"The pendulum swing between architects seeing themselves as artists or as technicians exacts a high price on the profession. Architects do architecture, which is a very complex thing in itself." - Rafael Viñoly

"My design philosophy is rooted in the development of architectural ideas that are powerful, distinctive, and relevant to the specifics of both program and context." - Rafael Viñoly

"Architecture is a dialogue with the forces of life. In every project, I seek to maximize the opportunity for civic investment with a goal of forming iconic works that fulfill the needs of the client." - Rafael Viñoly

  • leadership

    Rafael Viñoly Jay Bargmann Charles Blomberg James Herr David Hodge John Kinnaird Andrea Lamberti Jeannie Lee Chan-Li Lin David Rolland Fred Wilmers

    Rafael Viñoly

    FAIA, JIA, SCA, IntFRIBA

    Lead Designer, Principal

    New York

    1 212 924 5060

    Rafael Viñoly’s forty-five years of architectural practice in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East have been consistently driven by the belief that the essential responsibility of architecture is to elevate the public realm. As in his much-publicized proposal for the World Trade Center site, his deepest focus has been on maximizing the opportunity for civic investment generated by every construction project.

    Viñoly was born in Uruguay in 1944, and, by the age of twenty, he was a founding partner of Estudio de Arquitectura, which would become one of the largest design studios in Latin America. His celebrated early work transformed the landscape of Argentina, where this practice was based. In 1978, Viñoly moved to the United States. After briefly serving as a guest lecturer at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, he settled in New York in 1979.

    In 1983, Viñoly founded Rafael Viñoly Architects PC, a New York-based firm that has grown to encompass offices in London and Los Angeles.

    Through this highly developed entity, Viñoly has completed many critically acclaimed civic projects as well as private and institutional commissions. His first major New York project was the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, which was completed in 1988. In 1989, he won an open international competition to design the Tokyo International Forum, the largest and most important cultural complex in Japan. Completed in 1996, this design secured Viñoly’s reputation as an architect of great imagination and immense professional rigor with a proven capacity to create beloved civic and cultural spaces. The opening of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia in 2001 marked a similar success in the United States. The building prompted other seminal commissions including Jazz at Lincoln Center (New York), the David L. Lawrence Convention Center (Pittsburgh), and the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, all of which resulted in iconic civic gathering spaces in their respective cities.

    Viñoly’s work is marked by a sustained structural originality that transcends the passing fads of

    architectural movements. At home with both large-and small-scale projects, his recent work ranges from university buildings such as the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business and the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University, to leading-edge biomedical and nanosystems research facilities such as the University of California, Los Angeles, California NanoSystems Institute; the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Janelia Farm Research Campus in Virginia; and the John Edward Porter Neuroscience Research Center at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. His work also encompasses courthouses, private residences, athletic facilities, and additional performing arts venues such as Curve, a theater and performing arts center in Leicester, England. Viñoly’s museum projects include an expansion for the Cleveland Museum of Art, one of the nation’s leading cultural institutions, along with the Brooklyn Children’s Museum and the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University.

    Bringing to life his belief that the architectural

    profession should return to the discipline itself more of what is learned through designing and constructing buildings, Vinoly instituted the Rafael Viñoly Architects Training and Research Programs. Led by Viñoly and his colleagues, the tuition-free Training Program helps students develop the operational and intellectual instruments that form the basis of architectural practice, while the Research Program offers an annual fellowship of three to twelve months to support original research that advances the craft and practice of architecture. In recognition of the firm's 25th anniversary this year, the 2008 program will be extended to up to five traveling grant fellowships with a research focus on transformations in the built environment within dynamically changing societies.

    In addition to his professional dedication and his many successes in competitions—including a University of Oxford master plan, completed in 2006—Viñoly’s work has been recognized in the world’s leading design publications and by numerous awards of excellence. Viñoly became a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in

    1993 and is a member of the Japan Institute of Architects. In 2006, he was named an International Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He lectures widely in the United States and abroad.

