Jacob Bloom, LFA tells us about the Living Future Institute and shares about CambridgeSeven’s commitment to the Living Building Challenge, part of our ongoing focus on the far-reaching implications that our design choices can have on our community and the planet.
Stefanie Greenfield, AIA discusses her design inspirations and why preservation and restoration are ever increasingly important architectural methods.
Associate Principal Chris Muskopf, AIA recalls the unique insights of his first architecture professors and mentors.
Senior Associate Sumi Fasolo, AIA, speaks highly of her long-time mentor and former professor, Lauren Kogod of Kogod Smiley Architects.
CambridgeSeven Associate Douglas Flandro describes his experience seeing the influential work of his mentor, Anish Kapoor.
Our sixth staff-written article for the Architect’s Mentor Series comes from Maddie Burns, AIA regarding the legacy of Denise Scott Brown.
Associate Principal David Wiborg, AIA, was greatly influenced by his long-time mentor, Fernando Domeyko, and still reflects on his teachings.
Chelsea Gazaille’s M.Arch. thesis was guided by the writings of Mohsen Mostafavi to help her complete her thesis about ecological design.
Senior Associate Bert Bremer recalls his travels to Egypt and the inspiration he found at Hassan Fathy’s village of New Gourna.
I received my architecture degree at the Boston Architectural Center (now Boston Architectural College). While there, I became good friends with a classmate from Egypt. We spent many hours (often over tea, as Mohammed is a devout Muslim) discussing architecture and the state of the world generally. We shared an admiration for Hassan Fathy, an Egyptian who was both an architect and urban planner. Fathy was a pioneer in sustainable design, using local materials and natural ventilation to create habitable spaces of beauty and quiet dignity. Fathy’s most well-known project is the village of New Gourna, built in the 1940s near the Pyramids in Luxor. Later in my BAC studies, partly at Mohammed’s urging, I took a class focusing on classical Egypt, connected to a study tour starting in Cairo and traveling up the Nile to Abu Simbel. While on this tour, I persuaded the tour leaders to organize a side trip to New Gourna. While the project was never completed, what remained was inspiring. Fathy’s commitment to architecture as a tool for social good continues to energize me.
