At a time when the notion of omniscient master architects is seen by many critics as passé, a day-long design conference in San Francisco suggested that the concept remains in vogue with the wider public.

An old meatpacking plant abutting Manhattan's celebrated High Line park could soon be replaced by what promises to be one of the most talked-about buildings in New York, if all goes according to plan.

Though it focuses on the work of Chicago architect Jeanne Gang, Building: Inside Studio Gang Architects at the Art Institute of Chicago is not a retrospective.

In a time of 24/7 connectivity and cloud computing, it is essential for architects to make room for “forms of low-tech creativity,” said Jeanne Gang, principal of Chicago-based Studio Gang Architects, describing both the way she designs (by hand as well as by computer) and the materials she uses in her buildings.

The reversal of the Chicago River has been celebrated as an engineering marvel for more than a century—evidence that modern civilization could use its might and know-how to fix anything—even reorder nature itself.

With a portfolio of widely praised projects, including Chicago’s Aqua Tower, to her credit, architect Jeanne Gang can now add “genius” to the list of accolades she has received for her work.