© 2012 International Interior Design Association
222 Merchandise Mart, Suite 567
Chicago, IL 60654
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International: +01 312 467 1950
© 2012 
Background Image
Landmark Department Store, Manila, Philippines
Designer
Hugh A. Boyd Architects, Montclair, NJ
TITLE: FIIDA, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, Principal
WHERE: Perkins+Will, Chicago
CLAIM TO FAME: Pioneering the concept of Branded Environments
IIDA MEMBER SINCE: 1994
1. What inspired you to become a designer?
My mother was a high school guidance counselor and felt that the University of Cincinnati’s Design School Co-op program—which exposes students to on-the-job-experience—would be a great way to get a strong education that matched my talents. When I graduated, major corporations were expanding their brands, space planning was a new profession, and the furniture industry was inventing a new way of working. The industry was at the threshold of many new ideas.
2. What is the favorite project of your career?
I think of them by market sector. In health care, for the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, we had the opportunity to create an active and inspiring home and identity for the #1 institution of its kind. In education, I like the Chicago State University project, since the school’s culture was so much a part of the design solution. Haworth was such a change-maker. Our design work played a big role in the company’s brand expression and ultimately served to define its vision.
3. If you weren’t a designer, what would you do?
I would like to develop a public policy curriculum and educational program for design students around the value of design to society. It would help students learn how design can solve problems through policy—whether it’s health and welfare, sustainability, or any number of issues—at the state or local level.
4. Do you have any hidden talents?
I love to draw and sketch the world around me, from my design projects to the view from my window. I’ve recorded all my vacations in pen sketches.
5. What in the past six months has encouraged or inspired you?
I see great empathy, caring, and concern for our world among my colleagues and young designers in general. Their attitudes inspire me.
6. What would people be most surprised to know about you?
I am an avid college basketball enthusiast! It all started with Oscar Robinson winning the NCAA title at UC. In the past year, I helped build the brand for the University of Oregon’s new Matthew Knight Arena (go Ducks!).