RAINY HAMILTON JR.
Hamilton Anderson Associates
African American AIA Fellow
SAY IT LOUD - NOMA 50th Exhibitor
SAY IT LOUD - Washington DC Exhibitor
Michigan Based Designer
Who or what inspires you professionally?
I am inspired by architect Paul R. Williams, and President Barak Obama. The documentary “The Way I See it-A Look at Pete Sousa, Barack Obama’s White House Photographer” inspires me to continue to fight to be of service in a largely white profession.
RAINY HAMILTON JR.
Bio:
The great architect, Rainy Hamilton, Jr. is a native Detroiter and graduate of the UD Mercy School of Architecture. He has a comprehensive understanding of the design industry and has built a national practice that has created award winning designs in the areas of entertainment/hospitality, higher education, residential and recreational facilities. He has a keen ability to quickly develop design solutions, organize & solve complex issues and craft solutions that are environmentally responsible & financially feasible
How did you first learn about architecture and when did you decide that built environment profession was an area of interest for you?
I was encouraged by teachers and counselors to combine my love of art (sketching, painting), science and building into a career in architecture. It seemed quite natural and dominated my aptitude for music and band.
What do you do?
I am an architect, problem solver, artist, builder, leader, optimist and urbanist. As CEO and founder, I lead HAA on a mission to rebuild urban communities like Detroit, rebuilding neighborhoods, one home, one block one neighborhood at a time.
What excites you in the work you do?
What excites me is witnessing the construction of projects that we have designed and seeing the lives of people improved as they experience the spaces and places that we have created.
Who or what inspires you professionally?
I am inspired by architect Paul R. Williams, and President Barak Obama. The documentary “The Way I See it-A Look at Pete Sousa, Barack Obama’s White House Photographer” inspires me to continue to fight to be of service in a largely white profession.
What is your proudest professional accomplishment or achievement?
My proudest accomplishments include being elevated to Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects and secondly, to have lived my life in such a way that my friends and family, my mother and father are proud.
Object:
Object One - Design, urban design, or preservation
Year of Elevation:
2012
Featured Project Name:
440 Alfred, City Modern
Featured Project Location:
Detroit, MI
Featured Project Completion Date:
2021
Role in Featured Project:
Architect
Featured Project Description:
Shaping the eastern edge of the Brush Park Development, 440 Alfred responds to Detroit’s industrial and midcentury modern traditions with primary facades of light skin and glass contrasted with dark metal window frames. Spanning an entire block, the mixed-use building is activated with ground floor retail on three fronts. Conceived as a wrapper of long narrow buildings that hold the street edges, it opens up to a shared exterior courtyard with ceremonial stair access from a streetscape plaza.
