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1. Main Event 9 SCI-Arc Board of Trustees Member Merry Norris, Brendan MacFarlane (B.Arch ’84) Jan Perry, Eric Owen Moss Dean Nota (B.Arch ’76), Linda Nota Rick Gooding (B.Arch ’84), Annie Chu ( 2. New York Deborah Schneiderman (M.Arch ’96), Stephanie Bowling Zeigler, Eric Zeigler (M.Arch ’96), Gordon Kipping (M.Arch ’95), Jackie Greenberg (M.Arch ’95) Alumni Eric Raphael Battino (M.Arch ‘08), Matthew James Post (M.Arch ’07) and friend Hsinming Fung, Ate Atema (M.Arch ’93), Anne Reiselbach, Bill Kramer, Abigail Scheuer (M.Arch ’93), SCI-Arc Visual Studies Coordinator Andrew Zago 3. London Barbara Ann Spencer (B.Arch ’87) Ben Kikkawa (M.Arch ’09), Konstantinos Lambrinopoulos (M.Arch ’96) SCI-Arc Director Eric Owen Moss Patrick Schumacher, Wolf D. Prix 4. Bay Area Jonathan Odom (B.Arch ’09) Chip Minnick (M.Arch ’98) Kamran Arshad (B.Arch ’95), Jackie Duncanson, William Duncanson (B.Arch ‘95), Emily Jagoda (M.Arch ‘95)
ALUMNI EVENTS
CLASS NOTES
MAIN EVENT 9
1970s
1990s
SCI-Arc Director Eric Owen Moss welcomed alumni and guests, presenting the school’s key accomplishments in the last year, as well as recent leadership developments. Moss was followed by Chief Development Officer Bill Kramer, Board of Trustees Chairman Jerry Neuman, and Los Angeles Councilwoman Jan Perry— herself a former admissions director at SCI-Arc. Perry presented Moss with a proclamation, naming SCI-Arc the education and innovation anchor of the Arts District of Downtown Los Angeles. This year’s Main Event ceremony honored alumnus Brendan MacFarlane (B.Arch ‘84), co-founder of Paris-based firm Jakob+MacFarlane, who received the 2010 Distinguished Alumni Award for his significant contribution to the design and architecture professions. Last year’s honorees, alumni Barbara Bestor (M.Arch ‘92) and Jennifer Siegal (M.Arch ‘94), presented the award.
Dean Nota, FAIA (B.Arch ‘74), principal of Hermosa Beach-based Dean Nota Architect, recently completed two residential projects in the South Bay—the Yu Residence on the Hermosa Beach Strand and the Olivares Residence in Manhattan Beach. Both homes were shown in an exclusive Manhattan Beach home tour organized by Arts Manhattan in April. Nota’s work is featured in two new publications: Avi Friedman’s Narrow Houses, published by Princeton Architectural Press, and California Cool: Residential Modernism Reborn, by San Francisco photographer Russell Abraham.
Michael Poris (M.Arch ‘90) has recently completed 10 years of service on the SCI-Arc Board of Trustees. He is an active board member of the Heidleberg Project and the Architectural Salvage Warehouse, both in Detroit, as well as a museum committee member at the Cranbrook Academy of Art. His firm, Michael Poris Associates, was recently honored with seven Detroit Home Awards for two residential projects—taking first place in all categories entered. Poris is currently designing the Woodward Garden Block development in Midtown Detroit, which includes renovation of a historic theatre into a 1,200-person performance space, and designing a 60-unit HUD apartment building. In addition, Poris has been working with the City of Detroit Downtown Development Authority and the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation on façade improvements and solar-powered lighting for six vacant historic downtown commercial buildings.
