John T. Dunlop Lecture: Andrew Bernheimer, “Where is the Architecture? Finding Design and Community Amidst Constraints”

A recording of this event is available with audio description.

Event Description

In the 22nd Annual John T. Dunlop Lecture, Andrew Bernheimer, FAIA, will discuss what several affordable housing projects in New York City have taught him about architecture’s role in addressing housing-related challenges. His firm, Bernheimer Architecture (BA), is committed to “designing sustainable and resilient architecture by crafting productive environments for people and their communities.” BA’s wide-ranging portfolio includes numerous affordable housing developments, including: OneFlushing, a 230-unit, all-affordable intergenerational housing development in Queens; Caesura Brooklyn, a 123-unit, mixed-use, mixed-income building in the Downtown Brooklyn Cultural District; and 1490 Southern Boulevard, a 115-unit, all-affordable, senior housing project in the Bronx that includes units and related services for people who previously experienced homelessness. And, in the context of a recent unionization drive at BA, Bernheimer will discuss how to do this challenging work in humane and sensitive ways.  

His remarks will be followed by a discussion with Jill Crawford, a partner at Type A Projects LLC, who has worked with BA on several affordable housing projects, and former Loeb Fellow Marc Norman, LF ’15, Associate Dean of NYU’s Shack Institute of Real Estate. Daniel D’Oca, MUP ’02, an Associate Professor in the Practice of Urban Planning at GSD, will moderate the conversation. 

AIA members who attend this event may be eligible for continuing education units. Please reach out to [email protected] if you are interested.

Speakers

Andrew Bernheimer is the founding principal of Bernheimer Architecture, a Brooklyn-based firm responsible for a wide variety of residential, civic, and cultural projects, including several award-winning, multi-unit, affordable housing developments in New York City. He edited Timber in the City (ORO Editions, 2015), which features innovative practices in wood construction and co-edited Fairy Tale Architecture (ORO Editions, 2020) with his sister, Kate Bernheimer. In 2018, Bernheimer was elevated to AIA’s College of Fellows. In addition, he is a member of the Executive Board of NYC’s Institute for Public Architecture. 

Bernheimer is also an Associate Professor of Architecture at the Parsons School of Design where he teaches in both the graduate and undergraduate architecture sequences. While Director of the MArch program at Parsons from 2012-2016, he oversaw a program known for its connections between design and practice and a distinct focus on New York City’s communities and their constructed environments. The program included a signature design-build studio and cross-disciplinary curricular opportunities with graduate programs in lighting and interior design. 

Previously, Bernheimer was a founding partner of the award-winning firm Della Valle Bernheimer. In 2009, Princeton Architectural Press published Think/Make, a monograph that documents 12 of the firm’s most innovative projects. 

Jill Crawford, is co-founder of Type A Projects, a women-owned real estate development firm focused on high-impact, affordable and supportive housing in New York City. Type A’s current work includes Bronx Point, a 540-unit affordable development with three acres of public waterfront open space and Homeward Central Harlem, a 50-unit supportive housing project for formerly homeless youth.  Type A is also currently working with NYC Health + Hospitals to develop River Commons, a 278-unit affordable and supportive building designed by Bernheimer Architecture.  Prior to starting Type A in 2013, Crawford and her co-founder, Annie Tirschwell developed over one million square feet of community schools with the nonprofit developer, Civic Builders Inc. Crawford began her real estate career managing the Upper Manhattan Historic Preservation Fund, partnering with community institutions to restore landmark properties.  She is currently a member of the Design for Freedom Working Group, an initiative focused on eradicating forced labor in building materials supply chains.   

Marc Norman is the Larry & Klara Silverstein Chair in Real Estate Development & Investment, and Associate Dean of the Schack Institute of Real Estate at New York University. A renowned urban planner and a veteran in the field of community development and finance, Norman is also the founder of Ideas and Action, a consulting firm. Before coming to NYU in July 2022, he was an Associate Professor of Practice at the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan where he also served as Faculty Director of the Weiser Center for Real Estate at the university’s Ross School of Business. A former Loeb Fellow, Norman also has extensive experience in the public, private, and non-profit sectors and has worked collaboratively to develop or finance over 2,000 housing units totaling more than $400 million in total development costs. 

Daniel D’Oca (moderator) is an Associate Professor in the Practice of Urban Planning at the Harvard Graduate School of Design where he coordinates the second-semester core urban planning studio and leads interdisciplinary, client-based option studios on a range of equity-related topics. He also chairs the Joint Center for Housing Studies’ Faculty Advisory Committee. In addition, D’Oca is principal and co-founder of Interboro Partners, an award-winning planning, urban design, and architectural design firm based in Brooklyn and Detroit.  

Anyone requiring accessibility accommodations should contact the Public Programs Office at (617) 496-2414 or [email protected].

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