Gordon Kipping

{{short description|American architect}}'''Gordon Kipping''' (born 1966) is a Canadian architect<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hayt|first1=Elizabeth|title=The Architect|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/29/style/pulse-what-i-m-wearing-now-the-architect.html|website=The New York Times|date=29 September 2002}}</ref>, educator, and licensed professional engineer based in New York City.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |title=Gordon Kipping's mass timber installation 'Maison de Cartes' is now open at SCI-Arc |url=https://archinect.com/news/article/150424344/gordon-kipping-s-mass-timber-installation-maison-de-cartes-is-now-open-at-sci-arc |access-date=2026-04-22 |website=Archinect |language=en}}</ref> He is the founder and principal of Gordon Kipping Architects, an architecture and design practice established in 1999.<ref>{{Cite web |title=You can now visit Le Corbusier's restored Parisian studio apartment |url=https://archinect.com/news/article/150093498/you-can-now-visit-le-corbusier-s-restored-parisian-studio-apartment |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Archinect |language=en}}</ref> His work spans architecture, urban design, interiors, and institutional research projects.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Gordon Kipping. Entity as Information Zoom. 1995 {{!}} MoMA |url=https://www.moma.org/collection/works/960 |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=The Museum of Modern Art |language=en}}</ref> Kipping is also known for his academic work and has served as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Architecture at Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation since 1999.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Gordon Kipping |url=https://www.arch.columbia.edu/faculty/629-gordon-kipping |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Columbia GSAPP |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Caruso|first1=Joyce|title=Gehry Downtown|url=http://www.artnet.com/magazine/news/caruso/caruso8-7-01.asp|website=artnet.com}}</ref>

In addition to his architectural practice, Kipping’s work includes an art practice that explores conceptual, visual, and spatial investigations parallel to his built work, often blurring boundaries between architecture, installation, and artistic production.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=2013-07-26 |title=Cut ’n’ Paste: From Architectural Assemblage to Collage City {{!}} METALOCUS |url=https://www.metalocus.es/en/news/cut-n-paste-architectural-assemblage-collage-city |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=www.metalocus.es |language=en}}</ref> Before founding his independent practice, he worked in the offices of prominent architects including Philip Johnson, I. M. Pei, and Greg Lynn.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=2024-04-16 |title=Modular proposal as an answer to the climate crisis. House of Cards by Gordon Kipping {{!}} METALOCUS |url=https://www.metalocus.es/en/news/modular-proposal-answer-climate-crisis-house-cards-gordon-kipping |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=www.metalocus.es |language=en}}</ref> His conceptual and built work under the name G TECTS gained recognition through exhibitions, publications, and inclusion in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-01-24 |title=Always in Motion: Amina Blacksher on Foundations, Reflections, and Expression |url=https://www.madamearchitect.org/interviews/2019/1/24/always-in-motion-amina-blacksher-on-foundations-reflections-and-expression |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Madame Architect |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Early life and education ==

Kipping was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He studied engineering at the University of Toronto, graduating with a Bachelor of Applied Science (Honours) in Engineering from the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science in 1989.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Gordon Kipping (M.Arch '95): Maison de Cartes - SCI-Arc |url=https://www.sciarc.edu/events/exhibitions/gordon-kipping-m-arch-95-maison-de-cartes |access-date=2026-04-22 |website=www.sciarc.edu |language=en}}</ref>

Following graduation, he worked as a mechanical engineer in building services at Smith & Andersen in Toronto from 1989 to 1992, eventually obtaining licensure as a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) through the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Archinect News Articles tagged "mass timber" |url=https://archinect.com/news/tag/1038570/mass-timber/45 |access-date=2026-04-22 |website=archinect.com}}</ref>

He later pursued architecture at the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) in Los Angeles, earning a Master of Architecture degree in 1995.<ref name=":0" />

== Career ==

=== Early professional work === While studying architecture, Kipping also worked briefly with Morphosis as an architectural intern.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-08-10 |title=Course Catalog 2023–24 |url=https://issuu.com/sci-arc/docs/2023-2023_course_catalog/25 |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Issuu |language=en}}</ref> After completing his architectural education, he relocated to New York City and worked for several internationally recognized firms.<ref name=":1" />

