about
Heather Ligler* is an architect, design researcher, and faculty of the School of Architecture at Florida Atlantic University, where she is a tenure-track Assistant Professor and Foundations Coordinator. Dr. Ligler’s research focuses on computation as a lens for critical and creative design inquiry in architecture and the built environment. More specifically, she uses computational methods to study architecture in order to formalize design logic, theorize design narratives of the present past, and catalyze design futures. Heather’s work overlaps with discourses in shape grammars, rule-based design, design computing, architectural history/theory, and professional practice.
Her current scholarship considers how computational frameworks empower the rewriting of design narratives that can help us reframe the discipline and reimagine the past. Projects include: 1) revisiting John Portman's architectural legacy to address its algorithmic underpinnings; 2) unpacking Anne Tyng's archive to study her residential space structures as an evolving thesis on metamorphology; and 3) defining multidisciplinary workflows for the adaptive transformation of existing building types for affordable housing. Her work has been supported by the National Science Foundation, the General Services Administration, the Stuckeman Center for Design Computing, the Penn State Materials Research Institute, the President’s Fellowship at Georgia Tech, and the Hambidge Center for the Creative Arts & Sciences Fellowship. Heather received her Ph.D. and M.S. in Design Computation from the School of Architecture at Georgia Institute of Technology and her dual Bachelor of Architecture / Bachelor of Interior Architecture degrees from Auburn University.
Heather is registered architect in the states of Georgia and Florida. She has been invited to present her work at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California Berkeley, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Pennsylvania State University, National Chiao Tung University, and National Taiwan Institute of Technology. Her academic background includes research at the Shape Computation Lab, where she contributed to the development of the Shape Machine software and the CourtsWeb visual database; teaching at Georgia Tech, where she was a studio critic in the School of Architecture and lecturer in the Architectonics in Greece + Italy Program, and teaching/research at Penn State, where she was core faculty of the Stuckeman Center for Design Computing. Heather’s professional experience is likewise foundational to her research and teaching - her practice includes the design of domestic and international projects, primarily with John Portman & Associates.
*Heather’s CV is available here.
Her current scholarship considers how computational frameworks empower the rewriting of design narratives that can help us reframe the discipline and reimagine the past. Projects include: 1) revisiting John Portman's architectural legacy to address its algorithmic underpinnings; 2) unpacking Anne Tyng's archive to study her residential space structures as an evolving thesis on metamorphology; and 3) defining multidisciplinary workflows for the adaptive transformation of existing building types for affordable housing. Her work has been supported by the National Science Foundation, the General Services Administration, the Stuckeman Center for Design Computing, the Penn State Materials Research Institute, the President’s Fellowship at Georgia Tech, and the Hambidge Center for the Creative Arts & Sciences Fellowship. Heather received her Ph.D. and M.S. in Design Computation from the School of Architecture at Georgia Institute of Technology and her dual Bachelor of Architecture / Bachelor of Interior Architecture degrees from Auburn University.
Heather is registered architect in the states of Georgia and Florida. She has been invited to present her work at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California Berkeley, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Pennsylvania State University, National Chiao Tung University, and National Taiwan Institute of Technology. Her academic background includes research at the Shape Computation Lab, where she contributed to the development of the Shape Machine software and the CourtsWeb visual database; teaching at Georgia Tech, where she was a studio critic in the School of Architecture and lecturer in the Architectonics in Greece + Italy Program, and teaching/research at Penn State, where she was core faculty of the Stuckeman Center for Design Computing. Heather’s professional experience is likewise foundational to her research and teaching - her practice includes the design of domestic and international projects, primarily with John Portman & Associates.
*Heather’s CV is available here.