9-11 Memorial "Reflecting Absence" Architect - Bios

Memorial - Reflecting Absence

Bios and CreditsARCHITECT MICHAEL ARAD AND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT PETER WALKER UNVEIL WINNING DESIGN FOR WORLD TRADE CENTER SITE MEMORIAL:REFLECTING ABSENCE

Michael Arad

Michael Arad grew up in Israel, the United States and Mexico. He has been living in the U.S. since finishing his military service in the Israeli Defense Force in 1991. He received a BA from Dartmouth College, and a MA from Georgia Tech's College of Architecture. He moved to New York City in 1999 and worked as an architect at Kohn Pedersen Fox for three years. He recently joined the Design Department of the New York City Housing Authority and has been working on the design development of two police stations for the New York City Police Department. He lives in the East Village in New York City with his wife, Melanie Arad Fitzpatrick, and his newborn son, Nathaniel.

Peter Walker

The office of Peter Walker and Partners was formed in 1983 for the practice of landscape architecture. The projects, executed worldwide, vary both in scale and program: urban design and planning, corporate headquarters and university campuses, parks, plazas, and gardens. Exploring the relationships between art, culture, and context, Peter Walker and other members of the firm re-form the landscape - whether urban or natural - and challenge traditional concepts of design. The office's method of design moves from defining the program to forming the space and experimenting with materials; the tools employed are drawing, model-making, computer graphics, and full-size mock-ups. The decision process reflects the constant exchange occurring with clients, architects and consultants. Knowledge of history and tradition and a deep understanding of contemporary needs and patterns of living, combined with a quest for the appropriate and the particular, allow this firm to produce landscapes that are both timeless and unique. The work of Peter Walker and Partners results from an understanding of both conceptual and material processes, mastery of construction, and attention to craft and details. Peter Walker and Partners has joined renowned architects to create projects of significant scale and impact. Among these are the Clark Center for Biomedical Engineering and Sciences and the Center for Clinical Sciences Research at Stanford University (U.S.) with Sir Norman Foster and Partners; Harima Science Garden City and Town Park (Japan) with Arata Isozaki; the I.B.M. Solana Campus (U.S.), Chiron Corporation (U.S.), and U.C.S.F. Mission Bay Campus (U.S.), with Ricardo Legorreta; I.B.M. Makuhari headquarters and Toyota Museum of Art (Japan) with Yoshio Taniguchi; numerous corporate and public spaces in Germany with Helmut Jahn; the Millennium Park for the 2000 Olympics (Australia); and the Nasher Foundation (U.S.) with Renzo Piano. The firm of Peter Walker and Partners has an office in Berkeley, California; it employs approximately 27 landscape architects.

Acknowledgements:

Model Fabrication: Awad Architectural Models, New York, NYGraphics +
Visualization: dbox, New York, NY; sQuared design lab, LLC
Music on original animation: Violin: Anne Akiko Meyers, Piano: Li Jian,
Composition: Somei SatohModel
Photography: Jock Pottle/Esto