Jeanne Gang is the 2026 Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medalist in Architecture

Architect Jeanne Gang, FAIA, is the founding partner of international architecture and urban design practice Studio Gang, known for award-winning designs that strengthen connections between people, their communities, and nature. (Photo © John David Pittman, courtesy of Studio Gang)

Architect and Founding Partner of Studio Gang, Jeanne Gang, FAIA, has been named the 2026 recipient of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture.

The Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medals—sponsored jointly by the University of Virginia and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, the nonprofit organization that owns and operates Monticello—are awarded each year to recognize the achievements of those who embrace endeavors in which Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, third U.S. president and founder of the University of Virginia, excelled and held in high regard. The architecture medal and its counterparts in law, citizen leadership, and global innovation are UVA’s highest external honors.

Gang joins a distinguished list of past recipients of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture, including Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, I.M. Pei, Frank Gehry, Toyo Ito, Zaha Hadid, Francis Kéré, Andrew Freear, Kate Orff and Walter J. Hood.

“It is an honor to recognize Jeanne Gang’s extraordinary contributions to our built environment and her enduring commitment to designing public places that convene diverse audiences, generate positive social impact, and that foster community,” said UVA School of Architecture’s Dean Malo A. Hutson. “Throughout her career she has exemplified the significant role that designers can play in connecting people with each other and the environment in meaningful and uplifting ways.”

Gang will give a public talk to mark the occasion on April 14 at 3:30 p.m. at the Newcomb Theater. This event is free and open to all.

Exterior View of Hudson Valley Shakespeare Venue — Innovative green design strategies—including low-carbon mass timber, natural ventilation, solar shading, photovoltaic panels, rainwater harvesting and reuse, and increased biodiversity—are incorporated in the design of the Samuel H. Scripps Theater Center at Hudson Valley Shakespeare. The building aims to be the first purpose-built, open-air theater in the United States to achieve LEED Platinum certification. (Image © Studio Gang)

Globally recognized as a pre-eminent architect, widely known for her work in the public and cultural realm as well as in urban environments, Gang founded Studio Gang in 1997 in Chicago, Illinois. Over nearly three decades, she has led the international architecture and urban design practice’s growth from its Chicago roots to also include offices in New York, San Francisco, and Paris. Her inquisitive, forward-looking approach to design—unique in its pursuit of new technical and material possibilities as well as in its expansion of the active role of designers in society—has distinguished her as a leading architect of her generation.

“I see Architecture as a medium for interpreting and acting in the world for positive change. Architecture is indeed an Art, and it can also be a potent response to the climate crisis and to societal fracture by seeking both greener ways to build and renew, and by bringing people together around our shared humanity. Joy and delight through design is what inspires people to carry the momentum for change forward,” said this year’s medalist, Jeanne Gang. “I am deeply honored to be recognized with the Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture, and through my work and this esteemed award I hope to amplify the work of those who share these same ambitions.”

Drawing insight from ecological systems, her diverse, award-winning portfolio includes cultural centers, public spaces, installations, and high-rise towers that foster community and that generate positive social and ecological impact. Notable among these is the celebrated Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, which was completed in 2023 and which the New York Times called "a poetic, joyful, theatrical work of public architecture and a highly sophisticated flight of sculptural fantasy."

Interior View of the Gilder Center — *New York Times* architecture critic Michael Kimmelman described Studio Gang’s design for the Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation at the American Museum of Natural History: “Whereas the museum has always projected a kind of imposing, inscrutable majesty, its new building is consciously more porous, with welcoming floor-to-ceiling classroom windows… The center’s transparency also extends a hand to the museum’s neighbors.” (Image © Iwan Baan, courtesy of Studio Gang)

At a time of urgent need for better public understanding of science and greater access to science education, the Gilder Center is designed to amplify the intellectual impact of the Museum with experiential architecture that encourages exploration—drawing in people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities to share the excitement of scientific discovery and learning about the natural world. In an interview with The Harvard Gazette, Gang said, “The design…aims to elicit people’s curiosity, and their sense of exploration and wonder…I always think of architecture as analogous to ecology, where it’s not about the object, but about the [network of] relationships that the objects help to set up.”

Two architectural projects: left building with wavy roof, right building with wood slats — (L) Studio Gang’s design for the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts—which includes both new construction and renovations—extends AMFA’s presence into historic MacArthur Park, opening the museum to the city of Little Rock. Seen here at the north end, a new “Cultural Living Room” acts as a flexible community space for gathering and a welcoming entrance. (Image © Iwan Baan, courtesy of Studio Gang). (R) Timber was used throughout the University of Chicago John W. Boyer Center in Paris—from the wood façade panels to the mass timber structure—reducing the building’s embodied carbon footprint. (Image © Fabrice Fouillet, courtesy of Studio Gang)

Her other completed projects include the reimagined Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts in Little Rock; the University of Chicago John W. Boyer Center in Paris; Tom Lee Park in Memphis; the David Rubenstein Treehouse, Harvard University’s first mass timber building; and two towers that have redefined Chicago's skyline: the 101-story St. Regis Chicago, now the city's third-tallest building, and the 82-story, undulating Aqua Tower.

Gang’s ongoing work includes major cultural and civic projects throughout the Americas and Europe, such as a new United States Embassy in Brasília; an expansion of the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock; and the Samuel H. Scripps Theater Center at Hudson Valley Shakespeare.

