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Architecture
Laurie Olin: Drawing on nature
The famed landscape architect teaches final-semester Weitzman School of Design students the art of sketching.
Sonja Dümpelmann on designing nature
Sonja Dümpelmann, professor of landscape architecture, explores ‘the reciprocal relationship’ between humans and their environments.
Finding a forgotten architect, Philadelphia’s Minerva Parker Nichols
More than a decade of research by Molly Lester of the Weitzman School of Design is the foundation of a new exhibition at Penn’s Architectural Archives: “Minerva Parker Nichols: The Search for a Forgotten Architect” focuses on the nation’s first woman to practice architecture independently.
Weitzman’s celebration of visionary architecture and planning returns to New York
Held at The Shed in New York City, and hosted by Weitzman Dean Fritz Steiner, Penn President Liz Magill joined the celebration with awards and prizes for innovative architecture and planning.
Clearing the air with biomaterials
Senseable Biomaterials for Healthier Habitats, a project led by assistant professor of architecture Laia Mogas-Soldevila, contributed a lattice installation made from architectural biomaterials to the ICA, acting as an antimicrobial air purifier.
A relief wall that’s a window onto architecture’s future
A public library relief wall is a novel approach to architectural design and robotic fabrication from the Weitzman School and the Robotics Lab.
Weitzman’s Daniela Fabricius on architecture, labor, and history
The architectural theorist and historian is teaching a class titled Architecture and Labor while working on two books, including “The Ethics of Calculation: Architecture and Rationalism in Postwar Germany.”
Celebrating future renovation and expansion of historic Stuart Weitzman Hall
At a ceremonial groundbreaking, Dean Fritz Steiner, Stuart Weitzman, President Liz Magill, and Matt Nord of the School’s board of advisors joined guests to celebrate the future renovation and expansion of the 130-year-old Weitzman School of Design building now named Stuart Weitzman Hall.
Can nature-inspired designs affect cognition and mood?
A team from the Center for Neuroaesthetics created a biophilic room to test the idea. Preliminary findings from a small pilot show promise, but also spur many questions about how to best use such a space.
Weitzman School of Design receives gift to establish fellowships and global internships for architecture students
A new gift from Aedas, a global architecture and design firm, will establish a fellowship for architecture students to work in Asia.
In the News
Why do we keep developing in climate disaster zones?
Jessica Varner of the Weitzman School of Design says that the federal buyout timeline for homes destroyed by natural disasters opens the door to predatory buyers. William “Billy” Fleming of Weitzman says that adaptation requires various types of interventions that deal with the urgent effects of climate change.
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Historic Longwood Gardens in Chester County readies for its next modern chapter
Marion Weiss of the Weitzman School of Design has helped spearhead the renovation of Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.
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While America dithers over climate change, Swarthmore College shows how we can live without fossil fuels
William Braham of the Weitzman School of Design explains how Penn has cut its total energy consumption by 50% since 2009.
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Philadelphia’s Ben Franklin Parkway and how it was inspired by Paris’ Champs-Élysées
David Brownlee of the School of Arts & Sciences says the goal of the City Beautiful movement was to create a new American aesthetic, from industrial landscape to urban paradise.
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Philadelphia’s Market Street East searches for growth and renewal — with or without a new Sixers arena
Akira Drake Rodriguez, Rashida Ng, and Dominic Vitiello of the Weitzman School of Design say there should be a more robust and inclusive conversation about the future of Philadelphia’s Market Street East.
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Chinatown residents brainstorm different ideas for Fashion District instead of proposed 76ers arena
Rashida Ng of the Weitzman School of Design and colleagues attended the Save Chinatown Coalition to propose different ideas besides the 76ers arena for Philadelphia’s Fashion District.
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