UMD Recognized at 2012 AIA Maryland Design Awards
UMD Architecture Students, Faculty and Alumni Recognized at 2012 AIA
Maryland Design Awards
Students, faculty and alumni from the University of Maryland’s Architecture Program made an
impressive showing at this year’s AIA Maryland Design Awards, winning awards for projects
in several categories. Three 2012 graduates of the Master of Architecture program and two
current architecture students were recognized for design excellence: Anthony Pizzo, Dominic
Aello, Cynthia Cheung, David Ensor and Kevin James Vandeman. In addition, WaterShed, the
University’s winning entry in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon 2011 received
an award citation in the professional category, and Professor of the Practice Peter Noonan
received an HONOR award for a project with his firm, McInturff Architects. The awards were
presented at a special event at Anne Arundel Community College on September 6th.
“The student work recognized by AIA Maryland attests to the high standards of excellence
achieved in our design studios,” said Brian Kelly, Director of University of Maryland’s
Architecture Program. “While walking among the display of premiated professional work and
student design winners at the awards banquet, it was often difficult to distinguish between the
two.”
Collectively, the winning UMD students earned five out of the nine student design awards,
beating out a pool of 46 submissions. Anthony Pizzo was named Graduate Winner in this year’s
competition for his transformation of an abandoned naval warehouse into an urban agricultural
facility Philadelphia, PA. Entitled “Mothballed: Transforming the Carcass of a Naval Warehouse
into an Agricultural Incubator,” Pizzo’s innovative, adaptive reuse design also won the UMD
Architecture Program’s 2012 Thesis Prize. Aello, Vandeman, Cheung and Ensor all received
award citations for their entries.
WaterShed, which was submitted by Principal Investigator and Associate Professor of
Architecture Amy Gardner, was one of 17 professional projects recognized out of 112 entries
from across Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC. Purchased by Pepco Holdings, Inc. last
spring, WaterShed will be used as a public educational tool and research development center in
Rockville, MD.
Professor of the Practice Peter Noonan, who is a principal at McInturff Architects in Bethesda,
MD, was awarded an excellence in design HONOR award for his project, The Sumerset Pool
Bathhouse. One of only two HONOR awards presented, the jury praised the project as “an
elegant jewel in the center of the community park.”
The AIA Maryland Design Awards recognize the outstanding architectural achievements of
architects, building owners, general contractors and architectural students. This year’s jury
comprised six architecture professionals from AIA Georgia.
Anthony Pizzo, Dominic Aello, and Kevin Vandeman each received a Master of Architecture
degree this past year. Cynthia Cheung is currently enrolled in the master’s program and David
Ensor, who received his bachelor’s degree in May, has just begun his master’s program.
“There is no doubt this was a banner year for our students and our program,” said David
Cronrath, Dean of the School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation. “It’s rewarding to see
our talented students recognized for their thought and creativity by professional associations
like the AIA. We are very proud of their achievement.”