The SOM Foundation supports individuals with the highest design aspirations to achieve excellence.
Bringing together the brightest design minds to undertake interdisciplinary research that can help shape our future
Hauts-de-France Mining Basin. © David Schalliol.
Felecia Davis
Ali Ghazvinian
Benay Gürsoy
Farzaneh Oghazian
John Pecchia
Andre West
2021 Research Prize
MycoKnit: Cultivating Mycelium-based Composites on Knitted Textiles for Large-Scale Biodegradable Architectural Structures
Knitted Base Model. © Felecia Davis.
2021 Research Prize
Soil Sisters: An Intersectoral Material Design Framework for Soil Health
Anna Dyson
Mae-ling Lokko
Grounds for Return. © Selma Gurbuz.
Summer Islam and Paloma Gormley. © Material Cultures.
Paloma Gormley
Summer Islam
2021 European Research Prize
Constructive Land
2022 Structural Engineering Fellowship
An Ontological Study of Structures and Their Materiality
Luis Berg
ArboSkin, Stuttgart, 2013. © ITKE University of Stuttgart.
Upcoming Deadlines
China Fellowship Postponed to 2023
Featured Fellow
The Anatomy of Sprawl
2000 Chicago Institute for Architecture & Urbanism (CIAU)
Brenda Case Scheer
University of Cincinnati
Manhattan 1660 and 1997. The shaded areas are the original blocks of Lower Manhattan, transposed on 1 1997 map on the same area. The land area has increased dramatically in the intervening years, but the original street network remains largely intact. © Brenda Case Scheer.
Residential neighborhoods with different patterns of houses, streets, and lots. © Brenda Case Scheer.
Upcoming
Creating New Architecture Through Research: On Materiality
The SOM Foundation is pleased to announce the second International Research and Design Forum. This year’s edition will take place on Friday, October 14, 2022, and will be organized in partnership with the Cluster of Excellence Integrative Computational Design and Construction for Architecture (IntCDC) at the University of Stuttgart. The full-day event will include presentations by academics and industry leaders whose body of work, creativity, and expertise inspire the future of materiality in the built world. Read
Recent News
The Charnley House: From a Private Residence to Headquarters of the SOM Foundation
With 2022 marking the fiftieth anniversary of the designation of the Charnley House as a Chicago landmark, we look back at its transformation from a private residence to the headquarters of the SOM Foundation and Chicago Institute for Architecture and Urbanism.
SOM Foundation Announces Speakers for the Second International Research and Design Forum in Stuttgart
The SOM Foundation is pleased to announce the speakers for the second International Research and Design Forum in Stuttgart. This year’s edition will take place on Friday, October 14, 2022, and will be organized in partnership with the Cluster of Excellence Integrative Computational Design and Construction for Architecture (IntCDC) at the University of Stuttgart.
Robert L. Wesley Award Winners at the AIA Conference on Architecture 2022
The 2020 and 2021 winners of the Robert L. Wesley Award are featured at the AIA Conference on Architecture 2022 that is taking place in Chicago between June 22 and June 25. Read