Eugene Kohn, Philadelphia Native Who Redrew Skylines Across Country with His Architecture Firm Remembered

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Eugene Kohn
Image via The Wall Street Journal.
Eugene Kohn

Eugene Kohn, a Philadelphia native who redrew skylines across the nation with his architecture firm, Kohn Pedersen Fox, died on March 9 at 92, writes James R. Hagerty for The Wall Street Journal.

Kohn, who inherited his artistic talent from his mother, Hannah, took art classes at Philadelphia Museum of Art. After considering studying law, he earned a degree in architecture at University of Pennsylvania. He started his career as a junior architect in Philadelphia before moving to New York City to work for a firm led by Welton Becket.

Later, he joined John Carl Warnecke’s firm, but after clashing with him, Kohn left in 1976 to launch KPF with two friends.

Within two decades, his firm established itself as a major international contender.

Among its most high-profile projects are the curvaceous 333 Wacker Drive building in Chicago, the One Vanderbilt tower in Manhattan, and the Shanghai World Financial Center.

Over the years, he managed to hold his business together despite a 2009 mutiny of senior people in the London office.

“My success still surprises me,” he noted in a 2019 memoir.

Read more about Eugene Kohn in The Wall Street Journal.

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World Information documents Eugene Kohn’s professional accomplishments.

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