Angela Brooks | Larry Scarpa |

Marlon Blackwell | Meryati Johari Blackwell

Symposium
1:00pm – 2:30pm
Angela Brooks, Larry Scarpa, Marlon Blackwell, Meryati Blackwell

Medal Lectures
3:00pm – 4:00pm Brooks+Scarpa “DENSE CITY: Housing for Social Change”
4:30pm – 5:30pm Marlon Blackwell “Radical Practice”

The Gold Medal is the AIA’s highest annual honor, recognizing individuals whose work has had a lasting influence on the theory and practice of architecture.

Partners in life and design, Angela Brooks, FAIA, and Lawrence Scarpa, FAIA, have forged a pioneering brand of architecture that profoundly enriches the human experience and reveals the extraordinary in what is widely considered ordinary. Across three decades, the excellence of their work has been celebrated internationally, recognized for its unparalleled intersection of collaboration, community, research, and reflection. Moreover, their projects demonstrate a keen understanding of beauty, craft, and the raw power of architecture, standing among the very best of the profession.

“Aside from being outstanding, award-winning design architects, Angie and Larry are also exceptional activists, community leaders, and civic collaborators,” wrote Steve Dumez, FAIA, and Douglas A. Benson, FAIA, in a letter nominating Brooks and Scarpa for the Gold Medal. “They are motivated by a social responsibility and environmental stewardship that seeks to find ways to improve the livability of cities and ennoble the daily lives of its citizens. Actively engaged citizen-architects, their efforts have fundamentally reshaped public policy initiatives that address critical issues and reforms that serve the public good, increase housing equity, and improve the built environment.”

Brooks and Scarpa both come from humble, blue-collar families who hail from small Central Florida towns, and they eventually met while studying architecture at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Scarpa had recently returned to Florida to pursue his graduate studies after working with Paul Rudolph in New York, and Brooks was completing her undergraduate work. They married in 1987 with their passion for architecture and its ability to amplify the human experience fully engaged.

Marlon Blackwell, FAIA, is a practicing architect in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and serves as the E. Fay Jones Distinguished Professor at the Fay Jones School of Architecture + Design at the University of Arkansas. Marlon is integrally involved in every phase of the design process, from programming through construction administration, for every project Marlon Blackwell Architects pursues. He is involved on a daily basis, working to establish the design direction and works directly with client leadership on critical issues, ensuring a successful outcome and meaningful relationship. As our references will attest, Marlon is accessible and involved. His keen attention to detail and design rigor ensure the success of every project, evident in his acclaim as an architect and educator.

The office of Marlon Blackwell Architects received the 2016 Cooper Hewitt National Design Award in Architecture and ranked #1 in Design as part of the Architect 50, a national survey of architecture firms. In 2011, Marlon Blackwell Architects was recognized as the Firm of the Year by Residential Architect Magazine. The firm has earned an international design reputation through recognition of its work in many publications, including architectural design journals and books, and receiving more than 120 design awards including state, regional, national and international awards.

Marlon is the recipient of the 2020 AIA Gold Medal, the Institute’s highest honor, which recognizes those whose work has had an enduring impact on the theory and practice of architecture. He was a 2019 Resident Fellow of the American Academy in Rome, inducted into the 2018 National Academy of Design and received the E. Fay Jones Gold Medal from the Arkansas AIA in 2017. A monograph of his early work entitled “An Architecture of the Ozarks: The Works of Marlon Blackwell” was published by Princeton Architectural Press in 2005. Marlon was selected by The International Design Magazine, in 2006, as one of the ID Forty: Undersung Heroes and as an “Emerging Voice” in 1998 by the Architectural League of New York.

Meryati Johari Blackwell: Meryati brings over twenty-five years of experience to her role as Principal at Marlon Blackwell Architects where she also serves as Director of Interiors and Sustainability. Her sensitivity as a designer and knowledge of materials and details enrich every project in the office. She works closely with Marlon and project teams to deliver thoughtful designs that are both sensual and sensible.

With a degree in Architecture and Planning, Meryati is both a Registered Architect and a Registered Interior Designer. Meryati brings a broad range of experience in architectural offices in the United States and Asia to her work at Marlon Blackwell Architects. She has worked with many project types including as churches and banks, health centers, office buildings, stadiums, libraries, schools and university buildings, as well as residences, retail spaces and hotels. Her talents in architectural and interior design and her expertise in the preparation of construction documents, code research and contract administration, design and detailing, spec writing as well as her ability to coordinate work with various consultants involved in a project are highly valued. She is a LEED Accredited Professional specializing in Building Design and Construction and serves as the LEED Project Team Administrator for each of the firm’s projects that seeks LEED certification.

During her tenure at Marlon Blackwell Architects, Meryati has been integrally involved in the realization of numerous noteworthy and award winning projects including the Crystal Bridges Museum Store, Blessings Golf Clubhouse, Steven L Anderson Design Center and Vol Walker Hall, Montessori Schools, Northwest Arkansas Free Health and the L-Stack Residence where she also served as the project’s General Contractor. In her role as Principal of Marlon Blackwell Architects, Meryati provides oversight of business operations and the development of the firm’s team and resources.

AIA Gold Day is generously supported by the families of Oscar Ekdahl and Victor L. Regnier.
Oscar Ekdahl Lectureships in Architecture and Design and the
Victor L. Regnier Distinguished International Lecture.