Citing the “distinguished work and high professional standing” achieved by Claire Weisz, FAIA, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) New York Chapter has recognized the co-founder of WXY architecture + urban design with the group’s prestigious Medal of Honor, its highest award to a member for distinction in the profession. Weisz will receive the medal at a ceremony to be held in Lower Manhattan on April 20 during an annual institute fundraising luncheon celebrating design excellence.
The announcement that Weisz will receive the Medal of Honor coincided with news that partner and co-founder Mark Yoes has been elevated to Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, the national group’s highest honor recognizing “exceptional work and lasting contributions to architecture and society.”
Claire Weisz, an influential architect and urbanist who is also a Fellow of the AIA, works with her partners Yoes, Adam Lubinsky and Layng Pew on creating innovative approaches to public space, structures, and cities. The firm works at all scales — from street furniture to civic buildings, master plans, city parks and coastal resiliency designs — garnering recognition from groups including the Architectural League of New York, the AIA, and the American Planning Association.
“We are delighted to be able to present to Claire the 2018 Medal of Honor, our chapter’s highest level of recognition, for her ongoing career of distinguished work, and her immense contributions to public and civic space in New York,” says Benjamin Prosky, Assoc. AIA, executive director of the AIA New York Chapter and the Center for Architecture.
Since cofounding the firm WXY architecture + urban design in 1992, Weisz has been awarded a number of prestigious honors, including selection as one of the Architectural League’s Emerging Voices practices in 2011 and inclusion in Fast Company Magazine’s 2017 list of Most Creative People. In 2016, WXY architecture + urban design was honored as the recipient of AIA New York State’s Firm of the Year Award for its impressive body of work. Weisz has been invited to serve in the prominent role of juror for the Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize (MCHAP), given by the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) to the most distinguished works of architecture by emerging architects in the Americas.
“We’ve been fortunate to take on such a diverse array of projects that have a real impact on life in our cities, working with a multidisciplinary and diverse team of varied talents, cultures and perspectives,” says Weisz. “I believe this has been the key to solving some of our most pressing challenges. It is heartening that this collaborative work is being recognized, especially with the Medal of Honor, which has recognized the growing influence of women in architecture two years in a row now.”
Design laurels for the firm in recent months include a coveted National AIA Honor award and the AIA’s Top Ten COTE sustainability citation for the Spring Street Garage and Salt Shed in Manhattan, designed by Dattner Architects in association with WXY architecture + urban design, which the selection jury called “an iconic structure” and “a dignified example of vital civic architecture.”
Other project honors have included the QUAD State Design Award for the Rockaway Boardwalks Reconstruction, and national design wins from the Society of American Registered Architects (SARA) for two buildings — the SeaGlass Carousel in the Battery and the Spring Street Garage and Salt Shed — as well as state honors for the Brooklyn Strand Action Plan and an NYCxDesign urban landscape award for the recent reconstruction of Astor Place and Cooper Square.
Recent and ongoing projects by WXY architecture + urban design include a new pedestrian bridge in Lower Manhattan, a master plan and expansion strategy for the Brooklyn Navy Yard, reimagined public spaces for the Brooklyn Army Terminal complex and the Made in NY Manufacturing Campus at Bush Terminal, and the highly anticipated redevelopment of the former Spofford Juvenile Detention Center into a mixed-use campus with 740 units of affordable housing, called The Peninsula.
In addition, WXY has designed award-winning schools, artist and coworking spaces, and museums including The Drawing Center and the Bronx Music Heritage Center. The firm’s public buildings include an EMS ambulance facility in the Bronx and popular recreational buildings in Hudson River Park.
About Claire Weisz
After receiving her professional degree with honors from The University of Toronto and a Master of Architecture from Yale University, in 1995 Weisz cofounded with sculptor Andrea Woodner a nonprofit organization, the Design Trust for Public Space, dedicated to “transforming the life of the city by connecting city agencies with the burgeoning design community.” Weisz serves on several not-for-profit boards including The Architectural League of New York, Open House New York, and Ethel’s Foundation for the Arts.
Active in both professional and academic circles, Weisz teaches and lectures widely, and in 2017 was the Portman Visiting Critic at Georgia Tech School of Architecture. She has also served on the faculty at Cornell’s College of Architecture, Art and Planning and as faculty or a critic or lecturer at New York University, Columbia University, The Pratt Institute, NJIT, the City College of New York, and Yale University. Recent speaking appearances by Weisz have included presentations at CityAge in Los Angeles and Toronto, the Urban Vision Conference in Tokyo, and an annual alumni lecture at Yale University’s School of Architecture.
The 2018 Medal of Honor will be given to Weisz in a public ceremony to take place at an April 20 fundraising luncheon at Cipriani Wall Street. The event will fête the recipients of the 2018 AIANY Design Awards, the Medal of Honor, the Award of Merit (to artist Ai Weiwei), and the Stephen A. Kliment Oculus Award (to the critic Inga Saffron).
According to AIA New York Chapter, the award recipients are determined by a jury of independent architects, educators, critics, and planners from outside of New York City. Last year, the Medal of Honor was bestowed to Dr. Sharon Egretta Sutton, FAIA, an activist, educator, and scholar and professor emerita at the University of Washington who, while at the University of Michigan, became the first African American woman in the United States promoted to full professor of architecture.
About WXY architecture + urban design
WXY is an award-winning, studio-based multidisciplinary partnership based in New York City. Specializing in the public dimension of design, WXY’s planning, architectural and urban design work is celebrated for its innovative approach on behalf of public and private initiatives. WXY excels in complex urban challenges, education and civic buildings, parks and waterfront developments, and other projects ranging from furniture designs to regional plans. WXY’s integrated design process involves clients and stakeholders, yielding valuable solutions both large and small. Learn more at www.wxystudio.com.