flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Freelon Group to join Perkins+Will

Freelon Group to join Perkins+Will

The combination will result in one of North Carolina's largest architecture and design practices


By Perkins+Will | March 11, 2014

Global architecture and design firm Perkins+Will announced today that they have signed an agreement which will result in The Freelon Group joining forces with Perkins+Will.

Founded by Phil Freelon, FAIA, LEED AP in Research Triangle Park, N.C., The Freelon Group is world renowned for design excellence and consulting work with museums, libraries, universities, and other civic and institutional clients. 

Perkins+Will offers a full range of architectural expertise from its offices in Charlotte and RTP, notably to healthcare, science and technology, education, corporate, commercial, civic, and cultural clients. These capabilities will be enriched by The Freelon Group’s similar work, expanding the firm’s portfolio in these sectors. The combined practice will have nearly 80 professionals creating one of the largest and most award-winning architecture and design practices in North Carolina.

The Freelon Group will bring a portfolio of design achievements on behalf of some of America’s most respected cultural institutions including the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, the Emancipation Park in Houston, the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco, and multiple projects for the Washington, D.C. Public Libraries.

 


The Tenley Library, a Washington, D.C. Public Library designed by Freelon. Photo credit: Mark Herboth Photography

 

“By joining Perkins+Will, we can offer our clients in North Carolina and around the world a full spectrum of services for just about any type of project,” said Freelon. “The firms are ideally matched as we share a dedication to design excellence and commitment to social responsibility.” 

Upon completion of the transaction, Freelon will assume a key leadership role at Perkins+Will in both North Carolina and globally. As the Managing and Design Director of the North Carolina practice, he will lead both Perkins+Will North Carolina offices in RTP and Charlotte. Freelon will come to Perkins+Will as an important member of the firmwide leadership team and will join the Board of Directors. He will also be a key leader for the firm's cultural and civic practice.

Freelon founded The Freelon Group in 1990. He is the recipient of the Thomas Jefferson Award for Public Architecture from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and a member of the AIA College of Fellows.

He was appointed by President Obama to serve on the National Commission of Fine Arts and earned the academic appointment of Professor of Practice at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) School of Architecture and Planning, where he will continue to be a member of the faculty.

Freelon has lectured at more than 30 major universities, museums, and other prominent venues, and his work has been published globally.  A native of Philadelphia, Freelon earned his Bachelor of Environmental Design in Architecture degree from North Carolina State University and his Master of Architecture degree from MIT. He also received a Loeb Fellowship and spent a year of independent study at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. 

“With Phil Freelon, his experienced team of 40 designers, and other professionals who intend to join Perkins+Will, we look forward to offering clients a deeper level of cultural design expertise,” said Perkins+Will President and Chief Executive Officer Phil Harrison, FAIA, LEED AP. “Phil will further strengthen our leadership team and is a natural complement to the design excellence culture at Perkins+Will.”

Perkins+Will employees in the RTP office intend to relocate to The Freelon Group’s RTP office space.  This office will work collaboratively with the Perkins+Will Charlotte office to service clients throughout North Carolina, nationally, and globally. Under Freelon’s direction, current Perkins+Will leadership will continue to serve the North Carolina practice, with David Brownlee in the role of Director of Operations in the RTP office and David Gieser as Director of Operations in the Charlotte office.

Related Stories

| Jan 23, 2014

Think you can recognize a metal building from the outside?

What looks like brick, stucco or wood on the outside could actually be a metal building. Metal is no longer easily detectable. It’s gotten sneakier visually. And a great example of that is the Madison Square retail center in Norman, Okla.

| Jan 23, 2014

3 fatal flaws your architecture firm has right now

After visiting over 200 architecture firms, I was aghast that so many of them were committing these costly sins of mismanagement and miscommunication, without even realizing it. If I can stop even one more firm from shooting its own foot, then this is worth it.

| Jan 22, 2014

SOM-designed University Center uses 'sky quads,' stacked staircases to promote chance encounters

The New School's vertical campus in Manhattan houses multiple functions, including labs, design studios, a library, and student residences, in a 16-story building.  

| Jan 22, 2014

Architecture Billings Index sees first back-to-back decline since mid-2012

The AIA's Architecture Billings Index dipped for the second consecutive month in December—the first consecutive months of contraction since May and June of 2012.

| Jan 21, 2014

Comcast to build second Philadelphia skyscraper, with Norman Foster-designed tower [slideshow]

The British architect last week unveiled his scheme for the $1.2 billion, 59-story Comcast Innovation and Technology Center, planned adjacent to the Comcast Center. 

| Jan 21, 2014

2013: The year of the super-tall skyscraper

Last year was the second-busiest ever in terms of 200-meter-plus building completions, with 73 towers, according to a report by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

| Jan 20, 2014

BUILDINGChicago/Greening the Heartland Conference 'call for 2014 educational proposals' is now open

The conference and exposition will take place September 29-October 1, 2014, at North America’s largest LEED Gold-certified hotel, the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza. Deadline for proposals is February 28, 2014.

| Jan 17, 2014

Crystal Bridges Museum will move Frank Lloyd Wright house from New Jersey to Arkansas

Numerous architectural experts have concluded that moving the Bachman Wilson House offers its best hope for long-term survival.

| Jan 17, 2014

Australian project transforms shipping containers into serene workplace

Australian firm Royal Wolf has put its money where its mouth is by creating an office facility out of shipping containers at its depot and fabrication center in Sunshine, Victoria.

| Jan 17, 2014

The Starchitect of Oz: New Gehry building in Sydney celebrates topping out

The Dr. Chau Chak Wing Building at the University of Technology, Sydney, will mark Frank Gehry's debut project in the Australian metro.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Great Solutions

41 Great Solutions for architects, engineers, and contractors

AI ChatBots, ambient computing, floating MRIs, low-carbon cement, sunshine on demand, next-generation top-down construction. These and 35 other innovations make up our 2024 Great Solutions Report, which highlights fresh ideas and innovations from leading architecture, engineering, and construction firms.




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021