Nader Tehrani: The Measure of Tolerance
Nader Tehrani is the Dean of the Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture at the Cooper Union in New York. He was previously a professor of architecture at MIT, where he served as the Head of theDepartment from 2010-2014. He is also Principal of NADAAA, a practice dedicated to the advancement of design innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and an intensive dialogue with the construction industry. Tehrani received a B.F.A. and B.Arch from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1985 and 1986, respectively. He continued his studies at the Architectural Association, where he attended the Post-Graduate Program in History and Theory. Upon his return to the United States, Tehrani received the M.A.U.D from the Harvard Graduate School of Design in 1991.
Tehrani has taught at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, Rhode Island School of Design, the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he served as the Thomas W. Ventulett III Distinguished Chair in Architectural Design, and at the University of Toronto’s Department of Architecture, Landscape, and Design as the Frank O. Gehry International Visiting Chair.
Tehrani has lectured widely at institutions including the Guggenheim Museum in New York, Harvard University, Princeton University, and the Architectural Association. Tehrani has participated in many symposia, including the Monterey Design Conference (2009), the Buell Center's "Contemporary Architecture and its Consequences" at Columbia University (2009), and the Graduate School of Design's "Beyond the Harvard Box," (2006). The works of Nader Tehrani have been widely exhibited at MOMA, LA MOCA, and ICA Boston. His work is also part of the permanent collection of the Canadian Center for Architecture and the Nasher Sculpture Center. His work has been published in a variety of international journals that reflect his research on materiality, fabrication, and tectonics. Selected articles include: "Versioning: Connubial Reciprocities of Surface and Space," published in Architectural Design (September, October 2002), and "Aggregation and ‘DifficultSynthesis’", featured in Material Design: Informing Architecture by Materiality, by Thomas Schroepfer (2011).
As the principal and founder of Office dA, Tehrani’s work has been recognized with notable awards, including the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award in Architecture (2007), the United States Artists Fellowship in Architecture and Design (2007), and the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Architecture (2002). He has also received the Harleston Parker Award for the Northeastern University Multi-Faith Spiritual Center (2002), and the Hobson Award for the Georgia Institute of Technology Hinman Research Building (2012). Throughout his career, Tehrani has received sixteen Progressive Architecture Awards as well as numerous AIA, Boston Society of Architects, and ID awards.
NADAAA is a Boston-based architecture and urban design firm led by principal designer Nader Tehrani, in collaboration with partners Katherine Faulkner and Daniel Gallagher. NADAAA is a platform for design investigation on a large scale and with a great geographic reach. NADAAA’s projects range from furniture to architecture and urban design, with a focus on craft, construction, and digital fabrication. NADAAA’s work has been exhibited at institutions including the Museum of Modern Art, the Boston Institute of Contemporary Art, and LA MoCA, and is featured in the permanent collections of the Nasher and the CCA. For the past four consecutive years, NADAAA ranked in the top three design firms in Architect Magazine's "Top 50 U.S. Firms."
NADAAA is developing a portfolio of projects around the world that requires optimized project delivery, with current projects in the U.S., Korea, China, Australia, Canada, Kuwait, and France. With the recent completion of the Melbourne University School of Architecture and Hinman Research Building at Georgia Tech, NADAAA also broke ground on the University of Toronto Daniels Faculty, making innovative spaces of learning part of its expanded portfolio.