Professor, Design
Education
Master of Architecture, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1975
Photography Apprenticeship with Minor White, 1973-74
Photography Workshops with Minor White, 1971, 1972, 1973
Light-art Study with Gyorgy Kepes, Center for Advanced Visual Studies, 1971-75
Bachelor of Arts, Art History and Sociology, State University of New York, 1970
Academic Experience
Professor, School of Architecture, UIUC, 1992-present
Frederick Charles Baker Distinguished Visiting Chair in Light and Design, University of Oregon, 1992
Associate Professor, School of Architecture, UIUC, 1987-92
Assistant Professor, School of Architecture Overseas Program in Versailles, UIUC, 1983-85
Assistant Professor, School of Architecture, UIUC, 1981-87
Professional Experience
Architect, Warner Burns Toan Lunde, New York, NY, 1977-81
Publications
Books:
Stillness and Light: The Silent Eloquence of Shaker Architecture. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2009.
The Architecture of Natural Light. London: Thames & Hudson, 2009.
Masters Of Light, First Volume: Twentieth-Century Pioneers. Tokyo: A&U, 2003.
Light In Japanese Architecture. Tokyo: A&U, 1995.
(Co-author with Thom Mayne) Morphosis Urban Projects. Tokyo: A&U, 1994.
The Potential House. Tokyo: A&U, 1989.
Poetics Of Light. Tokyo: A&U, 1987.
Chapters in Books:
“Building With Light.” In Light in Architecture. Edited by James R. Brogan. London: Academy Editions, 1997, pp. 16-21.
“Meeting Ground.” In Companion to Contemporary Architectural Thought. Edited by Ben Farmer and Hentie Louw. London: Routledge, 1993, pp. 368-377.
“Licht und Zeit” and “Licht und Materie.” In Architektur—Licht—Architektur. Edited by Hans T. Von Malotki. Stuttgart: Karl Kramer Verlag, 1991, pp. 8-21 and 22-35.
Articles:
Theoretical writings published in journals including a+u Architecture and Urbanism, Via Arquitectura, The Architectural Review, ARK Arkkitehti Arkitekten Finnish Architectural Review, Detail, Places, Oz, Daidalos, JAE Journal of Architectural Education, Inland Architect, Architecture, and Solar Age.
Exhibits
I Space Gallery, University of Arkansas, Howard University, University of Texas at Austin, Center for Contemporary Arts, California Polytechnic State University, Dunlap Arts Center, Emporia Arts Council, Drury College, Dodge City Arts Council, University of Nebraska, Kansas State University
Research
Scholar and photographer on the art of daylight in contemporary architecture, but also ranging from a broad phenomenology of light in architecture to the cultures of light found in regions such as Scandinavia and Japan. Currently completing a book on the sublime yet practical treatment of daylight in Shaker architecture: Stillness and Light: The Eloquent Silence of Shaker Architecture. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, expected 2009.
Research is also concentrated more broadly on the phenomenon of “place,” and those timeless properties of architecture that reaffirm human identity and our basic existential experience of being in the world. Topics of scholarship include: site-specific building and land art, urban context and the history of the site, sensory and bodily experience, time and movement perception, intimacy and outlook, multivalent space, and tectonics and making.
Presentations and Lectures
University of Oregon, University of Washington, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Professional and University Service
AIA New York Chapter Design Awards Jury, New York, NY
College Promotion & Tenure Committee, Member
College Task Force on Diversity and Inclusiveness, Member
College Affirmative Action Committee, Vice-Chair
MArch Thesis Program in Architectural Design, Coordinator
Plym Distinguished Professor Committee, Chair
School Executive Committee, Member
School Design Committee, Member
School Promotion & Tenure Committee, Member
School By-Laws Committee, Member
School Affirmative Action Officer
School Lecture & Exhibition Committee, Member
School Curriculum Committee, Member
Doctoral Research Faculty of School PhD Program, Member
Versailles Overseas Program Committee, Member
Co-founder & Editorial Board Member of Reflections, Journal of the School of Architecture
Other Activities
Architectural photographs have appeared in many group exhibitions, exhibit catalogues,
exhibition reviews, and books and articles by other authors. Photographs have also appeared on the covers of journals including a+u Architecture and Urbanism, Architecture, and Inland Architect; the book cover of Juha Leiviskä (Helsinki: Museum of Finnish Architecture, 2000), and a 2007 Finnish postage stamp celebrating the architecture of Juha Leiviskä.
Awards and Honors
Arnold O. Beckman Award, UIUC, 2007Release-Time Award in the Humanities, UIUC, 2007
Associate, Center for Advanced Study, UIUC, 2005
Fellow, Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, 2005, 1984, 1976
Alan and Leonarda Laing Travel Grant, UIUC, 2003
Fellow, American-Scandinavian Foundation, 1996
Excellence in Graduate Teaching Award, UIUC, 1992
Lawrence B. Anderson Award, MIT, 1991
Fellow, Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, 1983
Francis Ward Chandler Prize, Boston Society of Architects, 1975
Additional Information
Henry Plummer Contact
In the News
Professor Henry Plummer Completes Book on Architectural Masters (November 2004)
