SOM Participates in DAC Leadership Series

For many, the mid-career role in design practices often feels like being caught between immense responsibility and little agency to effect change. On June 29th, the Washington, D.C. chapter of the AIA hosted a panel discussion on perspectives and influence for mid-career practitioners as part of its DAC Leadership Series. SOM Partner Laura Ettelman, Directors … Continued

SOM Releases Designs for Catalinas Rio

Today, Consultatio Real Estate and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) released the renderings for Catalinas Rio, a waterfront office building designed to become the center of activity in Buenos Aires’ Catalinas Norte business district expansion. With retail, public greenspace, and two intertwined trapezoidal towers joined by skybridges and green terraces, the project will create a … Continued

Frank Mahan and Van Kluytenaar on the Future of Adaptive Reuse

As buildings age, adaptive reuse presents an exciting opportunity to link the past with the present. But when it comes to modernist architecture—in which the concepts behind a building are intrinsic to its material execution—how do you preserve the intangible? In Volume 5 of Architecture Philosophy, the International Society for the Philosophy of Architecture (ISPA) features “The … Continued

Meet SOM’s First All-Female Executive Committee

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill is among is among the select firms whose projects, if not its name, are well known beyond the building industry. Founded in 1936, the firm behind such projects as the Lever House in New York, the Willis Tower in Chicago, and the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, has been almost exclusively led … Continued

Luke Leung Participates in BBC Engineering Series

On Saturday, June 27th, the BBC World Service aired “The Engineers: Re-engineering the Future,” a panel discussion with practitioners from around the world. SOM Director of Sustainable Engineering Luke Leung, host Kevin Fong, and other panelists shared insight on innovations in engineering that have been developed in response to the spread of the coronavirus. The program, hosted … Continued

Yasemin Kologlu Participates in Virtual SPUR Panel

On Thursday, August 6th, Director Yasemin Kologlu will participate in “The New Future of the Office,” a webinar hosted by SPUR.  Kologlu and other participants will discuss how COVID-19 has transformed the way architects and organizations approach the design and use of office spaces, as well as the longterm impact these changes will have on … Continued

SOM Designs Library as the First-Ever Heavy Timber Building in the City of Long Beach

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) has completed the new Billie Jean King Main Library situated at the heart of Downtown Long Beach, in California. The state-of-the-art, structural timber building features distinct and identifiable interior spaces that maximize square footage and enhance user accessibility and staff efficiency. The design by SOM provides a welcoming and flexible … Continued

SOM + Neri’s New Urban Lighting Collection Reinterprets Venetian Historical Lanterns

Source: designboom Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) has collaborated with high-end Italian lighting manufacturer Neri, in order to create the Nebula urban lighting system. The collection aims to blend into any cityscape while enhancing the public realm with a contemporary and recognizable design. “Our team of architects, lighting designers, and fabricators sought to design a … Continued

SOM Participates in Design Yard Sale for Racial Justice

From Monday, July 27th, through Saturday, August 1st, three prints donated by SOM will be up for auction as part of the Design Yard Sale for Racial Justice. The prints, each depicting projects designed by SOM as photographed by Ezra Stoller, are being auctioned off individually. Design Yard Sale was organized by current students and … Continued

COVID Gives NYC a Chance—and Urgent Reasons—to Redesign its Transit System

As American cities gradually reopen for business, millions of New Yorkers have been asking themselves the same question: How will I get myself safely to work? The recent recommendation from the CDC — drive yourself, alone if possible, and avoid public transportation — has done little to clarify the answer. On a typical weekday (before … Continued