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faculty and students with a model in studio in Hayes Hall.

The central hub for news on the activities and accomplishments of our faculty, students and alumni.

Media Mentions

Our faculty are frequently called upon to inform critical issues facing the world today. See the latest faculty and school mentions in the press.

  • The Donald Trump Blueprint
    7/26/16
    An article in The Nation about the lavish interiors of Donald Trump’s properties draws comparisons between the Republican presidential nominee, Hugh Hefner and Adolf Hitler, and mentions the 2015 book “Hitler at Home,” written by Despina Stratigakos, professor of architecture at UB. “Like Hefner and Trump, Hitler also worked hard to situate himself in the context of ‘female’ space. In her fascinating book ‘Hitler at Home,’ Despina Stratigakos recounts the assiduous rebranding of the Führer, from violent agitator to pacific country squire, after his assumption of the chancellorship in 1933,” Michael Sorkin, the article’s author, writes.
  • Analysis: Trump: Will America Recognize Danger the Second Time Around?
    7/23/16
    NBC News quotes from Interim Chair of Architecture Despina Stratigakos’ 2015 book, “Hitler at Home,” in an analysis of celebrity culture and Donald Trump’s campaign for president. The commentary argues that the rise of reality TV and obsession with celebrity has aided Trump’s presidential bid, and notes that in the 1930s, preceding World War II, a similar obsession with celebrity culture contributed to the rise of Adolf Hitler. The article links to a UB news release titled, “How media ‘fluff’ helped Hitler rise to power.” 
  • Students take in all of Madrid on study abroad
    7/22/16

    A group of 12 students are immersed in the landscape of Spain's historic capital of Madrid as part of a new study abroad program that combines intense production with daily "seeing and drawing" tours and cultural experiences. 

  • The 35 Best ‘Bad’ Neighborhoods to Buy a Home In
    7/21/16
    An article on Bloomberg about the best “bad” neighborhoods to buy a home in interviews Robert Silverman, professor of urban and regional planning and an expert in Rust Belt gentrification, who said declining cities often have neighborhoods – near a university, perhaps, or a hospital center – where there’s not enough housing to go around. “You see these bidding wars happening for selective housing in Flint [Michigan] or Buffalo  [New York], even while there’s excess inventory in other parts of the city,” he said. “The parts of these cities that have affordable housing are not always located where the job growth is taking place.”
  • U. Buffalo Designs A Home for All
    7/20/16
    An article on Study Architecture reports on the pilot project between Habitat for Humanity and UB’s School of Architecture and Planning that created designs for the home renovation that feature principles of universal design, a first for Habitat Buffalo, under the guidance of Ed Steinfeld, professor of architecture and director of the Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access, and Peter Russell, manager of the School of Architecture and Planning’s Materials and Methods Shop.
  • Designing a home for all, for the long haul
    7/20/16

    A UB-Habitat for Humanity pilot project aims to incorporate universal design principles into home renovation and construction.

  • Students tackle urban renewal at summer camp
    7/19/16
    A story on WBFO-FM reports on the fourth annual Summer Academic Camp hosted by the UB Center for Urban Studies, which this year is focused on “Transformation of the Visual Landscape,” and interviews Henry Louis Taylor, director of the center. “In many of the East Side neighborhoods, the visual landscape is harmful in the sense that it depicts an image of decay, deterioration, neglect and a sense of hopelessness – that is, that you can do nothing about it,” he said.
  • 'Tiny houses' don't fit in many cities' plans
    7/17/16
    An article in the Columbus Dispatch about the growing popularity of “tiny houses,” homes that are smaller than 500 square feet, and the difficulties cities and states are having creating zoning and building laws to regulate them quotes Robert Silverman, professor of urban and regional planning. “People using affordable housing are a diverse group. You’ve got retired people, disabled people, families,” he said. “A 300-square-foot trailer with a loft up top may not be suited for all those groups.” Articles also appeared in the Knoxville News Sentinel and La Crosse Tribune.
  • The building blocks of Buffalo’s revival
    7/12/16
    An article about the building blocks of Buffalo’s renaissance looks at the major features and figures involved in the city’s renewal, and notes that the book, “A Concrete Atlantis,” was updated in 2006 with the UB Urban Design Project’s “Reconsidering Concrete Atlantis,” which began Buffalo’s transformation  of its concrete grain elevators. The article also reports that in 1994 Robert Shibley, then professor and now dean of the School of Architecture and Planning, kicked off the process that led to the Queen City Hub plan of 2003 and Buffalo’s Comprehensive Plan in 2006, and his UB Urban Design Project released an ahead-of-its-time master plan for the transformation of the Larkin District.
  • Professor calls poverty “systemic racism” in Buffalo
    7/11/16
    A story on WIVB-TV about the complex issues behind poverty in some Buffalo neighborhoods interviews Henry Louis Taylor, professor of urban and regional planning. “People will say, ‘well, how could that happen in a city managed by blacks and controlled by blacks,’ and our answer is simple. Black faces in high places don’t mean a thing if they have the same agenda as white faces in high places,” he said.
  • Writing the book on the School of Architecture and Planning
    7/5/16

    Professor Bradshaw Hovey suggests persistence of patterns and shared values across the first 50 years of the School of Architecture and Planning. Help reveal the heart of our school - share your story and be part of Hovey's monograph commemorating the 50th anniversary of our school.

  • Faculty reimagine 'mailbox' in Hayes Hall
    6/22/16

    An effort to engage School of Architecture and Planning faculty and students in finishing their newly renovated home in UB's Hayes Hall has yielded architectural innovation in perhaps the most functional and mundane of spaces - the mailroom.