Unfinished

In this lecture, Billie Tsien reflected on the evolving nature of architectural practice and the ways in which personal growth, values, and time shape creative work. Rejecting the notion that careers follow linear paths, Tsien discussed how design philosophies shift, adapt, and strengthen through lived experience. Some principles remain constant, she noted—anchoring a practice over decades—while others take new form, fade, or re-emerge as priorities change.

Through a selection of past and current projects, Tsien explored how continuity and transformation coexist in long-term practice, and how embracing change can sustain purpose and imagination over time. She emphasized architecture as a deeply human endeavor, one that evolves alongside the lives of those who shape it.

BIO

Billie Tsien is a founding partner of Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects | Partners, established in New York in 1986. The firm is internationally recognized for its thoughtful designs for cultural, academic, and nonprofit institutions, emphasizing permanence, material richness, and a sense of place. Tsien and her partner Tod Williams are recipients of the National Medal of Arts, awarded by President Barack Obama, as well as the AIA Architecture Firm Award (2013). Notable projects include the David Geffen Hall renovation at Lincoln Center, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, and the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago.