Deane Madsen

Writing on Architecture

Interview with AIA Gold Medal Winner James Polshek

James Polshek, winner of the 2018 AIA Gold Medal, served as design director for The Newseum in Washington, D.C.

“I thought it was a robocall,” James Polshek says about answering the phone to news that he’d won the 2018 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Gold Medal. “It was a chilly day, and I was walking up 6th Avenue after leaving a chronologically required hearing test, when the phone rang.” Polshek is 87, but could hear the news just fine: “At that point, I kind of lost my breath,” he says. “I was laughing and sobbing simultaneously, with enjoyment, pleasure, and some disbelief.”

A 1955 M.Arch. graduate of Yale University, Polshek founded his eponymous firm in 1963, which evolved through the years to become Ennead Architects in 2010, five years after his retirement. He spoke with RECORD by phone after learning about the AIA award.

Architectural Record: Which projects are you proudest of, and why?

James Polshek: You know the saying, “If you have many children . . .” The most obvious one is perhaps the most nationally prestigious: the Clinton Library. But my two favorites came in succession in 1969 and 1972 and gave me the confidence to pursue the way I wanted to practice. The first was the New York State Bar Association in Albany, which won the 1972 AIA Honor Award for merging a historic building in a historic district with a modernist interpretation. The second is called the Five County Consulting Center in Columbus, Indiana, which solved environmental and ecological problems, as the building is a bridge over a creek that flooded severely. We used some of the foundation budget to stop the Army Corps of Engineers from simply widening the creek. Those two together—and the various themes that connect to later projects—were seminal.

For more about Polshek’s advice for young architects, his firm’s evolution, and ethical codes embedded in his work, read the full story at Architectural Record. 

On December 22, 2017
by Deane
in Architects, Architectural Record, Architecture, Award Winners, Awards

AIAArchitectural RecordAwards

Recent Posts

  • Two Quiet Residential Projects Speak Volumes March 27, 2019
  • Hip Hop Architecture Camp Lands in DC March 22, 2019
  • ‘HOOPS’ Opens at the National Building Museum March 15, 2019
  • AIA|DC Tackles Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion February 27, 2019
  • Metropolis Think Tank at Perkins Eastman Tackles DC’s Urban Planning December 14, 2018

Categories

  • Affordable Housing
  • Architect Magazine
  • Architects
  • Architectural Record
  • Architecture
  • ArchitectureDC Magazine
  • Arts and Culture
  • Award Winners
  • Awards
  • Bond Financing
  • Books
  • Bridges and Culverts
  • Building Science
  • Building Technology
  • Buildings and Facilities
  • Commercial Projects
  • Commissioning
  • Community Projects
  • Competitions
  • Construction
  • Cultural Projects
  • Design
  • Doors
  • Education
  • Education Projects
  • Energy Efficiency
  • Engineering
  • Entertainment Projects
  • Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
  • Exhibitions
  • Fabrication
  • Fiber-Reinforced Concrete
  • Finance
  • Government Projects
  • Green Building
  • Green Design
  • Grounds
  • Grounds, Parks and Roadside Maintenance
  • Healthcare Projects
  • High-Performance Building
  • Historic Preservation
  • History
  • Hospitality Projects
  • In-House Design
  • Industrial Projects
  • Infrastructure Projects
  • Installation
  • Interiors
  • International Projects
  • Land
  • Landscape Architecture
  • Landscaping
  • Market-Rate Housing
  • Mixed-Use Development
  • Mobile Technology
  • Modular Building
  • Multifamily
  • Net-Zero Energy
  • Office Projects
  • Parks and Roadside Maintenance
  • Performance Metrics
  • Photography
  • Planning
  • Prefab Design
  • Preservation
  • Products
  • Projects
  • Recreational Projects
  • Religious Projects
  • Research
  • Residential Construction
  • Residential Projects
  • Retail Projects
  • Retaining Walls
  • Single Family
  • Sitework
  • Small Projects
  • Social Media
  • Solar Heating
  • Solar Power
  • Sports Projects
  • Storm and Wind Resistance
  • Structure
  • Technology
  • Transportation Projects
  • Uncategorized
  • Urban Design
  • Urban Development
  • Value Engineering
  • Video
  • Zoning
  • About
  • Articles
  • Contact

© All images and text copyright 2014–present by Deane Madsen