I just heard that Pharrell will be one of the keynote speakers at the 2014 AIA National Convention in Chicago. Until now, I must admit, I have never had any interest in attending an AIA National Convention but I am going to register for this one immediately. The stage is now being set for a cultural innovation a "Hip Hop Inspired Architecture" which was the title of my graduate thesis at The University of Detroit Mercy, and has been the primary focused of both my academic and professional careers. I hope that you will venture through my previous blog post about my efforts to not only create a new architecture inspired by hip hop, but to also understand how architecture contributed to the birth of hip hop culture. Take a look at a previous blog post where I call LeCorbusier the Forefather of Hip Hop because of his contributions to the environments which birthed hip hop. My prediction of the merger of these two worlds is finally underway! My only hope is that I get a chance to meet Pharrell during the convention, not to hand off a demo cd of me rapping, but to discuss our overlapping love and appreciation for both hip hop and design!

Kriston Capps wrote in Architecture Magazine: "(Pharrell) Williams joins artist and urban planner Theaster Gates and MacArthur Genius and architect Jeanne Gang, FAIA, as speakers who will deliver keynote addresses. ARCHITECT Live host Stephen Chung, AIA, and 2014 AIA President Helene Combs Dreiling, FAIA, will also give talks."

Click the photos below to see my previous post below about Pharrell and his many ties to architecture.