2022 Design Awards Special Edition Newsletter

April Hughes, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C is President and Managing Principal at HPZS. A graduate of the University of Kansas, April was named 2014 AIA Chicago Dublin Family Young Architect of the Year, and in 2013 she was the recipient of the AIA Illinois John Wellborn Root Award. Hughes is leading her firm, starting a new chapter in its history as a woman-owned business by embarking on a path to design and preserve a sustainable future for the Chicago community. Most recently, April was named a DuPont Emerging Leader at the Design Futures Council Sustainability Summit and led the AIA Chicago Board on Directors as Board President in 2020.

As a champion of integrated design, April has extensive sustainable design experience, including four platinum-rated LEED projects and two net-zero energy designs in the City of Chicago – both firsts for the State of Illinois. Most recently, April completed the Midwest’s first certified PHIUS renovation, and is now leading the Midwest’s first full Living Building Challenge + PHIUS project. She also collaborated on the design of Chicago’s first greywater system for a single-family residence, and one of the first variable volume vent hood installations for a restaurant kitchen in the city. April has collaborated on the creation of the Smart Code Sustainability Module, the City of Chicago’s Public Building Commission Water Reuse Manual, and published Living Cities: Transforming APEC Cities into Models of Sustainability by 2030.

April’s award-winning work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune and reviewed by architectural critic Blair Kamin, Chicago Realtor, Shore Magazine, the Living Well Network, ABC7News Chicago, Elle Décor and numerous other publications. She was a featured interview by Geoffrey Baer on WTTW-Chicago “Chicago Tonight,” and contributed to the best-selling Sustainable Urbanism: Urban Design with Nature, as well as multiple editorials for Chicago Architect Magazine. April is currently a Director serving on the Board of Directors for Chicago’s oldest women’s domestic violence organization, Connections for Abused Women and their Children (CAWC), and is leading the committee building its new multimillion dollar shelter.

Scott Cyphers is a Design Principal and joined Booth Hansen in 1998. Scott is a leader of the hospitality, cultural and academic market sectors. He brings a wealth of experience and knowledge with particular attention to detail as he works with clients to understand and develop successfu lprojects. His planning knowledge and skill in complex programming has made him well regarded by clients and colleagues. In addition, Scott is an adjunct lecturer in the Architectural Engineering + Design program at Northwestern University, in which engineering students develop creative thinking skills through a series of comprehensive architecture studio courses. He earned his Master of Architecture from MIT and Bachelor of Schience in Architecture from the University of Virginia. Scott is a registered Architect in the State of Illinois.

Jennifer Park joined Brininstool + Lynch as Principal in 2019. She has an undergraduate degree in architecture and art history from Columbia University and a graduate architecture degree from the University of California at Los Angeles. Park has taught at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Virginia Commonwealth University, and continues as a Studio Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Second Year Studio at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Previously the Founder and Principal of Jurassic Studio, Park has completed acclaimed academic, commercial, residential, and retail projects through practices in New York, Los Angeles, Mexico City, and Chicago. Her design explorations query the relevance of patterns, ornamentation, and composition in contemporary architecture. Notable work includes museum design and community outreach for the Obama Presidential Center Museum, a parametrically generated metal façade for the Gateway Plaza parking garage, an animated ceiling design for a corporate interior at 35 E Wacker, offices for Cushman & Wakefield, and a showroom for Artemide.

Park is recognized as a 2021 recipient of the AIA National Young Architects Award. Previously, she was the winner of the 2019 Dublin Family Young Architect Award and was the recipient of the 2015 Burnham Prize from the Chicago Architectural Club. She was named one of Chicago’s Women of Influence by Michigan Avenue magazine and a finalist for the Curbed Young Guns Award that same year. In addition, Park previously served on AIA Chicago’s Board of Directors for five years during where she served on the Executive Committee as the Vice President of Honors and Awards. She is Co-chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee at IIT College of Architecture and is one of the founding members of AIA Chicago’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee where she served as Co-Chair for four years and after two years with out an in-person end of year exhibition, Park curated the IIT College of Architecture 2022 Open House in Crown Hall titled “Perimeters.”

Dan has over 20 years of experience in Hospitality, Institutional, Commercial, and Residential Architecture. He brings an emphasis on sustainability to every Koo project and his sophisticated project management strategies allow him to expertly respond to challenging budget and schedule constraints.

Chris-Annmarie received a Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies from the Caribbean School of Architecture at the University of Technology before attending graduate school at the University of Illinois at Chicago. In 2004, Chris-Annmarie joined Wheeler Kearns Architects (WKA) and in 2019, she was elevated as a firm principal.

She has worked on many noteworthy projects including: the Alice B. Rapaport Center for Education and Engagement at the Goodman Theatre, Mansueto High School, and Wolcott School-Chicago region’s first school design specifically for students with learning differences. Most notable, on Chicago’s west side, Chris-Annmarie helped transform a century-old factory structure and three vacant overgrown lots into an attractive community asset. Inspiration Kitchens Garfield Park–which offers job training for unemployed and underemployed individuals–has won ten national and local awards including the 2013 Rudy Bruner Gold Metal Award for Urban Excellence.

Chris-Annmarie’s outstanding work and leadership in the profession has been recognized with many prestigious awards including the 2015 AIA Chicago Dublin Family Young Architect Award, and the 2017 AIA National Young Architect Award. In 2019, Chris-Annmarie was among 40 accomplished and diverse individuals nominated as a 2019 Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow, joining a legacy of building, and strengthening the pipeline of civic leaders who will influence the future of Chicago.

Named as one of “25 Young Architects to Watch in 2019,” by Architizer Journal, Chris-Annmarie is leading us to a better future. She is an active member in the architecture community and is currently championing the firms’ anti-racism and equity initiative – including a mentorship program “WKA Lift” that works to increase diversity and opportunities in the architecture profession. She has participated in the Architects in Schools (AIS) program, Green Apple Day of Service, and regularly hosts students from various schools she has helped design for a career day at the office. She serves as the Board President for AIA Chicago Foundation and recently helped establish the Diversity Scholarships program.