Modern in Context: The Architecture of Suman Sorg, FAIA: Solea Condominiums- Washington, D.C.

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Description

Solea is a sixty-two unit condominium building located in an emerging urban area of downtown Washington, D.C. Over twenty percent of the units are designed as live-work units with a mission to incubate and preserve local micro-businesses and start-up neighborhood businesses. Sustainability was a key concern throughout the planning and design of Solea, and the project is LEED Gold. Designed using traditional residential forms found in historic Washington neighborhoods rendered in modern form and materials, the building represents innovation in its category of multifamily urban housing. Solea strikes a balance between cost consciousness to preserve affordability and creativity to strengthen the urban fabric of its neighborhood and the city. Solea Condominiums has received multiple awards, including an AIA, DC Chapter, Citation Award and a Builder's Choice Award.

Author Bio

Suman Sorg established her practice in 1986 and it has since become one of the largest female-owned architecture firms in the United States. As Chief Designer, Suman inspires her project teams with a strong commitment to thoughtful modern architecture that explores spatial, material, and visual experience. After careful examination of the unique characteristics of each place (site, climate, culture, community) and the programmatic requirements, Sorg Architects creates modern designs that are sculptural, and often monumental, yet geared toward the human scale. A long-standing interest in historic preservation complements Suman's modernist leanings; by combining contemporary techniques and design strategies with the innovative handling of both traditional architectural language and indigenous building materials, Sorg Architects creates architecture that relates to its extended context in a meaningful way.

Suman Sorg's work has been recognized with numerous awards including 23 from the National American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the Washington, DC and Potomac Valley Chapters. Suman has lectured extensively for the AIA, the National Building Museum, the Urban Land Institute, the State Department and the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is frequently called upon to serve on design juries. An avid painter, Suman's large-scale works further explore relationships between form and color.
Suman Sorg is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architect and sits on the board of the Washington, DC Building Industry Association. She is a Peer Reviewer for the General Services Administration (GSA) Design Excellence Program, serves on the board of directors for the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation, and is a member of the Urban Land Institute, the Washington Building Congress, Women in Washington, and the Lambda Alpha International Honor Society. Suman began her studies at the School of Planning and Architecture in New Delhi, India and completed her Bachelor of Architecture at Howard University in Washington DC (1970). She went on to study Design and Historic Preservation at Cornell University, in Ithaca, New York.