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KieranTimberlake



KieranTimberlake is an internationally renowned architecture, planning, and research firm dedicated to creating beautifully crafted, thoughtfully made architecture holistically integrated to site, program, and people. Since its founding in 1984, KieranTimberlake has produced a diverse body of work for clients drawn to an environmentally ethical and innovative approach to design, ranging from new construction to the renovation and transformation of historic buildings.

The Philadelphia-based practice is defined by a culture of inquiry that prioritizes deep investigation, exploration, and collaboration. This holistic approach resolves often conflicting demands of context, culture, program, cost, and sustainability with distinctive, artful architecture.

The firm’s commitment to research has led to a collaborative, interdisciplinary design process that brings together engineers, consultants, builders, and clients in the search for inventive solutions that push the boundaries of current design and construction processes. An ethic of environmental responsibility and sustainable growth is at the core of creative design solutions that synthesize carbon reduction and energy efficiency with culture, context, architectural aspirations, program, constructability, and budget. The result is resonant and compelling architecture, embodying clients’ vision and positively impacting constituents and communities.

KieranTimberlake led Washington University’s East End Transformation, serving as architect for Anabeth and John Weil Hall, Sumers Welcome Center, Schnuck Pavilion, and the expansion of the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, and collaborating with Michael Vergason Landscape Architects on the new campus landscape and with BNIM on the below-grade garage. Other recent projects include the new U.S. Embassy in London; Henley Hall, Institute for Energy Efficiency at the University of California, Santa Barbara; and the renewal of Harvard University’s historic River Houses. Current work includes 181 Mercer at New York University, a multi-use high-rise accommodating academic, performing arts, athletics, and residential programs, and additions and renovations to the landmark Folger Shakespeare Library on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

KieranTimberlake has received hundreds of design awards, including the Firm Award from the American Institute of Architects in 2008 and the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award from the Smithsonian Institution in 2010. Its founders, Stephen Kieran and James Timberlake, received the Louis I. Kahn Award and the Pennsylvania AIA Medal of Distinction in 2021. The London Embassy is a recipient of the 2022 Architecture Award of the American Institute of Architects.


Work by KieranTimberlake

Exterior photo of a multistory, transparent crystalline cube building, with trees in the foreground and a multi-lane street to the right.

The U.S. Embassy in London establishes a new paradigm in embassy design by representing the ideals of the American government—including transparency, openness, and equality—while meeting stringent requirements for sustainability and security. London, UK. 2017. Photo © Richard Bryant.
Exterior photo of a transparent building facade fronted by a terra cotta umbra and a grove of flowering trees that shade outdoor and indoor workspaces.

Henley Hall, Institute for Energy Efficiency at the University of California, Santa Barbara is a state-of-the-art research and education facility that models energy-efficient design while serving as the home for emerging technologies and cutting-edge ideas. Santa Barbara, CA. 2020. Photo © Bruce Damonte.
Exterior photo of the three-story, contemporary building Weil Hall, with three levels of windows lit up at dusk. Additional campus buildings can be seen in the background; an orange Alexander Calder sculpture is visible in the foreground.

Anabeth and John Weil Hall, Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis. Part of the East End Transformation. St. Louis, MO. 2019. Photo: James Ewing / JBSA.