2023 Spring Issue - 37

while also remaining highly
involved with his alma mater,
the University of Pennsylvania.
He won numerous awards over
his 60-year career, including the
National Building Museum Chairman's
Award, Skyscraper Museum
Award, Soane Honors from the
Soane Foundation, and the Alumni
Award of Merit from the University
of Pennsylvania, the highest
award presented to alumni. He
also received the Wharton Real
Estate Center's Lifetime Achievement
Award; the University of
Pennsylvania-PennDesign Dean's
Medal of Achievement, the highest
honor given by the institution; and
the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.
In 2019, he received the Kanter
Tritsch Medal for Excellence in
Architecture and Environmental
Design, which honors architects
who have changed the course of
design history.
Earlier this year, Kohn was the
first architect to be named a ULI
Life Trustee by the ULI Global
Governing Trustees. He became a
ULI member in 1982 and served
as a jury member and chair for
many ULI competitions, including
the Hines Student Competition,
Americas Awards for Excellence,
and ULI Prize for Visionaries in
Urban Development. Kohn was
also a ULI Foundation governor
and donated generously to the ULI
Foundation for more than 30 years.
KPF announced earlier this year it
is contributing $1 million to endow
the annual A. Eugene Kohn/
KPF Fellowship, which will fund
research on low-carbon design and
other activities in the ULI Randall
Lewis Center for Sustainability in
Real Estate.
" Gene was universally respected
in the community for his ability to
achieve consensus, " KPF president
James von Klemperer said in a
press release. " His seemingly limit " Gene
Kohn made
compelling, long-lasting
contributions to not just our
industry, but to the skylines of
major cities across the world
over a career that spanned
eight decades. "
-EMILY GRANDSTAFF,
PRESIDENT, AMERICAN
INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS
less interest in other human beings
gave him powerful insights into the
social aspect of building programs
and larger urban agendas. Without
his easy charm and focused
intensity, such notable projects as
Roppongi Hills in Tokyo; the World
Bank in Washington, D.C.; One
Vanderbilt in New York; and the
reinvigoration of Covent Garden in
London would not have realized
their full success. "
In the first decade after its
launch in 1976, KPF grew exponentially,
from four founding partners
to a staff of 160 by 1986. The New
York Times described the firm's
work that year as " an urbane blend
of contemporary and classical elements
that enthusiastically exploit
architecture of the past. "
Kohn was also an author. In
2019, he published his memoir
The World by Design, in which he
detailed his beginnings and
rise to success in the architecture
and design world, and shared
wisdom on business leadership
and insight into his firm's approach
to innovation.
" Gene Kohn made compelling,
long-lasting contributions to
not just our industry, but to the
KPF announced it will contribute $1 million to endow the A.
Eugene Kohn KPF Fellowship, which will fund research on lowcarbon
design and other activities in the Randall Lewis Center.
skylines of major cities across the
world over a career that spanned
eight decades, " said Emily
Grandstaff-Rice, president of the
American Institute of Architects
(AIA). " He served as president of
AIA's New York City chapter and in
1990 won AIA's prestigious Firm
Award. His outstanding career as
a celebrated architect will long be
remembered. "
Kohn, born in 1930, was raised
in Philadelphia and attended the
University of Pennsylvania, where
he earned both bachelor's and
master's degrees. He received a
Theophilus Parsons Chandler Architecture
Fellowship for advanced
study and travel abroad. During
graduate school, he studied under
Louis Kahn, widely considered one
of the greatest architects of the
20th century. Kohn, who credited
Kahn as one of his biggest mentors,
discussed in a 2019 ArchDaily
podcast how exciting it was to be
in classes taught by Kahn and how
he was " hypnotized " hearing him
speak. " You didn't move because
you had to listen to every word
he said, and it was so inspiring, "
Kohn said.
Between receiving his BA
and MA degrees, he served on
active duty in the U.S. Navy for
three years and for five years on
reserve duty, retiring as a lieutenant
commander. Kohn's love of
art and his creative nature were
attributed to his mother, Hannah
Kohn, who he said inspired his
career as an architect. Kohn is
survived by his wife Barbara, sons
Steven and Brian, and nine grandchildren.
UL
HOLLY DUTTON is a Brooklyn-based journalist who
has reported on real estate for more than 10 years.
SPRING 2023
URBAN LAND
37
COURTESY OF KPF
2023 Spring Issue

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of 2023 Spring Issue
