J. Meejin Yoon (born 1972) is a Korean-American architect, designer, and educator. In 2014, Yoon was appointed as the first female head of the Department of Architecture at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

. In July 2018, she was named the Gale and Ira Drukier Dean of the College of Architecture, Art and Planning at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

. In 2004, Yoon founded Höweler+Yoon Architecture with partner Eric Höweler. Yoon's work is widely known for pioneering investigations in the intersections between architecture, technology, and the public realm. Notable works include White Noise White Light for the Athens 2004 Olympics; Double Horizon for the GSA at the San Ysidro Border Crossing; and the Sean Collier Memorial at the

. These projects are often cited for their innovative use of emerging technologies in architecture, design and fabrication.

Career

Yoon was born in

Seoul, Korea Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

and grew up in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. After graduating from

with a B.Arch in 1995 and Harvard University Graduate School of Design in 1997 with a Masters of Architecture in Urban Design (with Distinction), she continued her research interest in architecture and urbanism as a Fulbright Fellow in Seoul, Korea in 1998. She began teaching at

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

in 2001. Also in 2001, Yoon established MY Studio, to pursue creative works at the intersection of architecture, art and technology. With partner Eric Höweler, Yoon founded Höweler+Yoon Architecture in 2005. The firm is an international interdisciplinary design practice working across the domains of architecture, urban design, public space, immersive experience, and design strategy. Höweler + Yoon Architecture is based out of

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Recognition

In 2021, Yoon was elected to the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, Music of the United States, music, and Visual art of the United States, art. Its fixed number ...

, a recognition of the highest form for artistic merit in the United States. Yoon is also the recipient of the Audi Urban Future Award in 2012, United States Artist Award in Architecture and Design in 2008, Architecture Record's Design Vanguard Award in 2007, and the Rome Prize in Design in 2005 from the American Academy in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. Yoon is also the 2013 recipient of MIT's Irwin Sizer Award for the Most Significant Improvement (and Innovations) to Education. In 2015, Yoon won 2015 New Generation Leader award from Architectural Record as part of the magazine's second annual Women in Architecture Forum and Awards event. Her work has been exhibited at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

in New York, the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York, the Institut Valencia d’Art Modern in Spain, and the National Art Center in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

. She was awarded the Leonardo da Vinci World Award of Arts in 2022.

Publications

*Expanded Practice: Projects by Höweler+Yoon/MY Studio (Princeton Architectural Press 2009) *Public Works: Unsolicited Small Projects for the Big Dig (MAP Book Publishers, 2008) *Absence (Printed Matter and Whitney Museum of Art, 2003) *Yoon, J. Meejin; Eric Höweler. 1001 Skyscrapers. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2003.

Exhibitions

* The Eyes of the City, Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism + Architecture, Shenzhen, 2020
The Road Ahead: Reimagining Mobility
Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, New York, 2018

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yoon, Meejin American women architects MIT School of Architecture and Planning faculty Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning alumni Artists from Seoul 1972 births Living people Harvard Graduate School of Design alumni American women academics