Richard Olcott FAIA, FAAR
Architecture is about creating an organism – a holistic three-dimensional framework within which human beings live, learn and interact.
Bio
Richard Olcott FAIA, FAAR, is a Design Partner at Ennead Architects where over the last four decades he has developed an award-winning body of work for leading cultural, civic, and educational institutions around the globe. Richard’s work is grounded in the power of architecture as an interpretive medium, one that can communicate the complexities of contemporary society and create a lasting cultural impact. He is interested in how architecture can reinvent itself within the existing urban condition through absorption, addition, and transformation. Eschewing a formulaic language, he creates buildings that are at once expressive of their missions and rooted in their uniquely specific contexts.
Richard’s work has received numerous awards for design excellence, among them, National AIA Honor Awards, New York State AIA Awards, New York City AIA Awards and American Architecture Awards from the Chicago Athenaeum.
Work
Museums
- San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, CA,
- NYU Grey Art Gallery and Study Storage Center, New York, NY,
- Smithsonian Institution, Arts and Industries Building Renovation and Expansion, Washington, DC (unbuilt),
- Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food and the Arts, Napa, CA,
- Stanford University, Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts, Stanford, CA,
Performing Arts
- Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Metropolitan Opera Front of House Renovation,
- Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Metropolitan Opera Lobby Renovation,
- Jones Hall Concept Design, Houston, TX,
- City University of New York, Hunter College, New York Philharmonic Study, New York, NY,
- Oklahoma City Civic Center Music Hall Renovation, Oklahoma City, OK,
- The Ed Sullivan Theater Adaptation, New York, NY,
- Carnegie Hall, Main Hall and Building Renovation and Restoration, New York, NY,
- Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall, New York, NY,
Higher Education
- Princeton University, Environmental Studies (ES) and The School of Engineering Applied Science (SEAS), Princeton, NJ,
- Johns Hopkins University (JHU), 555 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC,
- Fudan University, Handan Campus, China Economy and Cultural Research Center, Shanghai, China,
- The City College of New York, Colin L. Powell Hall, New York, NY,
- Stanford Law School, Crown Hall Master Plans and Office Renovations, Stanford, CA,
- City University of New York, Hunter College, Roosevelt House Renovation, New York, NY,
- Stanford University, Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts, Stanford, CA,
- Columbia University Law School, Law Review Building, New York, NY,
- Columbia University Law School, Jerome L. Greene Hall Expansion, New York, NY,
Laboratories
- University of North Texas, Health Science Center Medical Education and Training Building, Fort Worth, TX,
Civic
- Haut-Savoie Government Office Building, Chambery-le-Haut, France,
- United States Consulate General, Almaty, Kazakhstan,
- United States Embassy, Nairobi, Kenya,
Industrial & Infrastructure
- Jerome Park Reservoir, Croton Water Treatment Plant, Bronx, NY (unbuilt),
- Whitehall Ferry Terminal Competition, New York, NY (unbuilt),
Commercial & Mixed-Use
- Husu Dafeng Industrial Park Service Center, Jiangsu Province, China,
Hospitality & Residential
- Sullivan Street Hotel, New York, NY (unbuilt),
- Koons Townhouse, New York, NY (study),
- Koons Residence, Red Lion, PA (study),
- Barnard College, Sulzberger Hall, New York, NY,
Planning
- Jones Hall Performing Arts Center Renovation, Houston, TX,
- University of Virginia, South Lawn Project, Charlottesville, VA,
- Smithsonian Institution, The Castle Renovation Feasibility Study, Washington, DC,
- The University of Kansas, Spencer Museum of Art Program Study and Master Plan, Lawrence, KS,
- The Ohio State University, College of the Arts Feasibility Study and Master Plan, Columbus, OH,
- Manhattan Supreme Court Criminal Term Building, New York, NY,
Ennead Lab
- Broadway: 1000 Steps, New York, NY,
- Startup Box: South Bronx, Bronx, NY,
- Pennsylvania State University Veterans’ Plaza, University Park, PA,
- Clinton Foundation Photovoltaic Array, Little Rock, AR (study),
- New Jersey Audubon Photovoltaic Project, Bernardsville, NJ,
- Harnessing the Waterfront, New York, NY (concept),
Experience
Education
- Cornell University College of Architecture, Art and Planning, Bachelor of Architecture, 1979
- Cornell University, London Program in Urban Design Architectural Association, London, England, 1978
Professional Experience
- Ennead Architects, 1979-present
Academic Appointments
- Tulane University, Favrot Visiting Professor, Spring 2018
- Columbia University, Cornell University, Parsons School of Design, Princeton University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Syracuse University, University of Toronto, Yale University, Visiting Juror
- Columbia University, Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, Adjunct Assistant Professor, 1986-1988
Professional Affiliations
- New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, Commissioner, 1996-2007
- American Academy in Rome, Fellow, 2004
- Municipal Art Society, Board of Directors, Co-Chair of Preservation Committee, 2020-2022
- The Architectural League of New York,
- College of Fellows, American Institute of Architects,
- National Academy of Design, Member,
Registrations
Connecticut, District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Vermont, Virginia, NCARB