Steven Holl Wins AIA's 2012 Gold Medal

Steven Holl

Photo © Mark Heitoff

Linked Hybrid (2009)

Photo © Shu He

Today, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) announced Steven Holl as its 2012 Gold Medal laureate – a pretty nice birthday present for Holl, whose 64th is tomorrow. A tenured professor at Columbia University, his eponymous New York City-based firm designed two projects in China in 2009 that were called out in the AIA's press release: Linked Hybrid, in Beijing, was RECORD's January 2010 cover story, and the Vanke Center in Shenzen was published in the same issue as well as our China publication.

Referring to the Vanke Center, the release stated: "Such depth of inquiry and lack of presupposition in Holl’s work makes this kind of audacious gambit almost common in his buildings."

Check out more of Holl's work:

- Knut Hamsun Center (watch a video interview with the architect here)

- Herning Museum of Contemporary Art

- Bloch Building, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

- NYU's Department of Philosophy

Holl is the 68th AIA Gold Medalist, joining the company of luminaries like Frank Lloyd Wright, Louis Kahn, and Le Corbusier. He'll be honored at the AIA National Convention in Washington, D.C., next year.

[UPDATE - 12/9/11] Holl's partner Chris McVoy emailed this statement: "We're surprised and happy that Steven and the work of our studio has been recognized with the Gold Medal. Steven's thinking and making of architecture extends well beyond the profession's conventional borders so it's very rewarding that the national AIA has honored him with this medal. I'm especially happy that the AIA recognized the full range of Steven's work, from his writing, teaching and theoretical projects, to our studios' exploration of architecture's experiential potentials, all the way up to large-scale experimental urban models realized in China. We're grateful for this."

Knut Hamsun Center (2009)