplay of equity and climate change and in so doing illuminated opportunities to enhance the potential impacts of AIA’s Climate Action Plan.”

•  Affordable & Equitable Housing – “Demand for affordable and equitable housing is rising at a faster rate than the design and construction industry can currently meet. Work has brought into focus the realization that in order to thrive in the new environmental, social, and economic context, communities must successfully integrate equitable housing. Through this work, opportunities have been identified for the AIA to support architect’s efforts to affirm the right to housing. Participating in the development of a pathway to achieving this right should be a primary commitment within the AIA.”

• Mental Health + Architecture – “Architecture and design have an impact on personal and social health. This impact can be either negative or positive, and it is important for all architects to understand this. In times of crisis, as well as in normality, architects must be able to identify and design places that nurture, build community, and promote positive mental health and well-being, in and through architecture.”

• The Rural Agenda – “Rural architectural practice and communities suffer two major problems since 2009: ISOLATION and LACK OF ACCESS to resources. As an organizational stakeholder in the New Urban Agenda, the Institute now has an opportunity to develop the symbiotic complimentary Agenda for the equitable and sustainable practice of architecture affecting 19.3% of our population and 95% of the U.S. landmass.”

• Technology Impacting Practice – “Our world is rapidly changing, technology is an equalizer and enabler, and at the same time can be a threat to our profession.”

 On Monday, my Technology Impacting Practice Work Group presented a two- and one-half -hour end of year summary with taped presentations by twelve experts who are advancing or using technology in ways that most of us are unaware of. Assigned to groups of three topics, presenters focused these themes –

• LEAD OR FOLLOW? New Ways of Delivery;

• INNOVATE OR DIE? New Ways of Practice, and

• FOR RICHER OR POORER? New Ways of Monetization.

 Each session was followed by a question and answer period with questions from the audience to the presenters who were virtually present. Although several presenters were architects, they had left practice to focus on creating tools to advance practice. However, the last presenter was Craig Curtis, FAIA now a Partner and Director of Emerging Building Technologies at Mithun in Seattle, and formally a partner with Miller Hull and most recently Chief Architect at Katerra. Hearing from “one of us” was a great conclusion to our discussion.

The end of the day was devoted to hearing from outgoing Councilors and presenting them with their Louise Blanchard Bethune Fellowships, named after the first woman admitted to an architectural association, the first woman admitted to the AIA, and the first woman member of the AIA College of Fellows. After a few parting words, it was time to press the “Leave Meeting” button on our virtual gathering. A very sudden end to three years of working with colleagues and extremely good friends. 

One of the highlights of being a Strategic Councilor is the privilege of voting for several AIA awards that are bestowed at the highest level of the Institute. Along with the Board of Directors, Strategic Councilors vote for the AIA Gold Medal recipient, the AIA Architecture Firm Award, the Kemper Award, and the Whitney Young Award. On Tuesday at the joint meeting of the AIA Board and Strategic Council, nominations for these awards were heard and voted on.

• This year the Gold Medal, the highest award the Institute can bestow upon a member, was given to Edward Mazria, FAIA – the founder and custodian of the 2030 Challenge and other offshoots of his initiative. Undoubtedly the most serious crisis we are facing today, Ed was recognized for his foresight and unwavering commitment to battling climate change and providing opportunities and solutions for addressing climate action. First awarded in 1907 to Sir Aston Webb from the United Kingdom, the award has been awarded annually all but 13 years since its inception. Pietro Belluschi, FAIA, from Portland is the only recipient of the Gold Medal from our Region, and was awarded this prestigious honor in 1972.

https://www.aia.org/showcases/6346387-edward-mazria-faia

• Moody Nolan and Associates, an architecture/engineering firm from the heartland of Ohio was recognized as the AIA Architecture Firm this year.  From their sponsor’s letter, William Bates, FAIA and past AIA President states “The most compelling reason for this nomination is their dedication to enhancing the profession’s value to society…Their community outreach sets a new standard of leadership for other firms to follow.” Founded in 1882, founder Curtis Moody soon joined forces with engineering firm Howard E. Nolan & Associates and Moody Nolan has now grown into the largest African American owned architectural practice. A leader in designing affordable housing, their portfolio speaks of the breadth and depth of work they have accomplished during their time together. Collaborating with other practices throughout the country and with twelve national offices and over 200 employees, they have completed work in 45 states and 44 foreign countries. This award comes at a time when leadership in the firm is being passed from founder Curtis Moody, FAIA NOMA to his son Jonathan Moody, AIA NOMA.

