Mikyoung Kim: Designing for Higher Ground

The Department of Landscape Architecture welcomes ​Mikyoung Kim as part of its Landscape Now lecture series.

Mikyoung Kim is an international designer and founding principal of Mikyoung Kim Design. For the past 26 years, she has crafted an exceptional body of work that explores the intersection of human health and environmental stewardship; defining the art of ecology and restorative experiences.  Her focus is in creating public experiences that spark the imagination on sites that hold some of tomorrow’s most pressing environmental issues. Her studio’s large-scaled work includes the Seoul Cheonggye River Restoration project, the 42-acre Science Hill Wellesley Campus, and Ford’s Michigan Central Park in Detroit. Recent built work includes the Crown Sky Garden in Chicago, the Pryde, the first LGBTQ seniors campus in Boston, the Bal Harbour Jetty Park in Miami, and the Regenstein Nature Learning Center at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Mikyoung Kim Design is the 2022 ASLA Firm of the Year. Kim has received the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Museum Design award and the ASLA National Design Medal. Her studio has been named by Fast Company as one of the most innovative architecture firms in the world and her talented and collaborative team has received the 2022 Fast Company’s Innovation by Design Award for their work for Ford’s Michigan Central. As a thought leader on restorative design, her ideas and work has been highlighted in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, National Geographic, Landscape Architecture Magazine, Architectural Record, Dwell, Surface, Garden Design, and Chicago Tribune.   

If you require any accessibility accommodation, such as live captioning, audio description, or a sign language interpreter, please email news@design.upenn.edu to let us know what you need. Please note, we require at least 48 hours’ notice. If you register within 48 hours of this event, we won’t be able to secure the appropriate accommodations.