Design x Technology Series: Stories of the Affleck House
2026-04-02 12:30 - 13:30 (America/Detroit) | Lawrence Technological University, 21000 West 10 Mile Road, Southfield, MI, 48075, United States
Hear first hand accounts from people with intimate knowledge of the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Gregor S. and Elizabeth B. Affleck House.

College of Architecture and Design at Lawrence Technological University will present ‘Stories of the Affleck House’ as part of our Design x Technology Series.
The Affleck House is a living story. This talk brings together the voices and experiences of some of LTU CoAD’s Distinguished Architecture Alumni, faculty, and staff to share their personal and professional connections to one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s most celebrated Usonian homes. Spanning its rich architectural history, the realities of daily life within its walls, and the careful ongoing work of restoration, each voice offers a unique window into this remarkable building.
Panelists:Dale Allen Gyure, Associate Department Chair, ArchitectureMark Farlow, Adjunct faculty, LTU CoAD (DAA 2016)Frederick F. Butters, Esq. FAIA – Principal attorney (DAA 2003)Benedetto Tiseo, FAIA – President, Tiseo Architects (DAA 1999)
Moderator:Tamara Stanko
🛂 CoAD Freshman, this event counts towards your Experience Passport.
As part of CoAD’s Design x Technology Series, this event is free and open to the public. Guests may watch online or on campus. Register for the location/viewing details.
Placed on both the Michigan and National Registers of Historic Places, the Affleck House has been recognized by architectural scholars and historians as one of Michigan’s most significant structures. LTU and the College of Architecture and Design use this historic home as an educational resource, to inspire new generations of designers, and offer seasonal monthly tours.
UTLC Gallery T210 and virtual

Design x Technology Series: Lesley-Ann Noel
2026-04-07 12:30 - 13:30
Designing in the Tension- Relationality, Complexity and the Worlds We Design Together

You are invited to LTU CoAD for another important Spring 2026 Design x Technology Series talk featuring Dean of Design, OCAD University Lesley-Ann Noel.
“Designing in the Tension: Relationality, Complexity and the Futures We Design Together” explores how design thrives in spaces of uncertainty and interconnectedness. Drawing on work by Arturo Escobar, Victor Udoewa, Renata Marques Leitão, and my own research, this talk examines relationality as a foundation for design practice and the role of complexity in shaping pluriversal futures. Through real-world examples in healthcare, technology, urban design, and education, we’ll discuss how designers can embrace tension as a creative force—moving beyond control toward care, equity, and collaboration. This conversation invites us to imagine futures where many worlds fit.
Participants will gain practical frameworks and tools for navigating complexity and relationality in design. They’ll leave with strategies to embrace uncertainty as a creative resource, rather than something to avoid, which is critical in today’s interconnected challenges.
By learning relational design approaches, participants can reduce friction in collaborative projects, improve stakeholder engagement, and design solutions that are more adaptive and inclusive. This makes design processes smoother and outcomes more resilient.
Participants will be introduced to ready-to-use tools like the Positionality Wheel and Designer’s Critical Alphabet, which accelerate reflection and decision-making in complex projects.

What current challenges will this presentation alleviate?
– Difficulty managing multi-stakeholder complexity
– Lack of frameworks for inclusive and equitable design
– Struggles with uncertainty and systemic change
Relational and systemic approaches reduce the risk of designing in isolation, which often leads to failure or unintended harm. By foregrounding care, equity, and collaboration, participants can anticipate ripple effects and design for long-term sustainability.
We’ll examine tools and strategies that foster equity, care, and collaboration—helping designers navigate uncertainty, reduce risks, and remove barriers in multi-stakeholder projects. Reflection and ethics are essential; this session offers practical ways to embed them in design for pluriversal futures.
Moderating this Design x Technology Series talk is LTU Department Chair and Professor Philip Plowright.

🛂 CoAD Freshman, this event counts towards your Experience Passport.
As part of CoAD’s Design x Technology Series, this event is free and open to the public. Guests may watch online or on campus. Register for the location/viewing details. A pizza lunch will be provided.

BIO: Dr. Lesley-Ann Noel is a Trinidadian design educator and the Dean of Design at OCAD University. She is the author of “Design Social Change” and a co-editor of “The Black Experience in Design.” She has developed tools for critical reflection, such as The Designer’s Critical Alphabet and the Positionality Wheel. Before joining OCAD U, she taught at North Carolina State University, Tulane University, Stanford University, and the University of the West Indies.

Design x Technology Series: Karilyn Johanesen
2026-04-16 12:30 - 13:30
Come to CoAD for our another innovative Spring 2026 Design x Technology Series.

