John Caliendo, AIA, and Michael Spinello, LEED AP, join the award-winning firm.
October 13, 2010 (RALEIGH, NC) – Frank Harmon, FAIA, principal and founder of Frank Harmon Architect PA in Raleigh, has announced that John Caliendo, AIA, and Michael Spinello, LEEP AP, have joined his award-winning firm.
Originally from New York City, Caliendo is a LEED AP Professional and an adjunct professor of architect at NC State University’s College of Design. Before joining Harmon’s firm, he was principal of his own firm, John Caliendo Architect in Raleigh. Previous work experience includes years of practice with Peace Brinkley Cease + Lee and Kenneth Hobgood Architect, both in Raleigh. He has extensive experience in commercial, institutional and residential architecture.
Caliendo received a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and economics from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in 1990 and graduated cum laude with a Masters in Architecture from NCSU in 1995. He has served on the Advisory Board for the Department of Interior Architecture at UNC-Greensboro, on the Advisory Board for Design Corps in Raleigh, and as a member of the Isosceles Awards Committee with the Triangle chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
“I first met Frank Harmon as a student at NC State College of Design,” Caliendo said. “From my student years and throughout my professional career, Frank has been extremely supportive and has served as a source of inspiration. Now, given the opportunity to work alongside him, it’s a rare privilege. I am very excited.”
Michael Spinello was born in Berkeley, California in 1971, the son of university professors who moved around the country before settling in Auburn, AL. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Chapman University in Orange, California, in 1994. He received a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture degree from Auburn University in 1999 and spent a semester at Auburn’s acclaimed Rural Studio. In 2004, Spinello earned his Master of Architecture degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is also a LEEP AP Professional.
Spinello’s previous work experience includes five years at Cooper Carry Architects in Atlanta in the Planning, Mixed-use and Science & Technology studios where he led the successful effort to win the competition for the Gwinnett Tech Life Sciences Building, now in construction.
Spinello has taught architecture and landscape architecture studios at MIT, Georgia Tech, and Auburn University. He also taught Professional Practice of Architecture at Auburn and has been a guest speaker at the annual Auburn University Rural Studio alumni event. This year, he worked with Professor Emeritus Norbert Lechner of Auburn University on a high-efficiency, region-specific, low-cost housing prototype called the Alabama Energy House, currently seeking construction funding.
“Many of the extraordinary challenges to be faced in the 21st century will be solved through design,” Spinello said. “Issues ranging from rapid urbanization and energy conservation, to preservation of regional cultures and the creation of environments of distinction and delight, will require a holistic approach to designed solutions. I am extremely proud to be a part of the Frank Harmon Architect team. I can think of no better place to engage these issues first-hand and to make architecture that matters.”
Frank Harmon Architect PA is recognized nationally as a leader in innovative, modern, and regionally inspired “green” architecture. For more information visit www.frankharmon.com.
About Frank Harmon Architect PA:
Frank Harmon Architect PA was founded in 1985 by Frank Harmon, FAIA, who is also Professor in Practice at NC State University and the 1995 recipient of the Kamphoefner Prize for Distinguished Design over a Ten-Year Period. This year the firm was ranked 13th out of the top 50 firms in the nation by Architect magazine, an annual rating that emphasizes ecological commitment and design quality as much as profitability. Recent projects that blend sustainable architecture with stewardship of the natural environment include Duke University’s Ocean Science Teaching Center in Beaufort, the NC Botanical Garden’s new Visitors Center at UNC-Chapel Hill, and the Walnut Creek Wetlands Center in Raleigh. The firm’s work has been featured in numerous books, magazines and journals on architecture, including Dwell, Architectural Record, Architect, and Residential Architect. For more information, go to www.frankharmon.com.
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