Designed for members and the public, The AIA Baltimore Spring Lecture Series committee is planning yet another galvanizing line-up. This year’s speakers, each a unique but integral cog in the architectural innovation wheel, were selected based on their exemplary contributions of diversity and sustainability to the discourse.

On March 18, the series will kick-off with Stefan Behnisch, Hon. FAIA, principal of Behnisch Architekten, a German-based firm with offices in Los Angeles and Boston. Behnisch was featured on the cover of Decembers 2008 Metropolis Magazine as the new energy-efficiency form-maker, and was recently selected by The University of Baltimore as the winning design for the new Law School Building project in Baltimore. Having studied philosophy, economics and architecture in Munich and Karlsruhe, Germany, Stefan Behnisch has been an advocate of sustainable design since he started working as an architect. Many of his buildings have received prestigious awards, and his Genzyme Center in Cambridge, MA, was rated LEED Platinum. He was the Eero Saarinen Chair visiting professor at Yale School of Architecture in 2005, 2006, and 2008, and was nominated for the Global Award for Sustainable Architecture in 2007.

Ann Beha, FAIA with a portfolio of historical, cultural, and educational projects will give the Preservation Maryland Lecture in honor of Michael F. Trostel, FAIA scheduled for April 1. As President of Ann Beha Architects in Boston, her work is marked by its advocacy for the integration of contemporary design within the historic setting. The work of Ann Beha Architects has received numerous national and international awards and has been published widely. Significantly, this includes the renovation and expansion of the Portland Art Museum, Oregon. She was awarded a Loeb Fellowship at the Graduate School of Design, Harvard University and is a Trustee of Historic New England.  

Coming to us from Vancouver, British Columbia on April 22, Bing Thom, AIA, will attest to his multidisciplinary master builder approach, which inspires complex cultural landmarks, such as performing arts centers, civic buildings, and museums. Founding Principal of Bing Thom Architects, his distinguished career has been recognized by Canada's highest honor, the Order of Canada, for his contribution to the discipline. The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia is considered to be the finest medium-sized concert hall on the continent. He has also been awarded the Golden Jubilee Medal for services to his country and most recently, was the privileged recipient of an Honorary Degree of Laws bestowed from both Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia.

This year’s final speaker will be Joshua Prince Ramus, of REX Architecture in New York on April 30. Hailed as one of the Best and Brightest 2008 by Esquire Magazine, Joshua Prince-Ramus is making waves as the leader of a younger generation of architects; challenging the precepts set forth by the likes of Calatrava and Ghery. After graduating from Harvard University, Graduate School of Design, Prince-Ramus joined the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) in Rotterdam until he landed the commission for the Seattle Central Library in 1999. This achievement awarded him as founding partner of OMA New York, where he served as Partner-in-Charge of Guggenheim-Hermitage Museum, Las Vegas and the Seattle Central Library, named Time Magazine’s 2004, Building of the Year. In 2006 he acquired OMA New York, renamed the firm REX, and became President and Principal in Charge of all projects, including the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts currently under construction.

Each lecture will take place at Falvey Hall at the Brown Center, Maryland Institute College of Art, 1300 W. Mount Royal Avenue and will begin at 6 p.m. with a reception to follow. 1.5 AIA/CES (HSW) credits with registration. Save time and money by purchasing tickets through the AIABaltimore office.   Series tickets are $30/AIA (reduced) and BAF members; $45/public; $15 individually at the door as space permits.  Send payment to AIA Baltimore, 11 ½ W. Chase St., Baltimore, MD or call 410.625.2585 with your credit card.  Visit www.aiabalt.com for updates.