Lessons From the Future

Advice to a younger self

Each year Lessons From The Future is published expressly for graduates of architecture and design schools. It is handed out with diplomas or given to graduates by commencement speakers or deans. The essays by leading architects provide advice that they have for those who are graduating into the design professions. It is a book full of lessons — advice to a younger self. What would they do differently if just starting out in architecture and design?

Lessons From the Future

Art Gensler
Curt Fentress
Norman Foster
Martha Thorne
Ted Landsmark

Buildings tell the story of civilization. What they look like, how they function, what they are made of, and how they are put together speak volumes about our collective abilities, aspirations, and values. When we look at buildings and cities, be they ancient or new, we gain important insight into the people who made them and why. All structures, large or small, have one thing in common: they were conceived and built by people, for people.

And that’s the point of this book. It was written by people who have dedicated their careers to the pursuit of design excellence. It consists of “letters to myself” — things they wish they had known the day they graduated from design school. By passing along this wisdom to the next generation, we hope that those who follow in their footsteps will be inspired to become even more creative and effective professionals. In that sense, it is both a look back and a look forward.

Our thanks go to each and every contributor, and our congratulations go to each and every new graduate. It is our hope that you will learn from these stories, and that some day your own stories will make worthy additions.

James P. Cramer
Scott Simpson

Distribution has included

  • Arizona State University
  • Cal Poly SLO
  • Clemson University
  • Georgia Institute of Technology
  • Montana State University
  • Rhode Island School of Design
  • Savannah College of Art and Design
  • University of Colorado
  • University of Minnesota
  • Washington State University
  • Yale University
  • And dozens more

Authors include

  • Deborah Berke
  • Phil Bernstein
  • Pat Cermak
  • Lord Norman Foster
  • Art Gensler
  • Gordon Gill
  • Edwin Heathcote
  • Sir Richard Rogers
  • Moshe Safdie
  • Denise Scott Brown
  • Robert A. M. Stern
  • Martha Thorne
  • And dozens more

Order information

This book is sold in boxes of ten to approved sponsoring organizations and is intended for those graduating into the profession from schools of architecture and design. Sponsorship and sample books can be discussed with James P. Cramer and Scott Simpson. Sponsor agreements are for one to five years. Custom presentation models include commencements, honors and awards programs, and graduate celebrations.

Wren Editions

Wren Editions