Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, co-founders of New York-based multidisciplinary firm WEISS/MANFREDI, have been awarded the 2020 Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal for Architecture, the award is the highest honor given by the University of Virginia and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello. 

Hunter’s Point South Waterfront Park Phase II / SWA/BALSLEY + WEISS/MANFREDI. Image © David Lloyd/SWA

The University of Virginia and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation present their highest honors, the 2020 Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medals in Architecture, Citizen Leadership, Global Innovation, and Law categories.

In Architecture category, the co-founders of WEISS/MANFREDI were praised for "redefining the relationships between landscape, architecture, infrastructure and art through their award-winning projects."

WEISS/MANFREDI's masterplan for La Brea Tar Pits. Image © WEISS/MANFREDI

Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, president of The Rockefeller Foundation and a leader in global development, was awarded in Citizen Leadership, Ted Turner, a media pioneer and philanthropist, was awarded in Global Innovation, while Sonia Sotomayor, an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, was awarded in Law category.

Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, US by WEISS/MANFREDI. Image © Albert Večerka/Esto

The Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medals recognize the exemplary contributions of recipients to the endeavors in which Jefferson – the author of the Declaration of Independence, the third U.S. president and the founder of the University of Virginia – excelled and held in high regard.

The medals are typically presented in observance of Jefferson’s birthday, April 13, during celebrations including a formal dinner at Monticello, a medal presentation at UVA and public talks by the medalists. 

WEISS/MANFREDI's new design for U.S. Embassy In New Delhi. Image © WEISS/MANFREDI

However, due to ongoing efforts to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus and limitations on events and travel, this year’s in-person events have been cancelled and the medals will be given in absentia.

"I was very much looking forward to welcoming these extraordinary men and women to Grounds, but the virus had other ideas," said UVA president Jim Ryan.  

"Still, I hope they will accept these medals as a token of our admiration and gratitude. Together, they have devoted their lives to areas of study and practice that Thomas Jefferson cared deeply about. And they have done so with an eye towards improvement—recognizing that, while our pursuit of high ideals will always be imperfect, hope lies in the striving."

The medals are presented annually by the president of the University and the president of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, the independent, nonprofit organization that owns and operates Jefferson’s home, Monticello.

This year’s medalists join a distinguished roster of past winners that includes architects Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, I.M. Pei, Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Toyo Ito, and Sir David Adjaye OBE.

Top image: Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, image courtesy of University of Pennsylvania. 

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