Accelerate Live! talk: Design innovation at Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture

SUMMARY
From the world’s tallest tower to the globe’s first large-scale “pure” glass sphere, Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture has pulled off its share of daunting design feats over the past decade.

But what exactly is the firm’s “secret sauce” for design innovation and next-level problem solving?

In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), AS+GG’s Anthony Viola takes us behind the magic curtain to illuminate the firm’s methods for nurturing design innovation. 

The common thread is the concept that form follows performance. This method of design investigates complex architectural problems by exploring new solutions through an intense and iterative process, one where high- and low-tech methodologies are equally explored and implemented. 

Three current projects illustrate: how the teams at AS+GG innovate though “making”; how the teams use technology to engage in the design process; how they help generate discourse between interdisciplinary design teams that can form more salient questions; and how they discover alternative design solutions that lead to architectural breakthroughs.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Anthony Viola, AIA, LEED AP
Senior Designer, Team Leader
Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture
Anthony Viola, Senior Designer and Team Leader at Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture (AS+GG), works on high-performance projects that focus on the design, development, and use of parametric computational tools that push the boundaries of integrated performance-based design. During his 12+ years of experience, Anthony has designed many structures through this integrated design process. He seeks to find new ways to realize a project using low-tech methods – such as 3D physical models – and high-tech processes like advanced computer simulations. By developing a clear idea of how each project fits into its site parameters and user conditions he is able to sculpt the building to its most efficient form. His methods have garnered attention in the architectural community, particularly in the younger generation, through dozens of workshops and other well-attended design events. He is a 2017 Dubin Young Architect Award winner as well as a 2018 National AIA Young Architect Award winner.

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