2024
Gina L. Bocra
FAIA
Object Four
Gina Bocra is a pioneer in building sustainability at the local, regional and national level, making significant contributions through elevating codes, advising industry organizations, educating peers, and advancing building performance standards to combat climate change.
2023
Jeremy R. Shannon
FAIA, LEED AP BC+C
Object Four
Jeremy Shannon successfully developed a design path for more than a thousand public schools to become net zero carbon emission buildings; such projects are the culmination of aggressive climate stewardship throughout his professional
practice.
2022
Michael T. Cetera
FAIA
Object Four
For over half a century of public service, Michael Cetera has significantly improved the lives of millions of people through his leadership in architecture, vital infrastructure, and open space in the global city of New York.
2020
Porie Saikia
FAIA, FCIOB
Object Four
Porie Saikia has demonstrated exemplary leadership by driving design excellence in civic architecture and championing innovative project delivery to enhance the built environment experience, benefiting millions in the New York region and the world.
Barbara E. Spandorf
FAIA, LEED AP
Object Four
Barbara Spandorf champions architectural practice through her leadership in creating award-winning facilities in the public realm. Skillfully working with diverse stakeholders, she advocates and realizes inspiring civic projects that advance institutional missions and transform communities.
2019
Bruce D. Eisenberg
FAIA, LEED AP
Object Four
Bruce Eisenberg has spent his career transforming public sector architecture by raising design standards for housing, buildings and parks. His work enhances design quality by skillfully combining sustainability with thoughtful preservation.
Mary Elizabeth Rusz
FAIA
Object Four
As Public Architect and Urban Designer, Mary Elizabeth Rusz is a leader in community regeneration, design innovation and conservation. Her neighborhood strategies, thoughtful interventions, and design excellence “make life better” for the communities she serves.
Richard C. Yancey
FAIA, LEED-AP
Object Four
Extending his passion for designing sustainably crafted architecture, Richard Yancey has created a pioneering international center of excellence dedicated to building energy efficiency, addressing one of the biggest challenges of our time.
2018
Denise M. Berger
FAIA
Object Four
Denise Berger’s leadership and advocacy resulted in the highest standards of design excellence for transportation and infrastructure projects. Her innovative policies and programs produced groundbreaking outcomes, elevating the stature of architecture in the public realm.
Vishaan P. Chakrabarti
FAIA
Object Four
Dedicated to advancing architecture for the public, enhancing community and creating neighborhoods, Vishaan Chakrabarti has spent his career focused on the enduring public metropolis, the design of its shared spaces, buildings and infrastructures.
2017
Patrick J. Burke III
FAIA
Object Four
An experienced and dedicated leader in the design and construction industry, Patrick Burke has spent decades overseeing the planning, design, and construction of large-scale, technically complex biomedical research facilities and other high-technology buildings. In his 15 year tenure leading planning, architecture, and construction at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC), Burke has successfully delivered more than 2,000 projects with gross project budgets in excess of $900 million.
William H. Cunningham
FAIA
Object Four
Bill Cunningham, as its first Campus Architect, has used design excellence to transform Weill Cornell Medicine's campus into the embodiment of the highest standards of medical education, research, and practice with national and global influence.
Robert D. Eisenstat
FAIA, LEED AP
Object Four
Robert Eisenstat's leadership and advocacy have resulted int he highest standards of design excellence for transportation and infrastructure projects. His wide-reaching and consequential efforts have raised the stature of the architect in the public realm.
Thomas L. Grassi
FAIA
Object Four
Thomas Grassi devoted his career to being a manager for transformative regional transportation projects, a leader rebuilding Lower Manhattan and Word Trade Center transportation infrastructure, and an ambassador sharing the story of architecture's healing power.
Michael E. Plottel
FAIA, LEED AP
Object Four
Michael Plottel has dedicated his 25+-year career to advancing the practice and theory of public architecture by focusing on the design and construction of socially relevant projects with the result of rebuilding cities, strengthening institutions, enhancing public spaces, and ultimately serving the everyday needs of the citizen.
2013
Susan A. Chin
FAIA
Object Four
Through her personal commitment to conservation and advancement of the standard of public awareness and education, Susan A. Chin has transformed the design of zoos, aquariums and field sites internationally.
Margaret E. Newman
FAIA
Object Four
Margaret Newman has provided leadership to revitalize New York City’s public realm. By emphasizing design excellence, prioritizing comprehensive planning, introducing emerging technologies, and facilitating inter-agency collaboration, she has shaped a new direction for streetscape design.
2010
Donald Fram
FAIA
Object Four
Donald Fram is the Port Authority of NY & NJ's steward for design excellence and sustainable design, instituting policies and programs that enhance public environments in some of the world's busiest aviation and transportation facilities.
Lia Gartner
FAIA, LEED AP
Object Four
(deceased)
Lia Gartner’s leadership of vast departments and projects, advancement of her fellow architects, and commitment to design excellence have elevated public architecture and the role of the profession. She has devoted her career to fostering the design and realization of outstanding architecture for the public good. In so doing, she has transformed the role and responsibilities of public architects in New York City.
Stephanie Gelb
FAIA
Object Four
Stephanie Gelb, a public architect, pivotally transforms the urban landscape by bringing the innovation of the design world to the public realm. Her early initiatives are now mainstream and part of our national urban legacy.
Bogdan Z. Pestka
FAIA
Object Four
Through leadership, design excellence, innovative foresight and promotion of sustainable design principles, Bogdan Pestka has raised the quality of design and defined the next generation of public buildings throughout the City of New York.
2006
Emma E. Macari
FAIA
Object Four
The highest ranking architect in an American university, staunch mentor to women architects, Emma E. Macari, FAIA, has greatly improved three major public universities, raised the standards of higher-education institutions, and inspired design professionals to create consequential architecture.