ALUMNI AND FRIENDS COCKTAIL RECEPTIONS: THE BAY AREA, LONDON, NEW ORLEANS AND NEW YORK To recognize and reconnect with SCI-Arc’s alumni, a series of national and international social events were created to bring alumni and friends closer to the school. Each event was led by a SCI-Arc director or chair and included key faculty. The first in the series of four Spring alumni events was February’s Bay Area Alumni and Friends Cocktail Party held at the offices of alumnus William Duncanson (B.Arch ‘95). This San Francisco event welcomed a wide range of SCI-Arc alums from Northern California. The London event in March was hosted at the Alison Jacques Gallery designed by alumnus Alexander Maybank (M.Arch ‘98), marking SCI-Arc’s first international alumni event. The party was attended by London-based alumni, as well neighboring European countries, including Greece and Italy. April’s New York City event was held at the Gasser Grunert Gallery in the Metal Shutter Houses designed by SCI-Arc alumnus Shigeru Ban, resulting in the biggest alumni turn-out yet—boasting almost 150 guests thanks to the reach of NYC Alumni Host Committee members Bill Brunner, Jon Drezner, Gordon Kipping, David Nosanchuk, Todd Rouhe, Abigail Scheuer, and Benita Welch. The final alumni event of the spring was May’s Alumni and Friends Cocktail Reception at the 2011 AIA Convention in New Orleans, held at the Jonathan Ferrara Gallery.
1980s David Hidalgo (B.Arch ‘82) of David Hidalgo Architects had two projects featured in an article published last year by Urban Land Institute (ULI), “Retooling RETAIL Next-Generation Models.” His Plaza Mexico in Lynwood, California appeared in a different ULI piece that focused on models of economic recovery, while his La Gran Plaza in Forth Worth, Texas was listed among 10 shopping centers around the world that serve as exemplary revitalization projects. Hildago’s recent work has included commercial centers throughout Southern California, Arizona, Texas, Georgia, and Nevada, with special emphasis on the renovation and rejuvenation of aging retail centers. Edmund Einy (B.Arch ‘84), a design director at gkkworks, has received a NEXT LA Design Award from AIA Los Angeles for his Grass-Road House in Simi Valley and a Design Award from AIA San Fernando Valley for a house designed by gkkworks in Alibaug, India. Morgan Connolly (M.Arch ‘85), owner of Morgan Connolly Architects, is currently developing a guide book for tours given by the Institute of Classical Art & Architecture in San Francisco. Connolly’s work also includes a research project on 18th century Swedish manor houses, sponsored by a grant she received from the Swedish government. Her recent projects include a winery in Northern California. Ned Engs (M.Arch ‘89) of E4 Architects appeared in an ArchDaily article discussing the challenges of practicing in a slow economy. The feature showcased several projects by Engs, including the Corey Helford Gallery in Culver City, the Alpine Street Residence in Pasadena, and the Avenue del Mar Residence in Carpinteria, California.
Elissa Scrafano (M.Arch ‘90) of Scrafano Architects received a 2010 AIA Design Award for the serene retreat designed for musician Nate Mendel. A collaboration between Scrafano Architects and Gus Duffy Architects, the project was also featured by Design Bureau Magazine. Scrafano’s collaborative architecture firm comprises several SCI-Arc alumni. Christopher Mercier (M.Arch ‘91) exhibited some of his recent paintings in the Solid Stripes Group Show hosted at the Merry Karnowsky Gallery in Los Angeles. Among recent projects, Mercier and partner Douglas Pierson of the Inglewood-based (fer)Studio, together with Design East of La Brea (DeLab), hosted an event dubbed CaliFERnication to present their new master plan for the city of Inglewood, which includes an MTA station. Barbara Bestor (M.Arch ‘92) of Barbara Bestor Architecture has been nominated for a 2011 James Beard Foundation Award in the restaurant design category for Pitfire Pizza in Los Angeles. She produced a ceiling-mounted light sculpture for the 2010 MOCA Gala and recently designed ¡Disco Silencio! for the SCIArc Gallery, the latter featured widely in publications and blogs including T Magazine, Los Angeles Times, Dwell, LA Weekly, Interior Design, and Architect. Bestor is currently Chair of the Graduate School of Architecture at Woodbury University. Geofrey Collins (M.Arch ‘92), of Topanga-based studio Geofrey Collins Living Architecture, has designed a new house in Venice as well as a remodel in Mar Vista, California. Due for completion this year is a pyramid house in Tokyo.