Working Paper #384
Design and Development
Witold Rybczynski
Architecture Development United States
Most new buildings in the US are developer-driven commercial developments but only a few of these projects are ever recognized in architectural awards programs. In the past, some of the most creative architecture was commissioned by and for real estate developers and architects designed buildings whose architectural intentions complemented the development goals of the buildings owners. In the last thirty years no new commercial projects have appeared in Architectural Record magazine’s top 15 significant works of architecture. Starting in the late 1960’s, non-commercial architectural clients have encouraged styles that run in the face of common taste, favoring aesthetics over function and architects themselves tended to ignore the marketplace.