Speed Presentations Edition 12

*This event is occurring as a live webinar. Registrants will be emailed a link to access the program.*

As we continue to navigate through a global pandemic, seek action on racial justice and climate change, and reflect on the 20th anniversary of 9/11, we reassess where and how we live, work and play, and reflect on what we’ve done and what we can do to build better places and communities for tomorrow. The theme of the 12th edition of our Speed Presentations program, “Reflection/Inflection,” calls for interiors projects that respond to an event, movement, change of behavior, or cultural shift—such as the economic recession, work from home, or our aging population.

Projects may be of any type or scale and may be public or private, but should be predominantly about the design of interior spaces. Examples include, but are not limited to private and multi-family housing, amenity spaces, workplace interiors, retail and markets, and community hubs.

Presenting Firms:

• Architecture Research Office, presented by Stephen Cassell, FAIA
• FXCollaborative, presented by Guy Geier, FAIA, FIIDA, LEED AP
• HOK, presented by Tom Polucci, AIA
• Leroy Street Studio, presented by Kate Bedford
• Rogers Partners, presented by Elizabeth Stoel, AIA, LEED AP

About the Speakers: 

Stephen Cassell, FAIA, is Principal of Architecture Research Office (ARO), a New York City firm dedicated to architecture that unites strategy and intelligence with beauty and form. ARO’s diverse body of work has earned the firm over a hundred design awards including the 2020 National AIA Architecture Firm Award. Stephen holds an undergraduate degree in architecture from Princeton University and received his Master of Architecture from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. He is Adjunct Associate Professor at Columbia University GSAPP, has taught at Princeton University, the University of Virginia, the University of California at Berkeley, Harvard University and other institutions, and has lectured throughout the United States and abroad. Stephen is the former Chair of the Board of the Van Alen Institute and is on the Board of St. Ann’s School in Brooklyn.

Guy Geier, FAIA, FIIDA, LEED AP, is Managing Partner at FXCollaborative, a New York City-based architecture, interiors, and planning design firm. Guy leads the firm’s strategic direction and operations, fostering a continual dialogue between the FXCollaborative team and the client, patron, and public. He also leads the firm’s Corporate and Interior Design practices, with a focus on developing environments that reflect a client’s mission and current program, as well anticipated future needs. With more than three decades of experience in architecture and interior design, Guy is an active voice of the wider design community, and has received numerous honors and recognitions for his contributions to the profession. Guy graduated with a Master of Architecture from the University of Virginia, is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects and International Interior Design Association, and is a former president of the AIA New York Chapter.

As Firmwide Director of Interiors at HOK, Tom Polucci, AIA oversees conceptual design, programming, space planning, finish and furniture selection, design and detail development, site inspections and construction administration for HOK New York’s interior design projects. He has over 20 years of special expertise in managing the design, documentation and implementation processes for corporate office projects with challenging schedule and budget requirements. He has served as the project designer on numerous projects in which he has directed a full service design team.

Kate Bedford is a Senior Architect at Leroy Street Studio (LSS). Her interests in multi-faceted collaborations and the craft of making align with the values of LSS, which she joined in 2012. Prior to her time at LSS, she worked on the West Coast and holds degrees from the University of Texas in Austin and Texas A&M University. Outside of architectural practice, Kate’s creative work explores the intersection between analog and digital craft, and includes woodworking, fiber arts, printmaking, patternmaking, and clothing design. Adept in community organizing work, she searches for ways to connect people and ideas to create unique solutions to complex problems.

Elizabeth Stoel, AIA, LEED AP, is an Associate Partner at ROGERS PARTNERS Architects + Urban Designers, where she leads many of the firm’s institutional and public projects. From buildings to master plans to landscapes, her work is woven together by a focus on creating meaningful interactions between design and the communities it serves. Recent projects include the flagship clubhouse for the Madison Square Boys & Girls Club in Harlem, the new Powel Elementary / Science Leadership Academy Middle School in Philadelphia, and the St. Pete Pier in St. Petersburg, FL. She received her Bachelor of Architecture from Princeton University and her Master of Architecture from Harvard University. She has taught architecture, landscape, and design at Pratt, Parsons, New York Institute of Technology, Harvard University, and Columbia University.