Renowned Swiss architect Mario Botta will give a public lecture at 12:30 p.m., Friday, Jan. 31, in Storrs Building, Room 110. Afterward, he will conduct a critical review of selected second-year architecture students’ work.
Botta, whose professional career spans more than 40 years, has designed numerous types of buildings, including museums, libraries, schools and religious spaces. In 2009, he designed his first structure on the East Coast – the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art in Charlotte.
In creating spaces, Botta is known to focus on the use of geometric shapes and consider the importance of light. He has received many professional awards for his work including the Merit Award for Excellence in Design by the American Institute of Architects for the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco, as well as the 2006 International Architecture Award for the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design. Botta is one of the founders of the Accademia di architettura in Mendrisio, Switzerland, where he still teaches today.
Botta’s Jan. 31 lecture is being presented in partnership with the Bechtler Museum of Art, which is hosting the display “Mario Botta: Architecture and Memory.” The exhibit opens Friday, Jan. 31, and will be displayed through Friday, July 25. It features 30 of Botta’s realized projects through photographs, sketches and unpublished documents.