Michael Graves, a native of Indianapolis, received his architectural training
at the University of Cincinnati and Harvard University. In 1960, Graves won
the Rome Prize and studied at the American Academy in Rome, of which he is now
a trustee. Graves is the Shirmer Professor of Architecture at Princeton
University, where he has taught since 1962. He is a fellow of The American
Institute of Architects.
Michael Graves has been in the forefront of architectural design since the beginning of his practice in 1964. His work has directly influenced the transformation of urban architecture from the abstract "Modern Architecture" toward more contextual and traditional themes. In his projects, Graves has consistently demonstrated his ability to create designs sympathetic to both the general program of use and the context of the site.
Among his completed projects are the Portland Building, the Humana Building, the San Juan Capistrano Library, River Bend Music Center in Cincinnati, the Clos Pegase Winery in the Napa Valley, the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Hotels, the Crown American Corporate Office Building, the Aventine mixed-use development in La Jolla, California, several stores for Lenox China, and the Walt Disney Company Corporate Headquarters in Burbank. Graves has designed numerous cultural and educational facilities including The Newark Museum in New Jersey, the expansion of the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Historical Center of Industry and Labor in Youngstown, Ohio, the master plan for the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Denver Public Library and the Clark County Library in Las Vegas.
His works also include two projects at Emory University: the 1985 renovation of Henry Hornbostel's law school building into a home for the Emory University Museum of Art and Archeology and the art history and anthropology departmen ts. In 1993, Graves completed a 35,000 square foot addition to the Museum, renamed in honor of Atlanta philanthropist and businessman, Michael C. Carlos.