Marilyn Jordan Taylor (born 1949) is an American architect, who has been a partner at
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 ...
since the early 1980s and served as its first female chairman. She specializes in urban architectural projects and designed the master plan for the
Manhattanville
Manhattanville (also known as West Harlem or West Central Harlem, after its location near Harlem) is a neighborhood in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan. It is bordered on the north by 135th Street (Manhattan), 13 ...
expansion, the
Consolidated Edison
Consolidated Edison, Inc., commonly known as Con Edison (stylized as conEdison) or ConEd, is one of the largest investor-owned energy companies in the United States, with approximately $12 billion in annual revenues as of 2017, and over $62 ...
East River Greenway
The East River Greenway (also called the East River Esplanade) is an approximately foreshoreway for walking or cycling on the east side of the island of Manhattan on the East River. It is part of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway. The largest p ...
as well as airports from the
John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is a major international airport serving New York City and its metropolitan area. JFK Airport is located on the southwestern shore of Long Island, in Queens, New York City, bordering Jamaica Bay. It is ...
terminal 4 expansion to the SkyCity at the
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is an international airport on the island of Chek Lap Kok in western Hong Kong. The airport is also referred to as Chek Lap Kok International Airport or Chek Lap Kok Airport, to distinguish it from its predec ...
. Between 2008 and 2016, she served as the Dean of the
University of Pennsylvania School of Design
The University of Pennsylvania Stuart Weitzman School of Design is the design school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private research university in Philadelphia. It offers degrees in architecture, landscape architecture, city and regional p ...
.
Biography
Marilyn Jordan was born on March 31, 1949, in
Montezuma, Iowa
Montezuma is a city and the county seat of Poweshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,442 at the time of the 2020 census.
Geography
Montezuma's longitude and latitude coordinates in decimal form are 41.584737, -92.525258.
Acco ...
, and moved with her family to Washington, D.C., when she was ten years old. She graduated from
Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College was a Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that was founded in 1879. In 1999, it was fully incorporated into Harvard Colle ...
in 1969 and went on to attend the MIT Graduate School of Architecture.
Jordan finished her master's degree in Architecture at
UC Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...
in 1974 and joined
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 ...
's (SOM) Washington, DC Office. Around a decade later, she became a partner and relocated to the New York City office of SOM.

Taylor is known for her use of design in urban places working with infrastructure and public spaces. Some of the projects she has led include the master plan for
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
's
Manhattanville
Manhattanville (also known as West Harlem or West Central Harlem, after its location near Harlem) is a neighborhood in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan. It is bordered on the north by 135th Street (Manhattan), 13 ...
expansion, the
East River Waterfront project, the reclamation of the
Con Edison
Consolidated Edison, Inc., commonly known as Con Edison (stylized as conEdison) or ConEd, is one of the largest investor-owned energy companies in the United States, with approximately $12 billion in annual revenues as of 2017, and over $62 ...
East River station for the
East River Greenway
The East River Greenway (also called the East River Esplanade) is an approximately foreshoreway for walking or cycling on the east side of the island of Manhattan on the East River. It is part of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway. The largest p ...
, the
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in Manhattan in New York City. MSKCC is one of 72 National Cancer Institute– designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. Its main campus is ...
's Mortimer B. Zuckerman Research Center, the
"New Building" of John Jay College, among others.
In addition, she founded and then directed the Airports and Transportation Practice at SOM. She designed
Ben Gurion Airport
Ben Gurion International Airport , commonly known by the Hebrew language, Hebrew-language acronym (), is the main international airport of Israel. Situated on outskirts north of the city of Lod and directly south of the city of Or Yehuda, i ...
in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
, an expansion at
Dulles International Airport
Washington Dulles International Airport ( ) – commonly known by its former name of Dulles International Airport, by its airport code of IAD, or simply as Dulles Airport – is an international airport in the Eastern United States, located w ...
in Washington,
JFK terminal 4
John F. Kennedy International Airport is a major international airport serving New York City and its metropolitan area. JFK Airport is located on the southwestern shore of Long Island, in Queens, New York City, bordering Jamaica Bay. It is t ...