Come to CoAD for our another innovative Spring 2026 Design x Technology Series talk featuring Karilyn Johanesen, Senior Associate at Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu. Enjoy this talk in person or virtually.
Karilyn’s presentation on Tuesday, April 16 titled ‘Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu,’ will allow our guests to gain insight into the practice’s design process including early concept design thinking, material research, and construction.
Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu is an architecture studio based in New York and Amsterdam, founded in 2008 by Florian Idenburg and Jing Liu. The practice has developed an internationally recognized body of work spanning cultural, civic, residential, commercial, and educational projects, from temporary installations to long-term urban strategies, across both new construction and adaptive reuse. At the core of SO–IL’s work is an ambition to strengthen the civic realm. Each project is approached as an opportunity to rethink convention and to design spaces that foster openness, collective engagement, and environmental responsibility. A commitment to craft, material precision, and intellectual rigor ensures that each building is deeply responsive to its context while contributing to broader architectural discourse.
Central to this lecture is the studio’s investigation of “edges”. SO–IL treats conventional divisions between interior and exterior, public and private, existing and new not as fixed lines, but as zones of tension and ambiguity. Through strategies of thickening, layering, elongating, and articulating, edges become active zones of negotiation and exchange. The result is buildings that rely less on iconic form than on the precise calibration of material assemblies and the climatic and social forces they mediate.
Presented by Karilyn Johanesen, Senior Associate, this lecture focuses on “edges” as a recurring theme in SO-IL’s work. The studio approaches the conventional divisions between interior and exterior, public and private, and existing and new as potential zones of tension, complexity, and ambiguity. Through strategies of thickening, layering, elongating, and articulating, edges become active zones of negotiation and exchange. The result is buildings that rely less on iconic form than on the precise calibration of material assemblies and the climatic and social forces they mediate.
This informative presentation will be moderated by Department Chair of Architecture and Associate Professor Gretchen Wilkins.
🛂 CoAD Freshman, this event counts towards your Experience Passport.
CEU: This event equals 1 professional architecture credit towards licensure requirements. ​​
Please note that LTU is not a registered AIA CE provider. By virtue of having a NAAB-accredited architecture program, the State of Michigan authorizes LTU to offer continuing education credit. A list of state-approved HSW subjects can be found on their licensing website by searching the page for ‘HSW subjects for continuing education’.
As part of CoAD’s Design x Technology Series, this event is free and open to the public. Guests may watch online or on campus. Register for the location/viewing details. A pizza lunch will be provided to all on-site registered guests.

Design x Technology Series: Karilyn Johanesen
2026-04-16 12:30 - 13:30
Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu

CoAD presents our final innovative Design x Technology Series talk for Spring 2026 featuring Karilyn Johanesen, Senior Associate at Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu. Enjoy this talk in person or virtually.
Karilyn’s presentation on Tuesday, April 16 titled ‘Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu,’ will allow our guests to gain insight into the practice’s design process including early concept design thinking, material research, and construction.
Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu is an architecture studio based in New York and Amsterdam, founded in 2008 by Florian Idenburg and Jing Liu. The practice has developed an internationally recognized body of work spanning cultural, civic, residential, commercial, and educational projects, from temporary installations to long-term urban strategies, across both new construction and adaptive reuse. At the core of SO–IL’s work is an ambition to strengthen the civic realm. Each project is approached as an opportunity to rethink convention and to design spaces that foster openness, collective engagement, and environmental responsibility. A commitment to craft, material precision, and intellectual rigor ensures that each building is deeply responsive to its context while contributing to broader architectural discourse.
Central to this lecture is the studio’s investigation of “edges”. SO–IL treats conventional divisions between interior and exterior, public and private, existing and new not as fixed lines, but as zones of tension and ambiguity. Through strategies of thickening, layering, elongating, and articulating, edges become active zones of negotiation and exchange. The result is buildings that rely less on iconic form than on the precise calibration of material assemblies and the climatic and social forces they mediate.
Presented by Karilyn Johanesen, Senior Associate, this lecture focuses on “edges” as a recurring theme in SO-IL’s work. The studio approaches the conventional divisions between interior and exterior, public and private, and existing and new as potential zones of tension, complexity, and ambiguity. Through strategies of thickening, layering, elongating, and articulating, edges become active zones of negotiation and exchange. The result is buildings that rely less on iconic form than on the precise calibration of material assemblies and the climatic and social forces they mediate.
This informative presentation will be moderated by Department Chair of Architecture and Associate Professor Gretchen Wilkins.
🛂 CoAD Freshman, this event counts towards your Experience Passport.
CEU: This event equals 1 professional architecture credit towards licensure requirements. ​​
Please note that LTU is not a registered AIA CE provider. By virtue of having a NAAB-accredited architecture program, the State of Michigan authorizes LTU to offer continuing education credit. A list of state-approved HSW subjects can be found on their licensing website by searching the page for ‘HSW subjects for continuing education’.
As part of CoAD’s Design x Technology Series, this event is free and open to the public. Guests may watch online or on campus. Register for the location/viewing details.

BIO: As a Senior Associate at Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu, Karilyn Johanesen plays a pivotal role in overseeing projects, guiding design development, and managing construction administration. Since joining the firm in 2017, she has been instrumental in advancing SO–IL’s residential portfolio in Brooklyn, working closely with Tankhouse Development. She has led the design of CubeHouse, a 183,000-square-foot timber high-rise office tower in Amsterdam, certified as BREEAM Excellent and WELL Gold. She is also overseeing Stanton Yards in Detroit, the adaptive reuse of a historic marina into a dynamic cultural campus.
