AIA Minnesota honored Scott Mayer, Heidi Myers, AIA, Daniela Sandler and the Minnesota Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians with 2019 Special Awards.

The AIA Minnesota Special Award seeks to encourage, stimulate and recognize exceptional contributions made by individuals and organizations that improve the quality of our physical environment. This award celebrates architecture as a collaborative effort that relies on the talents and commitment of many individuals working together to achieve common goals.

Daniela Sandler is an associate professor in the University of Minnesota College of Design, teaching architectural and urban history. She is an impassioned lecturer whose teaching style is innovative and inspiring and has published significant research on architecture and urban spaces as viewed through a global lens. She also volunteers for the Women in Architecture Student organization and the School of Architecture’s Committee on Diversity.

The Minnesota Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians (MNSAH) in honor of the organization’s groundbreaking Minnesota Modern Masters Oral History Project. In this project–the only one of its kind–MNSAH volunteer historians record conversations with Minnesota’s leading architects, educators, critics, and journalists. The videos and transcripts, which capture the enduring legacy of the lives and work of the people who have shaped the state’s architecture, are deposited in the Northwest Architectural Archives; abbreviated videos can be viewed on MNSAH’s Vimeo site.

The jury noted that as individuals/organizations and as a collective, this group of Special Award recipients embodies the values and goals of AIA Minnesota. Their work increases the understanding of, access to, and valuation of architecture; it connects broader publics to the built environment; it fosters the next generation of the profession; and it honors and advances equity in the profession.

These individuals and organizations will receive their awards at the annual AIA Minnesota Awards Dinner on December 6, 2019 at International Market Square in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Learn more about the Special Award here.

Read the entire article, including profiles of additional recipients here.

Daniela Sandler has been an SAH member since 2004.  She has served on the Downing Book Award Committee, and as a session chair for SAH Annual Conferences in 206, 208 and 2019.