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American architect From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mitchell Joachim (pronounced /jo-ak-um/; born February 3, 1972) is an architect and urban designer. He is the Co-Founder of Terreform ONE, and a Professor of Practice at NYU.[1] Previously he was the Frank Gehry Chair at University of Toronto[2] and a faculty member at Pratt, Columbia, Syracuse, Washington, The New School, and the European Graduate School.[3]
Mitchell Joachim | |
|---|---|
Dr. Joachim in 2017 | |
| Born | February 3, 1972 New Jersey, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | MIT, Harvard Graduate School of Design, Columbia University |
| Known for | Fab Tree Hab, Sustainable design, MIT Car |
| Spouse | Melanie Fessel (m. 2008; div. 2014) |
| Children | 2 |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Urban design, Architecture |
| Institutions | Terreform ONE + NYU |
| Thesis | Ecotransology: Integrated Design for Urban Mobility (2006) |
| Doctoral advisor | William J. Mitchell |
| Other academic advisors | Alex Krieger, Adèle Naudé Santos |
Most of Joachim's projects employ innovative platforms and methods based on living biological matter for fabrication and design purposes. Rather than merely drawing inspiration from nature (not biomimicry), these materials are altered, coaxed, or engineered to function in ways that stay living and breathing within the environment.
Mitchell Joachim was born in New Jersey to Henry and Ellen Joachim. Henry, a passionate painter, owned a small wood furniture manufacturing business. Ellen, Mitchell’s mother, played a pivotal role in his upbringing, guiding him alongside Henry. In the late '70s, seeking a better quality of life, his parents moved from Manhattan to the suburbs of New Jersey. This relocation blended the cultural richness of their New York City heritage with suburban stability, shaping Mitchell's development and nurturing his passions and interests under the guidance of his parents’ entrepreneurial spirit and artistic inclination.
He earned a Ph.D.[4] at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in the Dept. of Architecture, Design and Computation program , a Master of Architecture in Urban Design (MAUD) at Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD), a M.Arch at Columbia University GSAPP, and a BPS at the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York with Honors.
Mitchell has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship, LafargeHolcim Foundation Award,[5] ARCHITECT R+D Award,[6] Senior Fellowship at TED 2011,[7] Moshe Safdie and Assoc. Fellowship, and Martin Society for Sustainability Fellowship at MIT. He won the Zumtobel Group Award,[8] History Channel and Infiniti Design Excellence Award for the City of the Future, and Time Magazine Best Invention of the Year 2007, MIT Car w/ MIT Smart Cities.[9] His project, Fab Tree Hab, has been exhibited at MoMA and widely published. He was selected by Wired magazine for "The 2008 Smart List: 15 People the Next President Should Listen To".[10] Rolling Stone magazine honored Mitchell as an agent of change in "The 100 People Who Are Changing America". In 2009 he was interviewed on the Colbert Report[11] Popular Science magazine has featured his work as a visionary for “The Future of the Environment” in 2010.[12] Mitchell was the Winner of the Victor Papanek Social Design Award[13] sponsored by the University of Applied Arts Vienna, the Austrian Cultural Forum New York, and the Museum of Arts and Design in 2011. Dwell magazine featured Mitchell as one of "The NOW 99" in 2012.[14] He won the American Institute of Architects New York, Urban Design Merit Award for; Terreform ONE, Urbaneer Resilient Waterfront Infrastructure, 2013.[15]
Early in his career, Joachim worked for Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects. Working with I.M. Pei provided Joachim with valuable insights into large-scale architectural projects and the integration of contemporary design with historical contexts. His experience allowed him to develop a deep understanding of architectural form, materiality, and the importance of place in urban design.
Years later, Joachim worked at the architecture offices of Mohse Safdie under an awarded research fellowship. Safdie contributed to his ability to push the boundaries of traditional architecture, incorporating analytical tools and socio-ecological principles into designs of tall buildings and clusters.
The mentorship and collaboration with these two renowned architects provided Joachim with a strong foundation for his career, leading to his recognition in ecological design and sustainable urbanism. Joachim's exposure to Pei's modernist precision and Safdie's humane principles influenced his own innovative projects, such as the Fab Tree Hab, Cricket Shelter, and Monarch Sanctuary. These experiences reinforced his commitment to creating architecture that is not only visually striking but also environmentally responsible and socially inclusive.
In 2002, Joachim started his doctoral research with the MIT Media Lab's Smart Cities group under the leadership of William J. Mitchell. This experience allowed him to explore the intersection of computational design and urbanism, focusing on how emerging types of mobility, city cars, and soft vehicles could be leveraged to create more sustainable transport-based municipal environments.
After MIT, Joachim completed his part of the project on the Frank Gehry Car with General Motors to work in the offices of Frank O. Gehry and Partners in Los Angeles.
In 2006, Mitchell Joachim co-founded Terreform ONE (Open Network Ecology), a 501c3 nonprofit organization that focuses on biotech architecture and ecological urban planning. Terreform ONE aims to address environmental issues of climate change and biodiversity loss through novel experimental methodologies, engineered living materials, and interdisciplinary research. Their operational motto is to "Design Against Extinction".
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