Jeanne Gang in her studio — Gang advocates for “actionable idealism”—expanding the ways that design can raise public awareness and help enact positive change. The practice’s work and culture are shaped by “knowledge, creativity, honesty, and a strong sense of responsibility to each other, [the] community, and the environment.” (Image © Corentin Lespagnol, courtesy of Studio Gang)

Intertwined with built work, Gang also develops research, publications, and exhibitions that push design’s ability to create public awareness and give rise to change—a practice she calls “actionable idealism.” Her practice has championed innovative design strategies to improve ecological biodiversity in cities, including bird-safe building techniques and an experimental prairie ecosystem on the rooftop of their Chicago office. At the same time, Gang has challenged the status quo in professional practice by closing the gender wage gap in her company and encouraging her colleagues to follow suit.

Gang is the Kajima Professor in Practice of Architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, her alma mater, where her teaching and research focus on the multi-faceted potential of materiality and the cultural and environmental aspects of buildings’ reuse. Her work has been honored and exhibited widely, and is in the permanent collections of the Centre Pompidou, Canadian Centre for Architecture, MAXXI, Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, and Art Institute of Chicago. She is the author of four books on architecture. Her most recent, The Art of Architectural Grafting, was released in 2024 in English and French editions.

Two images, Left, cover of book and Right, spread of book with diagram of plant root — Published by Park Books in 2024, Gang’s *The Art of Architectural Grafting* explores how the horticultural practice of grafting–which joins a new plant to an older one, so they can grow and thrive as one–can be applied to architecture at multiple scales. (Images courtesy of Studio Gang)

In a published interview with The Architect’s Newspaper, the book is described as “a gentle manifesto [that] contains theory, history, work by Gang’s students, built projects, unrealized case studies, and personal reflections.” Motivated by the urgent need to reduce architecture’s carbon footprint, Gang in her book proposes a fresh concept for bringing new life to older structures, inspired by the regenerative capacity of plants. Gang said, “At a time when we’re facing a climate crisis, we need to urgently think about how to regenerate our existing building stock. It shouldn’t only apply to iconic buildings, but also anonymous buildings, because they are valuable if you put a cost on their embodied carbon.”

In 2011, Gang was named a MacArthur Fellow, a distinction awarded as part of an annual program also known as “the genius grants.” Established in 1981, the program supports exceptionally creative individuals across fields—including science, art, and advocacy—who show immense promise to make a significant, positive impact on society. When Gang received the honor in its thirtieth year, she was only the fifth architect selected in the program’s history. Several years later, Gang was named one of the most influential people in the world by TIME magazine.

Gang is also an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, an Officer in the National Order of the Legion of Honor, and a Commander in the Order of Arts and Letters. She was named AW Architektur & Wohnen’s 2025 Architect of the Year and has been recognized with the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award in Architecture, the Charlotte Perriand Award, and the ULI Prize for Visionaries in Urban Development.

The Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture is one of three medals to be presented this year. This year’s Medal in Law goes to John G. Roberts Jr., chief justice of the United States, a role he served in since 2005. The Medal in Citizen Leadership is awarded to Henry Louis Gates, Jr., an award-winning filmmaker, literary scholar, and institution builder who is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University. This year’s medal winners will be celebrated at a luncheon in the Dome Room of UVA’s Rotunda, and honored at a formal dinner at Monticello, marking the 283rd anniversary of Jefferson’s birth in 1743.

Jeanne Gang Public Talk - Event Details

Founders Day - Event Details

THOMAS JEFFERSON FOUNDATION MEDALISTS IN ARCHITECTURE

1966 MIES VAN DER ROHE
1967 ALVAR AALTO
1968 MARCEL BREUER
1969 JOHN ELY BURCHARD
1970 KENZO TANGE
1971 JOSE LUIS SERT
1972 LEWIS MUMFORD
1973 JEAN LABATUT
1974 FREI OTTO
1975 SIR NIKOLAUS PEVSNER
1976 I.M. PEI
1977 ADA LOUISE HUXTABLE
1978 PHILIP JOHNSON
1979 LAWRENCE HALPRIN
1980 HUGH A. STUBBINS
1981 EDWARD LARRABEE BARNES
1982 VINCENT SCULLY
1983 ROBERT VENTURI
1984 H.H. THE AGA KHAN
1985 LEON KRIER
1986 JAMES STIRLING
1987 ROMALDO GIURGOLA
1988 DAN KILEY
1989 PAUL MELLON
1990 FUMIHIKO MAKI
1991 JOHN V. LINDSAY
1992 ALDO ROSSI
1993 ANDRES M. DUANY & ELIZABETH PLATER-ZYBERK
1994 FRANK O. GEHRY
1995 IAN L. MCHARG
1996 JANE JACOBS
1997 JAIME LERNER
1998 JAQUELIN T. ROBERTSON
1999 LORD RICHARD ROGERS
2000 DANIEL PATRICK MOYNIHAN
2001 GLENN MURCUTT
2002 JAMES TURRELL
2003 TOD WILLIAMS & BILLIE TSIEN
2004 PETER WALKER
2005 SHIGERU BAN
2006 PETER ZUMTHOR
2007 ZAHA HADID
2008 GRO HARLEM BRUNDTLAND
2009 ROBERT IRWIN
2010 EDWARD O. WILSON
2011 MAYA LIN
2012 RAFAEL MONEO
2013 LAURIE OLIN
2014 TOYO ITO
2015 HERMAN HERTZBERGER
2016 CECIL BALMOND
2017 YVONNE FARRELL & SHELLEY MCNAMARA
2018 SIR DAVID ADJAYE
2019 KAZUYO SEJIMA & RYUE NISHIZAWA
2020 MARION WEISS & MICHAEL MANFREDI
2021 DIÉBÉDO FRANCIS KÉRÉ
2022 KENNETH FRAMPTON
2023 ANDREW FREEAR & RURAL STUDIO
2024 KATE ORFF
2025 WALTER J. HOOD
2026 JEANNE GANG