 https://www.aia.org/showcases/6346446-moody-nolan

•  “…An exceptional activist architect who never ceases to amaze…,” Pascale Sablan, FAIA was awarded the Whitney M. Young Award for her work “that extends the profession beyond the normal boundaries into the community of underserved citizens.” A younger practitioner, she has garnered attention for her leadership, mentorship, designs, and activism. She was instrumental in organizing the SAY IT LOUD exhibit and lecture tour, expounding on the importance of architecture in solving problems of today and tomorrow. In addition, Pascale is an active member of NOMA and served as historian and northeast regional vice president; was on the AIA New York’s Board of Directors; and recently served on the AIA National Strategic Planning Committee.

https://www.aia.org/showcases/6347975-pascale-sablan-faia

•  Anthony P. Schirripa, FAIA, IIDA was awarded the Edward C. Kemper Award for his relentless commitment to “keeping a larger vision of the value of architects and acting as a citizen architect.” Practicing in New York City, Tony was instrumental in helping create the Center for Architecture in New York. He is the Chairman Emeritus at Mancini Duffy, was AIANY President in 2010, and has served two separate terms on the National Board. In addition, he has taken part in allied industry organizations advocating for architects. These activities include the New York Building Congress; the Brooklyn Technical High School; and the PENCIL Program.

 https://www.aia.org/showcases/6347896-anthony-p-schirripa-faia

•  The AIA/ACSA (Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture) Topaz Medallion for Architectural Education was awarded to Kathryn H. Anthony, PhD. The award is presented to those who “educate others to ensure architecture’s enduring excellence”. Kathryn has been an educator for more than four decades, a former president of the ACSA, and is presently an ACSA Distinguished Professor at the School of Architecture at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It was pointed out that she is “widely recognized for placing diversity, inclusion, and social justice at the forefront of her pedagogy.”

 https://www.aia.org/showcases/6349279-kathryn-h-anthony-phd

Another highlight of voting for these prestigious honors is getting to listen to the awardees hear the announcement of their award first hand. Immediately following the vote, the Gold Medal and Firm Award winners are called by the President and the reactions can be priceless!

On Wednesday and Thursday, the Board met and at the end of the day Thursday, President Jane Frederick, FAIA, gave her virtual Year-End Message, followed by 2021 President Peter Exley, FAIA and his President’s Inaugural Message to AIA’s members. Not the usual pomp and circumstances, but meaningful messages.

https://www.aia.org/videos/6355651-2020-aia-presidents-year-end-message

https://www.aia.org/videos/6355653-2021-aia-presidents-inaugural-message

Please pay attention to upcoming notifications from National AIA regarding updates to the “Adaptive Reuse of State Components Approach” for dissolving regions and changing how members are selected to serve on the Strategic Council, and on the status of A’21 AIA Conference on Architecture planned for Philadelphia from June 16 - 19. Grassroots will be held virtually this year between February 16 and 19.

On a closing note, no year is ever complete without some suggested change, and this year is no exception. As repositioning was occurring, the long-trusted symbol of the Institute was also changing. Repositioning was meant to bring components into alignment with one another, and branding of the Institute was undergoing the same. The “eagle” was simplified to a more graphic representation and was the start of an entire branding mission that introduced a new typeface, color schemes, and instructions on how the new brand was to be used.

Several months ago, a new look was announced for the Institute and I will let you look for yourself at what is coming your way in 2021. Guidelines for use of the logo are also found here.

 https://www.aia.org/articles/6335448-aia-unveils-new-logo

I hope this finds all of you well and ready for a joyous holiday season and looking forward to a meaningful and prosperous new year. Thank you for your encouragement and support.