THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS GRAND VALLEY CHAPTER EXPLORES THE MULTI-CULTURAL MODERNISM OF STEVEN EHRLICH

CHAPTER HOSTS AWARD-WINNING ARCHITECT STEVEN EHRLICH AS PART OF ITS REGULAR PROGRAM SERIES APRIL 6 IN GRAND RAPIDS

 As part of its monthly program series to bring awareness to issues impacting the quality of life in West Michigan, The Grand Valley Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA Grand Valley) will present ”Multicultural Modernism – The Architecture of Steven Ehrlich“ on Thursday, April 6, 2006 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Prince Conference Center on Calvin College’s campus in Grand Rapids.  Special guest speaker for the event will be Internationally-known Architect and speaker, Steven Ehrlich, principal of Steven Ehrlich Architects. The public is invited.

A self-proclaimed "architectural anthropologist," Steven Ehrlich (Rensselaer Polytechic Institute '69) spent six years living and working in Africa, serving for two years with the Peace Corps as the first architect in Marrakech, Morocco. The lessons of indigenous building have formed Ehrlich's approach to design and continue to influence his work today. Los Angeles, with its multi-cultural diversity, kinetic energy, and open-minded nature, has proved fertile ground for his unique brand of Modernism. Within the artistic Los Angeles milieu, he has also championed the collaboration of artists and architects as well as fusing technology with cultural and environmental sensitivity. Steven Ehrlich Architects, a 20-person team occupying a converted dance hall in Culver City, has earned numerous design awards, as documented by a Rizzoli monograph published in 1988. Steven's Ehrlich's teaching - most recently as the first John Adams Jerde Chair for Architectural Criticism at USC, also includes critical and speaking engagements throughout the US and around the globe.

Founded in 1979 Steven Ehrlich Architects (SEA) is located in Culver City, California. Its award-winning projects have long been recognized for distinctive designs that extend the tradition of architectural innovation and the fusion of technology with cultural and environmental sensitivity.  SEA is nationally recognized for award-winning architecture. In 2003, SEA was honored as the Firm of the Year by the California AIA, and in 1997 we received three AIA National Honor awards for design, the first practice to be so honored since I.M. Pei in 1974. The Firm of the Year Award is the highest honor bestowed on an architectural firm by the AIACC, and recognizes sustained levels of design excellence as well as contributions to the profession. A total of five monographs have been published on the work of Steven Ehrlich Architects including one in 1998 by Rizzoli International and one in 2002 by IMAGES Publishing.

Over the twenty-five year history of the firm, SEA has master planned and designed a wide variety of corporate, civic, residential, educational and learning facilities throughout California and the nation. SEA approaches the planning and design of all projects with a straightforward methodology focused on function and an architectural expression concerned with users and the community, a vernacular response to local climate and culture, the integration of spontaneous social gatherings, and the power of simple forms and spaces. SEA understands the importance of people and place and the necessity of expressing the unique characteristics of a community or campus within the context of a functional, well-planned facility.

While Steven Ehrlich Architects has received much critical recognition, the most satisfying measure of achievement is that its architecture has succeeded in connecting people with people: public buildings encourage a multi-cultural fusion of people & place while residential works create serene environments that replenish the soul.

The program is sponsored by Custer Office Environments and Steelcase.