AIA Connecticut is extremely pleased to announce that because of their notable contributions to the profession, Barry Svigals of Svigals + Partners in New Haven and Ross Spiegel of Fletcher-Thompson’s Shelton office have been elevated to Fellowship, the highest honor that the American Institute of Architects can bestow.

Barry Svigals, FAIA, was so honored specifically for reawakening the tradition to enliven buildings with hand-made sculptural artwork integrated with the architecture. This relationship offers another dimension of expression unique in contemporary architecture, bringing both meaning and delight to his work. The nomination highlighted over thirty projects involving sculpture in architecture, including a 500-foot-long sculptural aluminum frieze that Barry created for New Haven’s Beecher School, a 950-pound bronze caryatid statue he sculpted for Albertus Magnus College and two major classroom buildings at the University of Connecticut that each feature relief sculptures covering over 40% of their facades.

Barry’s sculptures have been uniquely integrated into dozens of architectural commissions including the new academic building at Albertus Magnus College, the Wallace E. Carroll School of Management at Boston College, private residences and public elementary schools. His recent work includes four new schools in New Haven, Connecticut as well as several objects at Norwalk Community College, Yale University and the University of Connecticut, where Barry was a part of a team that developed the UCONN 2000 and 21^st Century Uconn Master Plan.

He is currently a faculty member of the Yale School of Architecture and previously was a visiting critic and lecturer at the Unite Pedagogique d’Architecture in Charenton, France. He has given conferences on facility planning for creative enterprises at the Graduate School of Business at Harvard and Stanford Universities. Most recently he presented a seminar of “The Impact of Information Technology of the Campuses of the 21^st Century” at the Society of College and University Planners national convention in Chicago. Barry was formerly the Chair of the Cultural Affairs Commission for the City of New Haven and recently served as the president of ARTSPACE, a non-profit performing and visual arts center in New Haven.

The American Institute of Architects elevated a total of 76 architects to its prestigious College of Fellows, an honor awarded to members who have made contributions of national significance to the profession.

Out of a membership of more than 75,000, there are fewer than 2,500 AIA members distinguished with the honor of fellowship. It is conferred on architects with at least 10 years of membership in the AIA who have made significant contributions in the following areas: the aesthetic, scientific, and practical efficiency of the profession; the standards of architectural education, training, and practice; the building industry through leadership in the AIA and other related professional organizations; advancement of living standards of people through an improved environment; and to society through significant public service.

The new Fellows, who are entitled to use the designation “FAIA” following their names, will be invested in the College of Fellows at the 2007 AIA National Convention and Design Expo in San Antonio on May 4.

The 2007 Jury of Fellows was chaired by Lorri D. Sipes, FAIA, Ann Arbor, Michigan. Other jury members were Lee H. Askew, FAIA, ANF Architects Inc., Memphis, Tennessee; Rebecca G. Barnes, FAIA, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island; Daniel S. Friedman, FAIA, University of Illinois-Chicago School of Architecture, Chicago, Illinois; Phillip H. Gerou, FAIA, Gerou & Associates, Evergreen, Colorado; Walter Schamu, FAIA, Schamu Machowski Greco Architects, Baltimore, Maryland; Carol Shen, ELS Architecture & Urban Design, Berkeley, California.