Assistant Professor of Architecture

Jeana Ripple joined the U.Va. School of Architecture faculty for a second time in 2012 after leaving to work for the past four years as a designer at Studio Gang Architects. At the Chicago-based research and design collaborative, she used digital tools and parametric design to build innovative projects. This key area of expertise—computing in architectural design—will help solve the gap in computer skills in a department traditionally focused in the hand drawing and manual craft.

As project manager at Studio Gang, Ripple led the design team for the MoMA “Foreclosed” exhibition, a structurally innovative residence in Manhattan Beach, and a 91-acre urban park in the center of Chicago’s museum campus. Drawing upon principles of computer engineering, Ripple’s work in ecological, urban, and material systems seeks connections between large-scale pattern and local design tactics. Her work addresses feedback between digital systems and fabricated assemblies, structural innovation in paper, wood, and steel, urban habitat, and social pattern.

Ripple previously taught at the A-school from 2006 to 2008—integrating material studies, ecological research, and developing technologies into design studios and experimental seminars. Ripple earned an MArch with High Distinction from the University of Michigan TCAUP and a BS in computer science engineering from the University of Notre Dame.