From 1995 to 1996, he worked as a project designer at Philip Johnson Ritchie & Fiore Architects.<ref name=":2" /> During this period, he also worked with Greg Lynn FORM as a project architect and project manager.<ref name=":4" /> From 1996 to 1998, he served as project designer at Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the successor firm to I. M. Pei & Partners.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Quarantine Talks: Thesis and Beyond with Gordon Kipping - SCI-Arc |url=https://www.sciarc.edu/events/lectures/quarantine-talks-thesis-and-beyond-with-gordon-kipping |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=www.sciarc.edu |language=en}}</ref> He later joined Davis Brody Bond as a project architect from 1998 to 1999.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-11-20 |title=Guiding Her Destiny: Lissa So on Growing Up in Practice and Putting in the Work |url=https://www.madamearchitect.org/interviews/2019/11/6/lissa-so |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Madame Architect |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== G TECTS === Concurrent with his professional employment, Kipping developed conceptual and built work under the name G TECTS, an acronym for Gordon Kipping Architects. His early theoretical work focused on the relationship between architecture, digital media, and information technologies.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Wachs|first1=Audrey|title=DDC picks 26 firms to design New York's new public buildings|url=https://archpaper.com/2016/10/ddc-picks-26-firms-to-design-the-citys-new-public-buildings/|newspaper=The Architect's Newspaper|date=18 October 2016}}</ref>

In 1995 and 1997, he authored ''Ordinary Diagrams: Electronic Information Technologies and Architecture'', a book examining the effects of electronic information systems on architectural space and domestic life. The publication was cited by architectural curator Terence Riley in the essay accompanying the Museum of Modern Art exhibition ''The Un-Private House''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Quarantine Talks: Thesis and Beyond with Gordon Kipping - SCI-Arc |url=https://www.sciarc.edu/events/lectures/quarantine-talks-thesis-and-beyond-with-gordon-kipping |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=www.sciarc.edu |language=en}}</ref>

The book’s final plate, ''Entity as Information Zoom'', along with the publication itself, entered the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.<ref name=":1" /> These works were later exhibited in ''Cut ’n’ Paste: From Architectural Assemblage to Collage City'' (2013) and ''Building Citizens'' (2019), part of the museum’s inaugural reopening exhibitions.<ref name=":3" />

In 1998, G TECTS was the subject of a solo exhibition at Storefront for Art and Architecture titled ''Residual Urban Site Strategies (RUSS)''.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |title=RUSS: Residual Urban Site Strategies by Gordon Kipping |url=https://storefront.nyc/program/russ-residual-urban-site-strategies/ |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Storefront for Art and Architecture |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Gordon Kipping Architects === Since 1999, Gordon Kipping has served as principal of Gordon Kipping Architects in New York City.<ref name=":5" /> The firm focuses on architecture, urban design, interior design, and research-based design projects for institutional, commercial, and private clients.<ref name=":4" />

Among the firm’s best-known works are the Issey Miyake Tribeca Boutique<ref>{{Cite web |last=Quinlan |first=Adriane |date=2025-12-12 |title=Is There an Afterlife for Frank Gehry’s Issey Miyake Flagship? |url=https://www.curbed.com/article/frank-gehry-issey-miyake-store-closing-tribeca-titanium-sculpture-panels.html |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Curbed |language=en}}</ref>, Showroom and Headquarters, and the Miyake Madison project, both recognized for their interior architecture and lighting design. The Tribeca project was developed in collaboration with architect Frank Gehry.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dress to Impress: The Intersection of Fashion and the Built Environment |url=https://www.centerforarchitecture.org/news/dress-to-impress-the-intersection-of-fashion-and-the-built-environment/ |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Center for Architecture |language=en-US}}</ref>

