Bjarke Ingels
Founder
BIG — Bjarke Ingels Group (Design Vanguard, 2009)

Bjarke Ingels founded BIG—Bjarke Ingels Group (Design Vanguard, 2009)—in 2005 after co-founding PLOT Architects in 2001 and working at OMA in Rotterdam. Bjarke defines architecture as the art and science of making sure our cities and buildings fit with the way we want to live our lives. Through careful analysis of local culture and climate, the ever-changing patterns of contemporary life, and the ebbs and flows of the global economy, Bjarke believes in the idea of information-driven design as the driving force for his creative process. Named one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World by Time Magazine in 2016, Bjarke has designed and completed award-winning buildings globally.

Bjarke was appointed Knight of the French Order des Arts et des Lettres and the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Dannebrog in 2019 and 2018, respectively. In 2021, he was selected as an ambassador of the EU’s New European Bauhaus. He was named an Honorary Fellow by the AIA in 2020, the RIBA in 2015, and the RAIC in 2014. The Wall Street Journal recognized Bjarke as Innovator of the Year in 2011, the same year he received the Danish Crown Prince’s Culture Prize. Bjarke was also awarded the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale in 2004 and the ULI Award for Excellence in 2009. Alongside his architectural practice, Bjarke has taught at Harvard University, Yale University, Columbia University, and Rice University and is an honorary professor at the Royal Academy of Arts, School of Architecture in Copenhagen.

Sunil Bald
Founding Partner
studioSUMO (Design Vanguard, 2006)

Sunil Bald is an architect and educator. He is founding partner with Yolande Daniels of studioSUMO (Design Vanguard, 2007), a design research studio based in Long Island City, Queens. For 25 years, SUMO has been committed to architecture that responds to social and cultural contexts through materialized solutions that are unexpected, inventive, and engaging. SUMO’s work ranges from installations to institutional buildings and has been realized both locally and internationally. In 2015, SUMO was awarded the Annual Prize in Architecture from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Sunil is Professor Adjunct at Yale School of Architecture, where he has taught design, theory, and visualization since 2006. He served as Associate Dean and Director of Graduate Design Programs from 2017 to 2024.