AIA Colorado’s Practice + Design Conference

During Anne Mooney’s insightful and inspiring keynote presentation, she described how she grounds her projects in strong ideas and translates those ideas into meaningful architectural designs. Her way of working involves slowing down to move beyond preconceptions, allowing time to uncover the unique potential within every project.

Andrea Malta, a senior at the College of Architecture and Planning at CU Denver, took in the presentation and shares the journey of what she learned here.

Julie Snow’s keynote focused on how small ideas can bring a project to life. She stated: “as a studio, we rely on the power of small ideas. The ability of small ideas to navigate the design process. I would suggest that the most critical design decisions may not be the singular big idea, but instead the small ideas that refine the project.” 

Jose Banuelos, a junior majoring in architecture at the College of Environmental Design, University of Colorado at Boulder, was on hand to share from the keynote presentation here.

After a day of design-focused, inspirational keynotes, the 2025 AIA President-Elect’s Friday morning Q&A session provided a refreshing shift to the narrative. The conversation centered around a few topics: how the profession evolves to meet future issues, around attracting and retaining talent as we face competition from adjacent professions, and how we and shift practice models in order to provide greater benefits and pay.

Conference Committee Co-Chair Kaylyn Kirby, AIA shares perspectives on the session here.

The final keynote of the conference offered a delightful twist: hearing from both Marlon Blackwell, FAIA, and Meryati Blackwell, AIA, together. During soundcheck, Marlon remarked, “You know, we don’t get to do this together very often.” This set the tone for an engaging and dynamic presentation, as the duo stood side-by-side, working through nearly 200 slides. They drew deeply from their vault of expertise, sharing insightful and captivating nuances for each project they highlighted.

Catch up the final conference keynote with Jon Bell, Communications and Creative Director on staff at AIA Colorado.

Kicking off the Tech Connect 1-Day event, Randy Deutsch shared practical insights and a forward thinking perspective for attendees to consider when contemplating AI’s role in an architect’s career.

Andy Rockmore, AIA, opens up his notebook from the session here.

Drawing from HDR’s investigation in creating a custom AI image generator designed specifically for architectural design, Matthew Goldsberry offers recommendations for firms interested in a similar exploration.

Julianne Scherer, AIA, shares from the session here.

What if, instead of anxiety, “AI” fostered a sense of empathy: feelings of connection and collaboration, of personalization, flexibility, adaptability, and environmental evolution? These are the types of big questions that Arjun Kaicker, FAIA, of Zaha Hadid Architects, bought to the discussion.

Craig Lawrence, AIA, was there to capture it all here.