The Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation has been addressing the needs of women in the AEC industry for the past decade.

The Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation (BWAF), a national research and educational non-profit 501(c) (3) organization, was founded in 2002 by Beverly Willis, after she had been in practice for 50 years. The initial goal of the BWAF was to document the historic work of female architects, and it has expanded to take on the role of educating the public and engaging with the professional community.

Bay Area architect David Stark Wilson, founder of WA Design, published a collection of photographs that highlights the vernacular architecture of California’s Central Valley and the foothills of the Sierra Nevada.

Structures of Utility, published by Heyday Books, breaks with the traditional coffee table photography book layout and instead feels more like an architectural monograph. David Stark Wilson supplements his black and white photographs with concise text that places his subjects within a historical context, layered with his personal memories and experiences.

Architecture in New York City draws upon the talents of many international designers, and an exhibition at the German Consulate General held in March celebrated the unique contributions of German architects practicing in New York.

On March 1 – March 23, 2012, the German Consulate General in New York featured an exhibition called Made in USA – German Architects in New York. The exhibition featured the work of seven architects from Germany who are now based in New York. When it comes to design culture, there is a is a long history of exchange and interrelationship between the United States and Germany, and, as a curatorial statement for the exhibition states, “it is within this historic trajectory that this exhibition wants to invite a fresh look on contemporary practice in New York City.”

What are some of the challenges – and pathways to success – when it comes to designing commercial architecture?

Stuart Silk Architects, based in Seattle, Washington, has more than 25 years of experience producing residential and commercial architecture. We spoke with John Adams, AIA, Principal of Stuart Silk Architects, to learn more about the latest challenges associated with commercial design. Although commercial design certainly has its nuances, his firm has successfully bridged residential and commercial design with a simple and unified insight: the client is always passionately and personally invested.

The Florida Southern College campus offers the world’s largest collection of Frank Lloyd Wright buildings on a single site. The 10 interconnected structures offer an unparalleled view of how Wright intended buildings to be part of a larger, organic whole.

"Out of the ground, and into the light, a Child of the Sun": Wright’s simple but powerful statement describing Florida Southern College offers us a glimpse into the mind of America’s most influential, iconic, and (yes) poetic architect. It also informs us of the organic nature of his architectural thought and practice and is a signpost of his philosophy. Simultaneously, it gives us something of a prophecy regarding the possibilities of biophilic design. Wright championed his own philosophy of organic architecture and, while not 100% compatible with today’s ideas of biophilic design, it certainly laid a strong foundation of intellectual and philosophical support for the movement. Wright’s statement also conjures up images of the profound relationship his buildings displayed with regard to Nature (that’s Nature with a capital N, as he was fond of saying). It is worth noting here that his words could have easily come from one of his creative heroes, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Thoreau, or Walt Whitman, all of whom had a galvanizing effect on Wright’s thinking and his philosophy of how nature and architecture can be part of an organic whole.

Structural and mechanical systems used in the Swenson Civil Engineering Building, located on the University of Minnesota Duluth campus, serve as a teaching tool for the program’s students.

In 2008, The University of Minnesota Duluth began offering a B.S. in Civil Engineering. The new program required the construction of its own building, and Ross Barney Architects were hired to design the 35,300 sq. ft James I. Swenson Civil Engineering Building, which was completed in 2010.

Hopkins Architects’ design for the London 2012 Olympic Games Velodrome reflects the elegance, efficiency, and sustainability of the sport it supports.

The Olympic track cycling venue, or Velodrome, by Hopkins Architects, is considered the most sustainable venue in the Olympic Park in terms of design and construction. The overall inspiration for the design was the bicycle – a fitting choice, considering the building’s purpose. In a monograph published by The Architects’ Journal, Hopkins Architects senior partner Mike Taylor says, “Right from the off, we wanted it to feel like a bicycle in terms of its engineering, i.e., very taut and nothing superfluous. Everything trimmed down to the minimum.”

Morphosis Architects' new academic building for The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City consolidates the college’s three schools -- art, architecture, and engineering. Known as 41 Cooper Square, the building was completed just over a year ago. And it's still turning heads. However jarring, Morphosis's design creates a vertical campus, providing opportunities for chance encounters and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

The University of Technology Sydney, Australia (UTS) solicited design proposals for a new building to house its Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology as part of the school’s Broadway Building Design Competition. The school was in search of an architecture firm that could design a “gateway” building that referenced the urban context and the City Campus Master Plan while supporting a large population of students and faculty and reducing the school’s environmental impact. In July 2009, UTS announced the winning design, submitted by Australian architectural firm Denton Corker Marshall, from over 60 international entries. Selected by UTS representatives, the City of Sydney, and the New South Wales (NSW) Department of Planning, the design for the Information Technology and Engineering (ITE) Building was chosen for its aesthetic appeal, as well as its functionality and sustainable qualities.

Scheduled for completion in 2016, the South Terminal Redevelopment Program of the Denver International Airport (DIA) will juxtapose new buildings by Spain's Santiago Calatrava with the famed Jeppesen Terminal by Fentress Architects. Calatrava, from Valencia, has designed four principle elements: a new hotel and conference center, transit station, civic plaza, and rail bridge, which will all be physically integrated. In his Architectural Statement, Calatrava pays homage to the Jeppesen Terminal, notable for its tensile fabric roof: “My goal in designing adjacent to such a prominent iconic structure has been to preserve the character and integrity of the original terminal while complementing it with a design that presents an independent identity of equal quality."

At first glance, Cincinnati, Ohio, appears to be a typical Midwestern city. A closer look reveals a sophisticated community of architectural trendsetters. Beginning in large part with a transformative vision for the University of Cincinnati campus in the late 1980s, Cincinnati is now home to a major concentration of signature contemporary architecture. One of the architectural treasures of Cincinnati is the Lois & Richard Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art, home of the Contemporary Arts Center (CAC). Designed by Pritzker Prize award winner Zaha Hadid and opened in 2003, the Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art allows CAC to serve its organizational mission to unite art and people in a provocative architectural environment.

Recently unveiled are plans for a new building to house the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland (MOCA Cleveland). London-based Foreign Office Architects (FOA) is the design firm for the project, and Westlake Reed Leskosky acted as the architect of record. Currently the museum is tucked away on the second story of the Cleveland Play House complex; the new facility will give MOCA Cleveland 44% more space as well as a commanding presence at a prominent intersection in University Circle.