School of Architecture Students and Faculty Win Statewide Awards for Design

The AIA North Carolina Design and Chapter Awards, held on Thursday, November 14th, 2024, at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh, NC, is a statewide awards program that recognizes design that exceeds benchmarks for outstanding architectural design, structural composition, and application of design theory.

Over 130 projects were submitted to this year’s program and 26 were awarded.

Student Award Winners

Anchors: Connecting Community and Landscape

Maggie Kroening

Bridged Artistry

Maryam Osman

The Bridged Artistry program, Osman’s entry for the 2024 AIA North Carolina Design Awards, envisions a unique artist-in-residence space within the North Carolina Museum of Art Park. The design elevates artists’ living quarters above interconnected studios and galleries, creating a clear distinction between private and public realms while fostering opportunities for collaboration and community engagement. Inspired by the park’s integration of art and nature, the project combines innovative trussed structures, adaptable gallery spaces, and carefully chosen materials to harmonize with the landscape, offering an inspiring, secluded retreat for creativity.

Layered Stories

Kinsley Stevens & Abigail Lundergan

Along the North Carolina coastline, the small town of Belville stands at a crossroads– substantial population growth projections herald promises of prosperity, yet threaten social resiliency and its cherished “small town charm”. Its proximity to the Brunswick River also puts the town at the forefront of an ecological battle of global climate change and sea level rise. Impending social and ecological change defines the future of Belville; however, through proactive design we can both embrace and prepare for change. To maintain town identity and protect the unique landscape of the North Carolina coastline, the Belville Visitor Center provides community-oriented programs and resilient infrastructure to the existing Belville Riverwalk Park. It acknowledges the past and present site, while preparing for the future through a phased design plan, adapting to both growing needs and rising waters. By designing for all layers of its past, present, and future, the Belville Visitor Center will help tell the town’s unique story through social challenges and environmental change.

Market Place at Shockoe Slip

Gargi Wadodkar

R.E.C.

Lucas Stott

The 30,000 square foot Recreation Education Center (R.E.C.) in East Raleigh provides essential community spaces and connects local neighborhoods with the broader city. Positioned along E. Edenton St. and New Bern Avenue, which puncture through a residential area and bring in traffic from Downtown Raleigh, the R.E.C. leverages its hyper-visible location for regional revitalization. The L-shaped building shields the neighborhood from the urban chaos, while its two diaphanous frames, visible from the intersection, attract new visitors. These frames symbolize a blend of commercial and community spaces, addressing both local and citywide needs.

Richmond Repository of Urban Memory

Ethan Hall

Located in the heart of Richmond’s historic district, Shockoe Bottom, less than a mile from the James River, the Richmond Repository of Urban Memory aims to connect to the community by creating a place to reflect on Richmond’s rich layers of history and culture. The museum offers a meaningful experience through spaces for memory, reflection, and action to consider both the positive and negative effects of the City’s evolution. The project is anchored through its symbolic connection of redlining practices within the city through a bold cavern that divides the museum into two forms. The program includes an Urban plaza for areas of gathering, a Space for Memory which serves as a gallery to understand the layers of Richmond’s history and its intersection with redling, a Space of Reflection for discussion, and a Space for Action to promote change and progress within the city. The project exists on a 50’ by 95’ corner site and sits adjacent to the 1785 Mason’s Hall, a significant historical landmark in Shockoe Bottom.

Roooted: the Embrace of Earth + Water

Maggie Kroening

Squeezed Out: Mapping Diverse Dimensions of Raleigh NC’s Housing Crisis

Raja Bandari, Kole Retterath, Dillon Patel, Lira Gomes, Gabrielle Schiltz, Ariana Farquharson, Lucas Stott, Neil Bowen, Noelle Robinson, Maggie Kroening

Squeezed Out employs practices of critical cartography to better understand complex factors that have contributed to the current state of housing in Raleigh, the Triangle, North Carolina, and US. A primary aim for this research is to create more equitable, effective, and innovative design approaches to the future of housing and urban development writ large by offering novel data sets and compelling visual narratives that expand public dialog. Towards supporting a synthetic understanding of factors hindering equity, this research examines historic and contemporary data specific to Raleigh, with the aim of offering key insights for other cities across the country.