, the terminal for
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines (simply known as Continental) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1934 until it merged with United Airlines in 2012. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers.
Continen ...
at
Newark Liberty International Airport
Newark Liberty International Airport is a major international airport serving the New York metropolitan area. The airport straddles the boundary between the cities of Newark, New Jersey, Newark in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County and E ...
,
Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport ( ; ) is the primary international airport that serves the country of Singapore, and is one of the largest transportation hubs in Asia. More than 100 airlines operate from the airport, with flights to destinations in A ...
's Terminal 3, and the SkyCity at the
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is an international airport on the island of Chek Lap Kok in western Hong Kong. The airport is also referred to as Chek Lap Kok International Airport or Chek Lap Kok Airport, to distinguish it from its predec ...
.
In 2001, Taylor became the chair of SOM,
the first woman to head the company. Then in 2005, she was elected as chair of the Urban Land Institute
and two years later, in 2007, ''Crain's New York Business'' titled her as one of the "Most Powerful Women in New York" because of her urban planning projects.
Taylor took over as dean of the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
's School of Design in 2008
and in 2014, agreed to extend her appointment until 2016.
Taylor has served on the advisory board for
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's Northeast Corridor expansion project,
the Delaware River Waterfront Planning and Development Board, the
Partnership for New York City
The Partnership for New York City, formerly called the New York City Partnership, is a nonprofit membership organization consisting of a select group of nearly three hundred CEOs ("Partners") from New York City's top corporate, investment and ent ...
and as the President of the New York City Chapter of the
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 ...
.
She was awarded with an honorary doctorate of Humane Letters from the
Georgetown University School of Continuing Studies in 2014 for her interdisciplinary approach to urban planning and contributions to responsible development.
In 2015, the ''Architectural Record'' granted her the Women in Architecture Award for mentoring other women and advancing the roles of women in the profession.
Works
*1986
Worldwide Plaza
*1992
Tribeca Bridge
*1997 Dulles International Airport
*1999 Proposal for repurposing the James A. Farley Postal Building as the Amtrak
Pennsylvania Station III
*2000 JFK International Airport Terminal 4
*2001 Consolidated Edison East River Greenway
*2002 Columbia University's Manhattanville
*2002 Continental Airlines terminal at Newark Liberty International Airport
*2002 East River Waterfront
*2002 Ben Gurion International Airport, Tel Aviv
*2004 Sky City, Hong Kong
*2007 Changi Airport Terminal 3, Singapore
*2008 Mortimer B. Zuckerman Research Center at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
*2009 Riverside South
*2011 Campus of John Jay College
Gallery
Image:Ben Gurion International Airport שלוחהD.JPG, Ben Gurion International Airport
Image:Changi airport terminal 3zz.JPG, Changi airport, Terminal 3 baggage claim, Singapore
Image:Changi Airport Terminal 3.JPG, Changi Airport Terminal 3, Singapore
Image:HK Arena Sunday AsiaWorld Expo views SkyCity SkyPier.JPG, Hong Kong Airport SkyCity SkyPier
Image:SkyCity, Hong Kong International Airport 1.jpg, Hong Kong International Airport, SkyCity
Image:JFKNew YorkTerm4-2.jpg, JFK International Airport, Terminal 4
Image:Newark airport Term C.jpg, Newark Liberty International Airport, Terminal C
Image:Wwp50roof.JPG, One Worldwide Plaza, New York City
Image:Stuy building.jpg, Tribeca Bridge, New York City
References
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Marilyn Jordan
1949 births
Living people
Radcliffe College alumni
American women architects
20th-century American architects
21st-century American architects
University of California, Berkeley alumni
21st-century American women artists
20th-century American women
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill people