Galia Solomonoff of SAS/Solomonoff Architecture Studio | The Philadelphia Art Alliance in Philadelphia | Art Is Everywhere
Courtesy of SAS/Solomonoff Architecture Studio
Art Is Everywhere
This week we'll be talking with Galia Solomonoff, founder and creative director of SAS/Solomonoff Architecture Studio, in New York City. We will be speaking to her about the Philadelphia Art Alliance, which Galia completed in collaboration with JacobsWyper Architects in 2019. This project preserved and re-imagined a dilapidated building in the heart of Philadelphia and owned by the University of the Arts. Currently, it is a gathering spot for artists to share ideas and redefine the city’s urban landscape.
It is a profound misconception of our profession that the designs which are often most celebrated are the ones that are the most expensive. Galia shares her opinion on this topic and discloses how art can be made accessible to anyone, regardless of net worth. We will also learn more about the foundations of Galia’s architectural journey and explore how she has incorporated this theme of accessibility into her work.
“I think that there are so many lessons for us and for our futures. I use the word futures because I don’t that there is a future. I think there are many futures. And I think it’s really important to think about futures and to be aware that the future is a choice.”
Courtesy of SAS/Solomonoff Architecture Studio
About Galia Solomonoff
Galia Solomonoff is an award-winning and internationally recognized architect. Galia founded Open Office in 1999 and then SAS in 2004 and has been working in Art and Architecture ever since. Since 2004, the SAS/Solomonoff Architecture Studio has designed 97 built projects, an incredible number for a firm of six designers. The firm’s work ranges from adaptive reuse projects to new construction, and from private townhouses to large museums for art. Beyond this, Galia is a winner of the National Endowment of the Arts grant and has previously worked at Rafael Viñoly Architects.
Courtesy of SAS/Solomonoff Architecture Studio
Episode Timestamps
6:18 – Could you talk about what your architecture education in Argentina was like and how it perhaps differs from the American approach?
12:07 – You mentioned Bernard Tschumi, and you had the opportunity to work at his office as well as with Rafael Viñoly and with Rem Koolhaas, and then you started your previous firm Open Office. Could you talk about the takeaways and the learnings that you had in working at those three firms and then how you chose to step out and start your own firm and why you chose to focus on the projects you focus on?
16:27 – The projects that really launched your career independently were DIA Beacon and The Jewish Museum. How did you get those projects and what role did they play in shaping the rest of your work that was to follow?
18:10 – So going forward to the project that we will be focusing on today, the Arts Alliance building. Tell us what was included in the scope of work for that project for you.
23:28 – What's the idea of an executive architect and a design architect? Why does that structure work and how do those two firms work together on a project?
28:00 – From your perspective, how have you tried to balance this desire for creative unusual work with something that can be enjoyed by everyone?
32:20 – You've had the opportunity to work on a large scale project, The Underline in Miami. Could you talk about how you hope to make art more accessible on a very large scale like this?
36:51 – What advice would you have to an architect just starting out or in the beginning portions of their career right now?
Connect with Galia Solomonoff:
LinkedIn (Galia Solomonoff)
LinkedIn (JacobsWyper Architects)
SAS/Solomonoff Architecture Studio
Philadelphia Art Alliance
Courtesy of SAS/Solomonoff Architecture Studio
About your host:
Atif Qadir is the Founder & CEO of Commonplace, a technology company making it easy for commercial real estate professionals to find and use the $100B of real estate incentives given out every year in the US.
His work has been covered by Technology Review, The Real Deal, Commercial Observer, and Propmodo. He’s also a frequent speaker on the future of buildings and cities on popular industry podcasts and at conferences, including this past year at the Commercial Observer National DEI Conference, Yale AREA Conference, Columbia Real Estate Symposium, Open Data Week NYC and Austin Design Week.
About Commonplace
Commonplace is a founding sponsor of American Building. It is a 100% minority-owned, real estate technology company founded in 2020 to make financing social impact development projects across the US easier. It is funded by venture capital investors Hometeam Ventures, Park West Asset Management, New York Ventures and Shadow Ventures.
About Michael Graves
The world-famous design firm Michael Graves is also a founding sponsor of American Building. Its namesake, the iconoclastic designer Michael Graves, FAIA was a fierce advocate for people-centric design. His work defines a generation of American architecture and includes the Portland Building, the Humana Building and the Denver Public Library. The 1st season of American Building was filmed live at The Warehouse, his historic home in Princeton, New Jersey:
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