Across the US we are witnessing a housing crisis catalyzed by a pandemic-related housing shortage and exaggerated by income inequality resulting in a disproportionate burden on the poor and non-homeowners. According to a 2022 article for The Atlantic, journalist Derek Thompson argues that “In 15 years, we’ve had a historic housing crash, a historic housing crunch, a historic pandemic-fueled buying spree, and a historic mortgage-rate spiral.” While many can agree to the primary solution – to build more housing the priorities for the best way to do this are debated. In small and large cities around the country, the tensions between the desires of the developer, the needs of the citizen and community, and the goals of politicians and policymakers are often at odds. This is especially true in cities like Raleigh, NC, which has shown unprecedented growth over the past 10 years. Raleigh is the fourth fastest-growing city in the US economically. According to a 2022 article published by the John Locke Foundation, “of the nation’s 50 most populous cities, Raleigh had the seventh highest year-over-year rent growth increase. While Raleigh is particularly vulnerable at this moment, similar issues are continuing unabated in cities around the country.

2024 Chapter Awards

AIA NC Architecture Educator of the Year

David B. Hill, FAIA
Head of the School of Architecture, College of Design

The Educator of the Year Award is bestowed upon any educator, faculty member, administrator, or staff person who has furthered the objectives of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) in the role of educating and supporting the next generation of architects. 

David Hill, FAIA, is a professor of architecture and co-founder of the Coastal Dynamics Design Lab at the College of Design where he has taught full-time since 2007. While at NC State, David has led graduate and undergraduate design studios, digital representation courses, and seminars that focus on integrative digital simulation processes, architectural prototypes, and design strategies for coastal regions.

Associate Award

Abigail Gillin, Assoc. AIA
[BEDA ’20, B.Arch. ’21]

The AIA Associate Award is given to individual Associate AIA members to recognize outstanding leaders and creative thinkers for significant contributions to their communities and the architecture profession.

Abigail Gillin is a senior designer at City Collective. City Collective is interdisciplinary at its core and strongly believes that the future of our cities and communities is so much more than just design. Following this principle, they apply a holistic design-led approach to tackle complex projects that require innovative thinking to unlock unique project outcomes.

2024 Kamphoefner Prize

Susan Cole Cannon, FAIA
Professor of the Practice

Established by Henry and Mabel Kamphoefner, the Kamphoefner Prize encourages individuals and firms to pursue the fundamental principles of the modern movement in architecture. The prize will be awarded to a licensed architect or architectural firm currently practicing in North Carolina that has consistently contributed the most to the progress and excellence in the development of the Modern Movement in architecture for a sustained period of not less than 10 years.

Susan Cannon is a principal at Cannon Architects.

2024 AIA North Carolina Firm Award

VINES architecture

The AIA North Carolina Firm Award shall be awarded to a North Carolina firm that has consistently produced quality architecture with a verifiable level of client satisfaction for a period of at least 10 years as an established presence in this state. This award is the highest honor the Chapter can bestow upon a firm.

Victor Vines [BEDA ’86, B.Arch. ’91] is a principal at Vines Architecture with fellow alumnus Robert Thomas, a partner and director of design. Vines Architecture is a full service, design-driven practice with a genuine commitment to the translation of ideas to built form.

2024 F. Carter Williams Gold Medal

Ellen Weinstein, AIA
Professional Faculty

This is the highest honor presented by the Chapter to a member of AIA North Carolina. It is awarded to an individual in recognition of a distinguished career or extraordinary accomplishments as an architect. The award is named in memory of Raleigh architect F. Carter Williams, FAIA.

Ellen has been a partner at withArchitecture since 1992, and in 1999 received the highest design honor for North Carolina architects, the Kamphoefner Prize. She teaches design studios at NC State and is an active member of the American Institute of Architects, serving as president of the local section in 2008. She’s also a regular on design award juries for regional and national award programs.