The practice has also been featured in exhibitions such as ''New Practices New York'' organized by the AIA New York Chapter and ''The Architect’s Newspaper'', which highlighted six emerging architecture firms shaping contemporary design practice.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=Gordon Kipping to present Maison de Cartes in the SCI-Arc Gallery |url=https://archinect.com/news/article/150422448/gordon-kipping-to-present-maison-de-cartes-in-the-sci-arc-gallery |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Archinect |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-11-20 |title=Guiding Her Destiny: Lissa So on Growing Up in Practice and Putting in the Work |url=https://www.madamearchitect.org/interviews/2019/11/6/lissa-so |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Madame Architect |language=en-US}}</ref>

In addition to its built work and research output, Kipping’s practice has extended into exhibition-based work, including his solo exhibition ''Maison de Cartes'', presented in 2024 at the gallery of the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc), which explored architectural form through conceptual and spatial installation-based approaches.<ref name=":6" />

Kipping has been a registered architect (R.A.) with the New York State Board of Education since 2000 and a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) with the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario since 1993.<ref name=":2" />

He was a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) from 2000 to 2018 and served on its Honors Committee from 2015 to 2016. From 2012 to 2018, he was a member of the Advisory Council of the J. Max Bond Center on Design for the Just City.<ref name=":7">{{Cite web |title=Gordon Kipping - SCI-Arc |url=https://www.sciarc.edu/people/faculty/gordon-kipping |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=www.sciarc.edu |language=en}}</ref>

== Academic career == He has served as Adjunct Associate Professor of Architecture at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation since 1999.<ref name=":2" /> He has also taught as a Visiting Instructor at SCI-Arc <ref>{{Cite web |title=Quarantine Talks: Thesis and Beyond with Gordon Kipping - SCI-Arc |url=https://www.sciarc.edu/events/lectures/quarantine-talks-thesis-and-beyond-with-gordon-kipping |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=www.sciarc.edu |language=en}}</ref>and has held teaching and critic positions at Harvard Graduate School of Design, Yale School of Architecture<ref>{{Cite web |title=Yale Bulletin and Calendar - News |url=http://archives.news.yale.edu/v28.n3/story9.html |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=archives.news.yale.edu}}</ref>, and Pratt Institute School of Architecture.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Upcoming Spring academic events at Archinect Partner Schools |url=https://archinect.com/news/article/150424904/upcoming-spring-academic-events-at-archinect-partner-schools |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Archinect |language=en}}</ref>

At Yale, he assisted Frank Gehry in architectural design studios and later served as Critic in Architecture. His academic work has focused on architectural theory, professional practice, urbanism, and design research.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mattingly |first=Dan |title=Gehry returns to Yale to teach graduate seminar |url=https://yaledailynews.com/articles/gehry-returns-to-yale-to-teach-graduate-seminar |website=Yale News}}</ref>

== Awards and recognition == In 2017, he was nominated by the AIA New York Chapter for elevation to the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows. In 2008, he received a USA Fellowship nomination from United States Artists.<ref name=":2" />

His project ''Miyake Madison'' received the Lumen Award of Merit from the Illuminating Engineering Society in 2008.<ref>{{Cite web |title=IESNYC - 2008 Lumen Awards |url=https://iesnyc.org/2008_Lumen_Awards |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=iesnyc.org}}</ref>

The Issey Miyake Tribeca Boutique, Showroom and Headquarters received the Interior Architecture Award from the AIA New York Chapter in 2002.<ref name=":7" />

In 2006, G TECTS was recognized in ''New Practices New York: Six Young Firms Set Themselves Apart'' by the AIA New York Chapter and ''The Architect’s Newspaper''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=6 Emerging Firms Selected as Winners of New Practices New York 2025 |url=https://www.aiany.org/news/6-emerging-firms-selected-as-winners-of-new-practices-new-york-2025/ |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=AIA New York |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 2003, Kipping received the Creative Spirit Award from the Black Alumni of Pratt.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Celebration Of The Creative Spirit Scholarship Benefit Gala |url=https://www.pratt.edu/alumni/stay-connected/events-and-awards/celebration-of-the-creative-spirit-scholarship-benefit-gala/ |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Alumni |language=en-us}}</ref>