    Education
    University of Buenos Aires School of Architecture and Urbanism, Master of Architecture, 1969
    University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Diploma in Architecture, 1968

    Professional Affiliations
    American Institute of Architects
    Japan Institute of Architects
    The National Academy
    The Royal Institute of British Architects
    Sociedad Central de Arquitectos, Argentina
    Registered Architect: Argentina, Japan, New York (1980)

    Guest Lecturer/Studio Critic
    Columbia University, Harvard University Graduate School of Design, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Rhode Island School of Design, Southern California Institute of Architecture, the University of Buenos Aires, the University of Pennsylvania, Washington University, Yale University, and many other institutions worldwide

    Honors and Awards
    Design Honor, Salvadori Center, 2007
    International Fellow, The Royal Institute of British Architects, 2006
    National Design Award Finalist, Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, 2004
    Honorary Doctorate, University of Maryland, 1997
    Medal of Honor, American Institute of Architects, New York City Chapter, 1995
    National Academician, The National Academy, 1994

    Project Experience
    Academic
    Civic
    Commercial
    Cultural
    Master Planning
    Research and Health Sciences
    Residential

  • locations

    • Head Office

      New York

      clock face hour hand minute hand second hand
      12:53
      50 Vandam Street New York, NY 10013 USA +1 212 924 5060 T +1 212 924 5858 F New Business and
      General Inquiries       info@rvapc.com Media Inquiries christina@nadinejohnson.com Human Resources resumes@rvapc.com Directions

    • U.S. Offices

      San Francisco

      clock face hour hand minute hand second hand
      09:53
      1520 Page Mill Road Palo Alto, CA 94304 +1 650 497 5914 T

      Chicago

      clock face hour hand minute hand second hand
      11:53
      850 East 58th Street Chicago, IL 60637 +1 773 702 8695 T

      Cleveland

      clock face hour hand minute hand second hand
      12:53
      1801 Martin Luther
      King Jr. Drive       Cleveland, OH 44106 +1 216 707 6748 T

    • Europe

      London

      clock face hour hand minute hand second hand
      17:53
      11-29 Fashion Street London, E1 6PX United Kingdom +44 (0) 20 8206 6200 T +44 (0) 20 8206 6201 F Directions

    • Middle East

      Abu Dhabi

      clock face hour hand minute hand second hand
      20:53
      C60, Al Moror Street M2, P. O. Box 37822 Abu Dhabi UAE +971 2 643 1210 T +971 2 643 1242 F Directions

  • legal

    • Web Design And Development
      Website Design Rafael Viñoly Architects
      Website Development Kristopher Medina Mary Phillipuk
      Website CMS Nicolas Michael
    • Photography
      Peter Aaron Buenos Aires Municipality Benny Chan Chuck Choi Ty Cole Peter Cook/VIEW Pictures James D'Addio Bruce Damonte Dan Dry Carlos Dulitzky Peter Estersohn Estudio de Arquitectura Tobias Everke Brad Feinknopf Paul Fetters Olivia Froudkine Yukio Futagawa Jeff Goldberg Hattori Studio Juan Hitters Koji Horiuchi Wolfgang Hoyt Kim JongOh David Joseph Kawasumi Architectural Photography Michael Kleinberg Johansen Krause Luuk Kramer Masashi Kudo Alejandro Leveratto Nathaniel Lieberman Thomas Loof & Pernille Pederson Luzzi & Sanguinetti Daniela Mac Adden Peter Margonelli Dennis Marsico Richard Massey Migone-Izquierdo y Associates Michael Moran Jeroen Musch Mario Novak Shigeo Ogawa / Shinkenchikusya Will Pryce Doug Salin Julie Skarratt SS Tokyo Co. Frank Stewart Raoul Suermondt Jeffrey Totaro Roman Viñoly Paul Warchol Roy Wright
    • Renderings and Animations
      ARX Solutions BB Group, 2008 cityscapedigital.co.uk Hayes Davidson CGI Miller Hare Spine 3D Rafael Viñoly Architects
    • Homepage Movies
      Roman Viñoly
    • Legal Terms And Conditions

      Accessing this site indicates your acceptance of RVA Terms and Conditions of Use of Electronic Documents as described below.

