LYNNETTE WIDDER
aardvarchi.com
risd connection: Associate Professor + Department Head, Architecture
about her work: Lynnette Widder’s approach to architecture is reflected in the philosophy of her New York firm aardvarchitecture, which she founded in 1997 with Christian Volkmann. “Our approach to architecture aims to unify the clarity and immediacy of the clear ‘concept’ with smaller 'motifs' that contribute to the overall, but can also be seen as independent elements in themselves,” she explains. The firm addresses spatial, formal and construction questions holistically, with an essential unifying idea. “We work towards the strongest visual expression of this idea, while developing details or motifs at another, smaller scale,” she says.
road to risd: After receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree from Barnard College in 1984, Widder earned her master’s from Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture in 1990. She then worked as a designer, project art and construction administrator for architectural offices in Berlin and Zurich and, from 1994 to 1998, was an editor for the architecture quarterly Daidalos. Widder has written extensively on contemporary architecture, and her translations from German include two books on architecture history and theory, as well as numerous shorter texts. A Fulbright Scholar, she has taught as a visiting professor at the Federal Technical Institute (ETH) in Zurich, 1993-94; the University of British Columbia, 1996; Cornell University, 1997; and Columbia University, 2001 and 2003. Widder has also lectured on topics in contemporary architecture and architectural history at Bauhaus Akademie Weimar, Cranbrook Academy of Art, the Technical University of Berlin, Columbia University and the University of British Columbia.
philosophy: “Strong architectural culture requires a positive relationship between the teaching and practice of architecture. My work in the Department of Architecture aims to strengthen this relationship by empowering students through concrete, practical knowledge while protecting the academic intellectual integrity, which will form the conceptual basis of their life’s works.”
education
BA, Barnard College, 1984
MArch, Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, 1990
awards
Kyobo Grant for Interdisciplinary Teaching, RISD, 2004
Honorable Mention, “New York’s Other River” Van Alen Institute competition, 1998 (with aardvarchitecture)
William Kinney Traveling Scholarship, 1990
Award for Excellence in the History and Theory of Architecture, Columbia University, 1990
Fulbright Scholar, 1988-89
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