Aleksandr Mergold
Aleksandr Mergold
Associate Professor, Hillier College of Arch & Design
Weston Hall (WEST)
About Me
Aleksandr Mergold, AIA, a co-founder of Austin+Mergold (A+M), an architecture, landscape and design collaborative in New York, Pennsylvania and California. His work and research focus the reimagining and repurposing common and disposable materials, systems and elements of 20th-century built environment in the US and beyond.
Before founding A+M, Aleksandr worked at Pentagram, the international design consultancy. There he was involved in the design of the Harley–Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, the interiors of the Arizona Cardinals Stadium, and the Daily Show set amongst others. He has taught architecture and design for over 15 years at Cornell University in Ithaca and Rome, the Parsons School of Design in NYC and at the Listaháskóli Íslands in Reykjavik. His work has appeared in publications such as Architectural Record, Domus and the New York Times. Mergold is a winner of the New York Architecture League Prize for Architects and Designers, the Philadelphia AIA Emergent Architect Prize and a recipient of grants from NYSCA and the Graham Foundation. His monumental Oculi installation, created with collaborators at Cornell University, was recomposed from 40-year-old metal grain bins from a farm in Ohio and the Unistrut system patented in the 1920’s. First displayed on Governor’s Island in NYC and now at ArtOmi, the public artwork won the City of Dreams international design competition.
A third-generation architect, Aleksandr was born in the ancient city of Tashkent, that contains simultaneous traces of the Great Silk Road, colonial conquests, and a socialist planned economy. His book on contemporary spolia is due to come out next year.
Before founding A+M, Aleksandr worked at Pentagram, the international design consultancy. There he was involved in the design of the Harley–Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, the interiors of the Arizona Cardinals Stadium, and the Daily Show set amongst others. He has taught architecture and design for over 15 years at Cornell University in Ithaca and Rome, the Parsons School of Design in NYC and at the Listaháskóli Íslands in Reykjavik. His work has appeared in publications such as Architectural Record, Domus and the New York Times. Mergold is a winner of the New York Architecture League Prize for Architects and Designers, the Philadelphia AIA Emergent Architect Prize and a recipient of grants from NYSCA and the Graham Foundation. His monumental Oculi installation, created with collaborators at Cornell University, was recomposed from 40-year-old metal grain bins from a farm in Ohio and the Unistrut system patented in the 1920’s. First displayed on Governor’s Island in NYC and now at ArtOmi, the public artwork won the City of Dreams international design competition.
A third-generation architect, Aleksandr was born in the ancient city of Tashkent, that contains simultaneous traces of the Great Silk Road, colonial conquests, and a socialist planned economy. His book on contemporary spolia is due to come out next year.
Education
M.Arch.; Princeton University; ; 2003
B.Arch.; Cornell University; ; 2000
B.Arch.; Cornell University; ; 2000
Website
2024 Spring Courses
ARCH 296 - ARCHITECTURE STUDIO IV
Teaching Interests
design, representation, building technology and experimental preservation
Past Courses
ARCH 295: ARCHITECTURE STUDIO III
ARCH 296: ARCHITECTURE STUDIO IV
ARCH 296: ARCHITECTURE STUDIO IV
Research Interests
radical reuse of existing & obsolete materials, buildings, spaces and technology as a resource for a sustainable future