The Board of Directors and the Strategic Council of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) are honoring Angela Brooks, FAIA, and Lawrence Scarpa, FAIA, with the 2022 Gold Medal.
The Gold Medal honors an individual or pair whose significant body of work has had a lasting influence on the theory and practice of architecture.
Brooks and Scarpa share a common lineage of humble, blue-collar families hailing from small Central Florida towns and eventually met while studying architecture at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Scarpa had recently returned to Florida to pursue his graduate studies after working with Paul Rudolph in New York, and Brooks was completing her undergraduate work.
The duo married in 1987 and eventually moved to California, where Brooks attended graduate school at SCI-Arc, and Scarpa began working with Gwynne Pugh, FAIA. After several years of working together, they founded Pugh + Scarpa in 1991, a small three-person office. The firm quickly grew to a staff of more than 20 and attracted national attention for its finely crafted work. Brooks launched her career with the Los Angeles Community Design Center, a nonprofit design and affordable housing developer, where she leveraged policy and design to tackle issues surrounding housing and homelessness.
Following a decade of nonprofit work and the birth of their son Calder in 1999, Brooks joined Scarpa and Pugh as a firm principal. Though her name was absent from the firm’s marquee at the time, she played a pivotal role in work that garnered the firm nearly a dozen AIA design awards and the 2010 Architecture Firm Award.
Following Pugh’s exit in 2011, the firm was renamed Brooks + Scarpa to reflect its new leadership. While the firm’s two histories will always remain intertwined, Brooks and Scarpa have pursued personal and professional aspirations—academia, volunteerism, mentoring, collaborative practice—that have positioned them in an uncharted realm for most practicing architects. Together they have founded organizations such as Livable Places, The A+D Museum in Los Angeles, and the Affordable Housing Design Leadership Institute.
No matter the budget, size, or background, the pair espouse the philosophy that design is not mutually exclusive and holds the potential to enrich everyone. Their socially engaged approach to design excellence led to their receipt of the Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt National Award in Architecture in 2014. The award lauded their ability to synthesize design and engagement to deliver affordable housing and sustainable architecture that advances equity for the benefit of society.
Together, Brooks and Scarpa continually redefine the role of an architect. They are potent form seekers and socially responsible practitioners, a combination not easily replicated. As they expand the boundaries of practice and chart an architectural path that is equally didactic and successful, Brooks and Scarpa have made a clear and profound impact on the practice of architecture.
Visit AIA’s website to learn more about Brooks and Scarpa’s selection as the 2022 AIA Gold Medalist.
Related Stories
| Sep 17, 2014
Arquitectonica's hairpin-shaped tower breaks ground in Miami
Rising above Biscayne Bay, the 305-meter tower will include three viewing decks, a restaurant, nightclub, and exhibition space.
| Sep 17, 2014
Atlanta Braves break ground on mixed-use ballpark development
SunTrust Park will be constructed by American Builders 2017, a joint venture between Brasfield & Gorrie, Mortenson Construction, Barton Malow Company, and New South Construction.
| Sep 17, 2014
The doctor is in: New consortium to fund research of design's influence on public health
The AIA Design & Health Research Consortium has organized its design and health initiative around six evidence-based approaches.
| Sep 17, 2014
New developments in data center design
From the dozen or so facilities housing Google’s 900,000 servers to the sprawling server farms of Facebook to Amazon’s seven sites scattered around the world, today’s data centers must accommodate massive power demand, high heat loads, strict maintenance protocols, and super-tight security. This AIA Discovery course is worth 1.0 AIA CES HSW learning units.
| Sep 17, 2014
New hub on campus: Where learning is headed and what it means for the college campus
It seems that the most recent buildings to pop up on college campuses are trying to do more than just support academics. They are acting as hubs for all sorts of on-campus activities, writes Gensler's David Broz.
Sponsored | | Sep 17, 2014
The balance between innovation and standardization – How DPR Construction achieves both
How does DPR strike a balance between standardization and innovation? In today’s Digital COM video Blog, Sasha Reed interviews Nathan Wood, Innovator with DPR Construction, to learn more about their successful approach to fueling innovation. SPONSORED CONTENT
| Sep 16, 2014
Ranked: Top hotel sector AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Tutor Perini, Gensler, and AECOM top BD+C's rankings of design and construction firms with the most revenue from hospitality sector projects, as reported in the 2014 Giants 300 Report.
| Sep 16, 2014
Studies reveal growing demand for LEED-credentialed professionals across building sector
The study showed that demand for the LEED Accredited Professional and LEED Green Associate credentials grew 46 percent over a 12-month period.
| Sep 16, 2014
Shigeru Ban’s design wins Tainan Museum of Fine Arts competition
Pritzker Prize-winning architect Shigeru Ban has won an international competition organized by The Tainan Museum of Art in Taiwan. Ban's design features cascading volumes with an auditorium, classrooms, and exhibition galleries.
| Sep 16, 2014
Competition asks architects, designers to reimagine the future of national parks
National Parks Now asks entrants to propose all types of interventions for parks, including interactive installations, site-specific education and leisure opportunities, outreach and engagement campaigns, and self-led tours.