Daniel Libeskind AR’70
Daniel Libeskind was born in Poland in 1946. He became an American citizen in 1965. He Graduated from the Cooper Union School of Architecture in 1970. Following graduation from Cooper Union, he received a postgraduate degree in History and Theory of Architecture at the School of Comparative Studies at Essex University in England. Daniel Libeskind established his architecture practice in Berlin in 1989.
Daniel Libeskind is an international figure in architectural practice and urban design. His practice extends from building major cultural and commercial institutions, including museums and concert halls, to convention centers, universities, housing, hotels, shopping centers and residential work. He also designs opera sets and maintains an object design studio.
Daniel Libeskind often employs angular forms, intersecting planes, and diagonally-sliced windows to great effect in museums and memorials, conference centers, skyscrapers and shopping malls.
His projects include:
- The Jewish Museum Berlin,
- Memoria e Luce, a 9/11 memorial in Padua, Italy,
- The Extension to the Royal Ontario Museum, Canada,
- The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, California,
- Kurdistan Museum in Erbil Iraq,
- Modern Art Center in Vilnius Lithuania,
- New Lotte mall in Songdo South Korea,
- Tor di Valle Roma in Rome Italy,
- Westside, the largest shopping and wellness center in Europe, in Bern, Switzerland,
- Extension to the Denver Art Museum
- and many more. See Pictures of projects
Daniel Libeskind won the competition for the design of the Freedom Tower in February 2003. He gave a presentation about it to the Cooper community in a lecture presented in Wollman Hall that same year. Although his initial design underwent many changes over the years, Libeskind remained developer of the master plan to rebuild the World Trade Center buildings.
Libeskind has taught and lectured at many universities worldwide, and in 2004, was appointed the first Cultural Ambassador for Architecture by the U.S. Department of State. Libeskind’s work has been exhibited extensively in major museums and galleries around the world.
Daniel Libeskind received the 1999 Deutsche Architekturpreis (German Architecture Prize) for the Jewish Museum Berlin.
Daniel Libeskind received the 1984 President’s Citation, the 1992 Augustus Saint Gaudens Award, the 2003 President’s Citation, and the 2004 Urban Visionaries Award.
He was inducted into The Cooper Union Hall of Fame in 2009.
Additional Links:
Daniel Libeskind biography, The American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise (AICE) website, link
Holocaust Commemoration: Daniel Libeskind on the Art of Memory, Event at The Cooper Union on April 30, 2013. link
Daniel Libeskind’s “The Art of Memory” Lecture Excerpts, Cooper.edu, May 3, 2013. link
Video: The Latest Development at the 2015 Milan Expo Site Revealed with a Drone, by Rory Stott, ArchDaily.com, November 28, 2014 link
Daniel Libeskind plans three “interlocking” towers in Rome’s Tor di Valle district as part of urbanizing master plan, By Kindra Cooper, Architects Newspaper, June 16, 2015 link
Daniel Libeskind Discusses “Building Memory,” by James Taylor-Foster, ArchDaily.com link
Daniel Libeskind to be CNN Style’s First Guest Editor, by Karissa Rosenfield, ArchDaily.com, July 1, 2015 link
Whiz Kids: A New Exhibition Explores Architects’ Childhood Memories, by Janelle Zara, Architectural Record, October 26, 2015 link
Drawing Ambience: Alvin Boyarsky and the Architectural Association, Exhibit at Barney A. Ebsworth Gallery September 12, 2014 – January 4, 2015
Daniel Libeskind’s “Future Flowers” Represent Oikos at Milan Design Week, by Holly Giermann, ArchDaily.com, April 26, 2014 link
Libeskind’s High-Rise Tower for the High Life in Sao Paulo, by Elizabeth Pagliacolo, Azure Magazine, August 17, 2015 link
John Q. Hedjuk and Dan Libeskind’s works were display as part of the exhibit, Drawing Ambience: Alvin Boyarsky and the Architectural Association, at The Cooper Union on 10/13/ – 11/25/2015 link
Tiny Homes You Can Collect, by Penelope Green, The New York Times, December 9, 2015 link
See Inside Daniel Libeskind’s New Apartment Complex in Milan, by Arlene Hirst, Architectural Record, April 19, 2016 link
The 10 Best Architect Designed Products at Milan Design Week 2016, by Vladimir Gintoff, ArchDaily.com, link
Making Music Modern: Design for Ear and Eye, Exhibit at MoMa, November 15, 2014 – January 18, 2016. link
Video: Tour Through Mons International Congress Xperience with Daniel Libeskind, by Karissa Rosenfield, ArchDaily.com, January 31, 2015 link
Spotlight: Daniel Libeskind, by Connor Walker, ArchDaily.com, 12 May, 2016. link