Wil Carson, 64North’s founder and Design Director, leads a team that over the past two decades has realized innovative designs at all scales, from products and furniture to urban masterplans; across multiple continents; and across multiple disciplines, including architecture, branding, and websites, as well as film and photography.
Born in Alaska, Wil graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and received his Masters in Architecture from UCLA with distinction, with additional graduate study at Yale, MIT, Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan University, and Vienna’s Universitat fur Angewandten Kunst, where he studied under Pritzker Laureate Zaha Hadid.
He has been recognized as one of the top 50 designers in the United States by A/N, as one of the ‘Top 20 Designers Under 40’ by ENR, with the Advertising Research Foundation’s Ogilvy Award for Excellence, the Hays Brandeis National Fellowship for the Arts, and the Presidential Medal for Environmental Excellence. His work has also been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art; the Carnegie Museum for Art; the Carpenter Center for the Arts; the Canadian Centre for Architecture; at the Seoul Design Olympiad; the Venice, Hong Kong & Shenzhen Biennales; and at the Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.
For the decade prior to founding 64North, Wil was the Senior Designer for Michael Maltzan Architecture, where his work was recognized with 25 awards from the American Institute of Architects, three Progressive Architecture Awards, and as the winner of five international competitions. He is a registered architect, a member of the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards, and a LEED Accredited Professional. He has lectured at Dwell on Design and at the Architecture + Design Museum. In addition to his work at 64North, Wil was a faculty member at the USC School of Architecture and at the UCLA’s School of the Arts & Architecture; his teaching has focused on emerging and innovative models of design.
His work as a photographer has been supported by the Ford Foundation, Kodak, and Nikon, and his documentary films, including Midnight Son, are distributed internationally by Alexander Street. His passions also include mountaineering, literature, and travel with his family.