As part of our ongoing series of interviews with architectural legends, we are proud to present this interview with long-time architect Peter Brunjes, AIA. He was gracious with his time, and it was a pleasure to interview him. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. When did you decide to become an architect? My dad was an architect. So, I was interested in it early on. In the 50s and 60s, I’d visit him at his office. I was always drawing and was pretty good at it. BY FRAN PRUYN AND PHIL HADERLIE LEGENDS Peter Brunjes, AIA A Legacy of Greatness and Distinction I was born in Connecticut; my dad went to Yale. They had mostly wood and steel structures in Connecticut, but my dad wanted to study concrete which was very popular in Miami and Puerto Rico. So we ended up moving to Puerto Rico and lived there for nine years. He designed and built our home from scratch and did most of the work himself. That was fascinating. In 1971, when it came time for college, I had two choices, go to Yale and study architecture or go visit Utah with a girlfriend’s family, go skiing, and discover Utah and its excellent architecture school. I chose Utah over Yale. Talk about your training. The University of Utah was really excellent. I majored in Fine Arts and Sculpture while taking basic design courses in architecture. I always went back to Chicago in the summertime, where my dad worked for Abbott Laboratories as their corporate architect. Through him, I got an insight into international architecture. I also studied at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee my junior year; I couldn’t get the courses I needed at the University of Utah. It was a different approach than the University of Utah; I learned a lot. 8 REFLEXION
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTg3NDExNQ==