== Exhibitions ==

* ''Building Citizens'' (2019), Museum of Modern Art, New York<ref>{{Cite web |title=216: Building Citizens {{!}} MoMA |url=https://www.moma.org/calendar/galleries/5164 |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=The Museum of Modern Art |language=en}}</ref> * ''Cut ’n’ Paste: From Architectural Assemblage to Collage City'' (2013), Museum of Modern Art, New York<ref name=":3" /> * ''This is Newark: Gateway Urban Design Exhibition'' (2009), Aljira Center for Contemporary Art<ref>{{Cite news |last=Genocchio |first=Benjamin |date=2009-08-28 |title=A Decade of Emergence |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/30/nyregion/30artsnj.html |access-date=2026-05-26 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> * ''New New York: Fast Forward'' (2007), The Architectural League of New York<ref>{{Cite web |title=New New York: Fast Forward |url=https://archleague.org/exhibitions/new-new-york-fast-forward/ |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=The Architectural League of New York |language=en-US}}</ref> * ''‘A’ Work'' (2006), Häfele America Showroom, New York<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gillette |first=Felix |date=2006-09-18 |title=Toes of an Architect: Zen Client Fondles Feet |url=https://observer.com/2006/09/toes-of-an-architect-zen-client-fondles-feet-2/ |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Observer |language=en-US}}</ref> * ''Harlem World: Metropolis as Metaphor'' (2004), Studio Museum in Harlem<ref>{{Cite web |last=Richard |first=Frances |date=2004-01-01 |title=HarlemWorld: Metropolis as Metaphor |url=https://www.artforum.com/events/harlemworld-metropolis-as-metaphor-179854/ |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Artforum |language=en-US}}</ref> * ''Residual Urban Site Strategies (RUSS)'' (1998), Storefront for Art and Architecture, New York (solo exhibition)<ref name=":8" />

== Publications == Kipping is the author of ''Ordinary Diagrams: Electronic Information Technologies and Architecture''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gordon Kipping - Ordinary Diagrams |url=https://www.printedmatter.org/catalog/8644/ |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Printed Matter |language=en}}</ref> and ''G1''. His writing and work have appeared in books and journals including ''Metalocus'', ''Retail: Architecture + Shopping'', ''Atlas of World Interior Design'', ''New York 2000: Architecture and Urbanism from the Bicentennial to the Millennium'', and ''Among Others: Blackness at MoMA''.<ref name=":2" />

In 2020, he co-authored the essay ''Unlearning Whiteness'' with Columbia GSAPP Black Faculty.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Black Columbia GSAPP faculty and students push school for comprehensive reforms |url=https://archinect.com/news/article/150204915/black-columbia-gsapp-faculty-and-students-push-school-for-comprehensive-reforms |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Archinect |language=en}}</ref>

== Media appearances == Kipping has appeared in television and radio programs discussing architecture, design, and urban culture, including interviews on ''CNN International,'' ''BBC Three''<ref>{{Cite web |title=17 of Le Corbusier's buildings are now UN world heritage sites |url=https://archinect.com/news/article/149958382/17-of-le-corbusier-s-buildings-are-now-un-world-heritage-sites |access-date=2026-05-26 |website=Archinect |language=en}}</ref>, and ''WHCR 90.3 FM''.<ref name=":7" />

In addition to direct media appearances, his architectural work has also been featured in television productions. Notably, a project designed by Kipping for Brush Spa in New York’s West Village was used as a filming location in the television series ''Sex and the City'', in the episode titled “The Cold War.<ref name=":2" />

== References ==  {{Reflist}}

== External links == * http://gtects.com/ * La Ferla, Ruth. [https://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/09/style/noticed-let-me-guess-you-must-be-an-architect.html ‘Noticed; Let Me Guess: You Must Be An Architect’]. nytimes.com. The New York Times. * Cohen, Patricia. [https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/23/arts/design/when-a-museums-big-dreams-prove-too-ambitious.html?_r=0 ‘When a Museum’s Big Dreams Prove Too Ambitious’]. nytimes.com. The New York Times.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kipping, Gordon}}  Category:1966 births Category:Living people Category:American architects Category:University of Toronto alumni Category:Architects from Toronto Category:Southern California Institute of Architecture alumni Category:Columbia University faculty