Adrian Devaun Smith (born August 19, 1944) is an American

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

. He designed the world's tallest structure,

Burj Khalifa The Burj Khalifa (known as the Burj Dubai prior to its inauguration) is a megatall skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m (2,722 ft, or just over half a mile) and a roof height (excluding the antenna, but inc ...

, as well as the building projected to surpass it, the

Jeddah Tower Jeddah Tower or Burj Jeddah (, ) is a skyscraper under-construction in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It is planned to be the first building and would be the world's tallest building or structure upon completion, standing taller than the Burj Khali ...

. A long-time principal of

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill SOM, an initialism of its original name Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, is a Chicago-based architectural, urban planning, and engineering firm. It was founded in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel Owings. In 1939, they were joined by engineer ...

, he founded his own architectural partnership firm

Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture Adrian is a form of the Latin given name Adrianus or Hadrianus. Its ultimate origin is most likely via the former river Adria from the Venetic and Illyrian word ''adur'', meaning "sea" or "water". The Adria was until the 8th century BC the main ...

in Chicago in 2006. Among his other projects, he was the senior architect for

Central Park Tower Central Park Tower is a residential supertall skyscraper at 225 West 57th Street, along Billionaires' Row, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. Designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, the build ...

in New York City, Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago, the

Jin Mao Tower The Jin Mao Tower (; Shanghainese:'' Cinmeu Dagho''; lit. ‘Golden Prosperity Building’), also known as the or , is a , 88-story (93 if counting the floors in the spire) landmark skyscraper in Lujiazui, Pudong, Shanghai, China. It contains a ...

in Shanghai, and

Zifeng Tower Zifeng Tower (Greenland Center-Zifeng Tower or Greenland Square Zifeng Tower, formerly Nanjing Greenland Financial Center) is a supertall skyscraper (special class of skyscraper) in Nanjing, Jiangsu. The 66-story building completed in 2010 ...

in Nanjing.

Early life and education

Adrian Smith was born in Chicago in 1944. When he was four years old, his family moved to Southern California, where he grew up. His interest in drawing led his mother to suggest that he study architecture. Smith attended

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

, pursuing a Bachelor of Architecture while being involved with the Corps of Cadets. However, he did not graduate and instead started working for

Skidmore, Owings and Merrill SOM, an initialism of its original name Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, is a Chicago-based architectural, urban planning, and engineering firm. It was founded in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel Owings. In 1939, they were joined by enginee ...

(SOM) in 1967. He finished his education at the

University of Illinois, Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the Universi ...

College of Architecture and Arts, graduating in 1969. In 2013, Smith was presented with an Honorary Doctorate of Letters degree from Texas A&M University.

Career

Smith spent many years at

(SOM), Chicago, beginning in 1967 and was a Design Partner from 1980 to 2003 and a Consulting Design Partner from 2003 to 2006. In 2006, he founded

(AS+GG), which is dedicated to the design of high-performance, energy-efficient and sustainable

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

on an international scale. In 2008, he co-founded the MEP firm of PositivEnergy Practice (PEP), which specializes in the environmental engineering of high-performance, energy-efficient architecture design.

Contributions to architecture

The petal shape of Burj Khalifa was a major architectural contribution by Smith. The shape of Burj Khalifa was inspired by the Spider Lily flower. The three petal shape re-configures as the building height increases. The change in pattern along the height does not allow flow pattern to organize. This confuses the wind and saves the building from the effect of vortex shedding. Smith was also credited to introduce the first large-scale commercial passive double-wall structure in the United States located at 601 Congress Street in Boston in 2006.

Recognition

Projects Smith designed have won over 125 awards including 5 international awards, 9 National

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

Awards, 35 State and Chicago AIA Awards, and 3

Urban Land Institute The Urban Land Institute, or ULI, is a global nonprofit research and education organization with regional offices in Washington, D.C., Hong Kong, and London. ULI aims to help its members and their partners build more equitable, sustainable, heal ...

Awards for Excellence. He was the recipient of the

CTBUH The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) is an international body in the field of tall buildings, including skyscrapers, and sustainable urban design. A non-profit organization based at the Monroe Building in Chicago, Illinois, U ...

2011 Lynn S. Beedle Lifetime Achievement Award. Smith's work at SOM has been featured in museums in the United States, South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. He is a Senior Fellow of the

Design Futures Council The Design Futures Council is an interdisciplinary network of design, product, and construction leaders exploring global trends, challenges, and opportunities to advance innovation and shape the future of the industry and environment. Members inclu ...

Selected projects

The following is an abridged list of work Smith was primarily responsible for as a partner at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill: or as Design Partner at

Completed

Currently under construction

Significant unbuilt projects

Monographs

* Smith, Adrian, ''The Architecture of Adrian Smith, SOM: Toward a Sustainable Future'', Images Publishing Group Pty Ltd, * Smith, Adrian, ''Pro Architect 24: Adrian D Smith'', Archiworld Company Ltd,

References

External links

Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture - official websiteBloomberg Businessweek 'Shedding the Vortex' March 24, 2014Popular Science 'The Rise of the Supertall' February 15, 2013

Modern Luxury 'On Top of the World' March 15, 2012The Wall Street Journal 'The State of Super-Tall Towers' July 8, 2011The Architect's Newspaper 'Smart Grid City' January 17, 2011

Chicago Tribune Article 'Sweet new start for architect Adrian Smith' Feb 24, 2008
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Adrian Modernist architects from the United States Postmodern architects 20th-century American architects 21st-century American architects 1944 births Living people Architects from Chicago Artists from Evanston, Illinois Texas A&M University alumni University of Illinois Chicago alumni Skyscraper architects Skidmore, Owings & Merrill people Burj Khalifa