Public space must be as free and abundant as the air we breathe.
Elizabeth Diller is the Co-Founding Partner of Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R), a New York-based design studio established in 1981, spanning architecture, installation art, multi-media performance, and print. DS+R addresses the evolving role of institutions and the future of cities. Diller has led many cultural projects that have reshaped New York including the High Line, a 1.5-mile-long public park built on an abandoned elevated railroad, the renovation and redesign of Lincoln Center and the renovation and expansion of MoMA. Most recently, Diller completed Al-Mujadilah in Doha, the first purpose-built women’s mosque in the Muslim world, and led the design of V&A East Storehouse in London, an adaptive reuse project that marks a paradigm shift in museum access. In Italy, DS+R received the Golden Lion at the Biennale Architettura 2025 for ‘Canal Cafe’, a hybrid laboratory-cafe that draws water from the Arsenale Lagoon to produce espresso with a distinct Venetian flavor. In Spain, Liz is leading the redevelopment of Nuevo Azca, a civically-minded green core that transforms Madrid’s financial district from a passing place into an ecosystem of habitation. Alongside her late partner Ricardo Scofidio, Diller has been recognized on TIME’s “100 Most Influential People” list and received the first MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Award for architecture, as well as the Wolf Prize in Architecture. She is a member of the UN Council on Urban Initiatives and a Professor of Architectural Design at Princeton University.
