Public Lecture: Germane Barnes - Turn the mic up

Germane Barnes. Courtesy of the artist.

Join Cranbrook Academy of Art at deSalle Auditorium for a free, public lecture with Germane Barnes on Monday, January 26, 2026, at 6pm. Please enter through the Cranbrook Academy of Art Library; Cranbrook Art Museum will be closed.

Germane Barnes is a Chicago-born, Miami-based licensed architect, designer, and founding principal of Studio Barnes, a research-driven design practice that interrogates the intersections of architecture and identity. Through Studio Barnes, Barnes examines architecture’s social and political agency, blending rigorous historical research with speculative design to explore how the built environment shapes—and is shaped by—culture, race, and community. In addition to his professional practice, Barnes serves as an Associate Professor and Director of the Master of Architecture Graduate Programs at the University of Miami School of Architecture, where he mentors emerging designers and fosters critical discourse around architecture’s cultural and societal impact.

Through his dual role as educator and practitioner, Germane Barnes continues to push the boundaries of contemporary architecture, blending research, design, and cultural critique. Studio Barnes stands as a testament to his commitment to exploring architecture’s potential to foster inclusivity, address historical inequities, and imagine new spatial futures. With a career distinguished by prizes, fellowships, and institutional recognition, Barnes remains a leading voice in architecture today, advancing conversations at the nexus of design, identity, and social impact.

“Columnar Disorder” at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Barnes’ design work has garnered national and international recognition for its thoughtful engagement with both form and social meaning. His projects have been exhibited at leading institutions, including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Modern Art’s Reconstructions: Architecture and Blackness in America, and the 2021 Chicago Architecture Biennial. His work frequently addresses themes of diaspora, Black identity, and historical memory, translating these concerns into compelling architectural experiences that challenge conventional narratives of space and design.

Barnes has received numerous prestigious awards and fellowships. He is a recipient of the Architectural League Prize, which recognized his innovative design research and creative contributions to the field. Barnes is also a Rome Prize Fellow at the American Academy in Rome (2019–2020), an honor that enabled him to advance his research on architecture, identity, and cultural memory through immersive study abroad. In addition, he was selected for the inaugural cohort of The Dorchester Industries Experimental Design Lab (2021), a program created by Theaster Gates and sponsored by Prada, highlighting his engagement with experimental, socially responsive design.

Studio Barnes’ work is in the permanent collections of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the National Museum of African American History and Culture. His architectural interventions and conceptual projects have been featured in The New York Times, Architectural Record, Domus, and other influential publications, with coverage highlighting both the conceptual rigor and social relevance of his work. One of his most widely recognized projects, Griot, was presented as part of Biennale Architettura 2023’s Laboratory of the Future, earning international attention for its innovative integration of narrative, history, and community in architectural form.

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