      01. DRAWING SUBMISSIONS
      This secure ftp site has been established by Rafael Viñoly Architects PC for limited use by expressly authorized users. Rafael Viñoly Architects PC (RVA) makes no representation as to the accuracy or completeness of electronic documents provided for use by others. Any use of any RVA electronic document or reproduction thereof is at the sole risk of the user and it is their responsibility to verify the information contained therein. Because data stored in electronic media format can deteriorate or be modified inadvertently or otherwise without authorization of the data's creator, you agree that no warranties are made with respect to the contents of these files. Any difference between any RVA electronic documents or reproduction thereof and the drawings, specifications and details in the Contract Documents shall be called to the attention of RVA immediately in writing. Information contained in any RVA electronic document or reproduction thereof does not modify any of the requirements of the Contract Documents. The user shall, to the fullest extent of the law, indemnify and hold RVA harmless from and against any and all claims, liabilities, damages, losses, judgments, costs and expenses, including attorney’s fees that may be incurred by RVA as a result of any use of any RVA electronic document or reproduction thereof. All information contained within any electronic documentation received from RVA, or any reproduction thereof, shall be considered confidential, and shall not be disclosed to any third party without the written consent of RVA. Any electronic documents provided by RVA including any information therein may only be used in connection with the construction of the Project for which the ftp site was created.

      02. WARRANTIES AND LIABILITY
      While every effort is made to ensure that the content of this website is accurate, the website is provided “as is” and Rafael Viñoly Architects makes no representations or warranties in relation to the accuracy or completeness of the information found on it. While the content of this site is provided in good faith, we do not warrant that the information will be kept up to date, be true and not misleading, or that this site will always (or ever) be available for use.
      We do not warrant that the servers that make this website available will be error, virus or bug free and you accept that it is your responsibility to make adequate provision for protection against such threats. We recommend scanning any files before downloading.
      Nothing on this website should be taken to constitute professional advice or a formal recommendation and we exclude all representations and warranties relating to the content and use of this site.
      In no event will Rafael Viñoly Architects be liable for any incidental, indirect, consequential or special damages of any kind, or any damages whatsoever, including, without limitation, those resulting from loss of profit, loss of contracts, goodwill, data, information, income, anticipated savings or business relationships, whether or not advised of the possibility of such damage, arising out of or in connection with the use of this website or any linked websites.

      03. USE OF CONTENT
      Duplication of the content for distribution by any means including on the Web is not allowed unless you obtain a content license from Rafael Viñoly Architects.
      Rafael Viñoly Architects encourages and permits text links to it's website, provided: (a) the purpose of the link must not be to damage the reputation of Rafael Viñoly Architects and its service providers, (b) when activated, the link must open in full-screen, and not as a framed "pop-up" on the linked website; and (c) Rafael Viñoly Architects reserves the right to revoke consent to any link and any time at its sole discretion by amending this Agreement.

      04. PERSONAL INFORMATION
      Rafael Viñoly Architects does not collect personal information (e.g., name, address or telephone number) unless you voluntarily provide it to us by sending email. Rafael Viñoly Architects does not share any personal information with any third parties.
      When you visit this Website, Rafael Viñoly Architects automatically collects certain information, such as:
      • Domain, country, IP address
      • Browser, platform, resolution
      • Entrance-Exit Pages, Referrals
      • Date, Time
      • Search Terms and Search Engines
      This is standard practice for Websites, and is not used for any purpose other than to evaluate how Rafael Viñoly Architects can design the site to best serve your needs.

    • copyright
      © 1998-2013 Rafael Viñoly Architects PC