Professional News

UK Design Recognizes Outstanding Alumni, Friends, Faculty

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LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 5, 2014) — The University of Kentucky College of Design recognized outstanding faculty, alumni and friends of the college at the first Celebrating Excellence Awards Dinner and Exhibition held April 10, at the Hilary J. Boone Center.

The Distinguished Alumni Award honorees included:

William Peace, BA, 1980, School of Interiors

Founder and principal of Peace Design, in Atlanta, Ga., and Missoula, Mont., William Peace is a design visionary and leading force in the interior design community. Peace is the recipient of numerous national and regional awards, including the National ASID (American Society of Interior Designers) Project award for residential interiors, City of Atlanta Urban Renewal, and Southeastern Designer of the Year. He has served on the board of trustees of the Smithsonian-affiliated Museum of Design in Atlanta and as a legacy member of the Advisory Committee Board for the School of Interiors at UK.

George Metzger, BARCH, 1982, School of Architecture

George Metzger is the principal responsible for Adamson Associates’ West Coast Office in Los Angeles. He joined Adamson Associates Inc. in 2006 bringing a critically acclaimed design sensibility and a portfolio of high-profile projects across the world. His expertise encompasses all aspects of architectural practice — master planning, architectural design, interior design, technical issues, and project management. Metzger worked in close collaboration with the renowned architect Frank Gehry. His expertise with new and emerging technologies turned Gehry’s concepts and sketches into award-winning completed projects including the Guggenheim in Bilbao, Spain, and the Seattle Experience Museum. Many of these projects have set new standards in project delivery methods, 3D computing technology - BIM (building information modeling), architectural technology and contractor collaboration systems. 

Kenneth Greene, BARCH, 1981

After graduating from the architecture program at UK, Greene first joined Omni Architects, where he developed a substantial portfolio of health care design, which he would later use as a managing partner and senior medical planner at GBBN Architects’ Lexington office. Greene worked on a myriad of health care design projects across the Commonwealth, Ohio, West Virginia, as well as China, and served as the project manager for the UK Albert B. Chandler Patient Care Facility and Pavilion. After his sudden passing in May 2011, two days before the Chandler Pavilion’s dedication, his family established the Ken Greene Architecture Scholarship Foundation to endow a scholarship at the UK College of Design’s School of Architecture. This endowed scholarship benefits talented second-year-and-older students demonstrating financial need, just as Greene received as a student at UK. The Ken Greene Memorial Endowed Scholarship has funded two students to date and will be awarded again in May 2014. 

The college also honored individuals who have demonstrated in multiple ways over many years their dedication to the mission of the college and its programs. The Friends of the College Awards went to:

Edith Bingham

Edith S. “Edie” Bingham is a loyal and passionate supporter of the Department of Historic Preservation at the UK College of Design. A native of Washington, D.C., she has been a fixture in the preservation community and robust advocate for preservation in Kentucky for decades. Currently, Bingham serves on seven preservation boards, including the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill and the UK Department of Historic Preservation advisory boards. She has served on nearly 25 community-based boards in years past, and was instrumental in establishing the Helen Abell and Clay Lancaster professorships at UK. Bingham is the past recipient of the AIA (American Institute of Architects) Kentucky Citizens’ Laureate Award, as well as the prestigious Preservation Lifetime Award conferred by the National Trust. 

Janet Pike

As chief executive officer of AIA Kentucky, Pike has increased the organization’s membership and budget since her arrival in 1988. She is an advocate for architects and architecture. Pike has worked closely with the state and regional AIA boards and architects within the state to provide resources, support and assistance to the UK School of Architecture. The results of her labor include scholarship funding; securing AIA national endowments; guiding the establishment of the AIA Kentucky Endowed Professorship within the school; providing support for students after graduation; and working with faculty and staff to establish and maintain a collaborative relationship.

Faculty members Michael Jacobs, architecture instructor; Wallis Miller, the Charles Parker Graves Endowed Associate Professor in Architecture; and Rebekah Radtke, associate professor of interiors, were also honored, as was Director of Student Services Azhar Swanson.

 

 

MEDIA CONTACT: Whitney Hale, 859-257-8716; whitney.hale@uky.edu