
The Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, N.Y., has selected Quilian Riano, an accomplished designer with over 15 years of education and architecture practice experience, as dean of its School of Architecture, effective May 8. Riano joined the school’s leadership in July 2022 as assistant dean and was later tapped to serve as interim dean in Aug. 2022.
“Quilian brings to his role as dean a deep respect for the school’s historical strength as a leader in design, planning, and management of the built environment, along with a commitment to lean into a future that advances disciplinary excellence and to ensure that the school is a leading voice in addressing major issues of our time,” said Pratt Institute Provost Donna Heiland in a news release. “He is a generous and generative leader who will work collaboratively with students, faculty, and staff, building on the strong foundation he created during his time as interim and assistant dean.”
Riano plans to continue championing social and climate justice, collaborative practice, and positive change in architecture. He was a key player in forming Architecture 2030, a nonprofit that addresses the climate crisis through a design lens. Riano is also a core member of Dark Matter University, “an anti-racist design justice school collectively seeking the radical transformation of education and practice toward a just future,” according to the organization’s Instagram profile. The group was formed in 2020 by like-minded Black, Indigenous, and BIPOC people in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and mass protests combating anti-Black policing.
"Dark Matter University went from an idea and organizing platform to an organization that‘s actively producing and doing work in the world," Riano said in ARCHITECT's 2021One Year Later series. "Many institutions want to understand what anti-racist design is—including ourselves, to be honest. We are constantly seeking an anti-racist design pedagogy and a model of building and producing urban space, especially in communities of color that have been redlined and disinvested over time."
In addition to his new post at Pratt, Riano will continue his work as a Board of Director member for the Architectural League of New York—a nonprofit organization for architects and allied professionals—and his work as a public speaker, author, and editor.