Firm Principal Rachel Prinz

Rachel Preston Prinz is the face and founder of Archinia. She's an architectural designer, preservationist, and advocate. An architectural visionary, Rachel loves to share her passion for great design. She is also a lecturer, tour guide, labyrinth designer, and professional writer. Her passion resides in discovering the "genius loci" - the "Spirit of Place."

Curriculum Vitae                                  Pdf

Career Highlights

Management of successful architectural design practice since January 2008, work includes:

Taos Historic District

- Acequia restoration plan

- Re-documentation of 200+ historic properties

Old Spanish Trail National Register Nomination

- Individual nominations in CA, AZ, NV, UT, CO, and NM.

- Integration of historic & cultural landscapes, design, history and archaeology.

- Coordination of more than 100 stakeholders, including: State & Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, consultants and volunteers.

Appointed to Taos Historic Preservation Commission

Author, educator, and tour guide: covering topics from Southwest settlement to to travel to modern art, with emphasis on the intersections of art, architecture, astronomy and archaeology.

Invited to do 2 TEDx talks, a Pecha Kucha talk, and speak at the SMU/UNM Fall Conference, among others.

Winner of a 2012 Work on Purpose Challenge from Echoing Green

American Institute of Architects: Past Associate Director – Region of the Virginias; Past Architecture Week Chair – Charlottesville; Award of Merit for Public and Community Service

Fellowships and grant awards from: LT Jordan Institute, San Antonio Conservation Society, American Collegiate Schools of Architecture, and The Consortium for the Advancement of the Arts and Education.

Interest Areas

History / Historic Preservation

Exceeds the Secretary of the Interior's Guidelines in Architecture and Architecture History

Experienced in working on architectural surveys for Historic Structures Reports & National and State Register Nominations

American Architectural and Landscape History / Historic Preservation:

- Historic cultural landscapes; vernacular architecture of the South; train stations; religious and sacred spaces; Southwest architecture & archaeology; historic trails; irrigation systems; archaeo-astronomy

- European Architecture:

- Renaissance to Baroque design – with emphasis in Mannerism; Palladio & Palladian influence on American architecture

Interdisciplinary Architecture

Architecture:

- design fundamentals: economy; functionality; code evaluation / ADA

- practice fundamentals: project / budget management; construction documents / specifications; marketing

- design theory: critical regionalism; phenomenology; structuralism / pattern language(s); universal design; bio-regionalism; vernacular

Art:

- photographing place; influences on architecture; architecture as art

 

Professional Experience

2008 – 2012	Founding Principal	Archinia	Vail, CO & Taos, NM
2006 – 2008	Project Manager	Shepherd Resources	Vail, CO
2003 – 2006	Project Manager	The Design Studio	Cheyenne, WY
2001 – 2002	Project Manager	Bruce Wardell	Charlottesville, VA
1998 – 2001	Preservation Specialist	FPW Architects	Charlottesville, VA
1995 – 1998	Preservation Specialist	Intention Design	College Station, TX & Charlottesville, VA

 

Education

Master of Architecture in Design + Certificate in Historic Preservation Texas A&M University, 1998

Bachelor of Environmental Design Minors: Business, Psychology Texas A&M University, 1995

 Design/Preservation Concentration: 63-hour design sequence, including:

- Team Co-Captain for HABS Documentation of the Alpine Tunnel in Pitkin, CO

- CAD and hand documentation of the abbey cathedral of Valmagne in Narbonne, France

History Concentration: 24-hour history & theory sequence including graduate classes in:

- Gothic; Renaissance; Mannerist; Baroque; Spanish Missions; vernacular forms of architecture of the South and Southwest U.S. (French, English, and Spanish influences)

 Professional Paper:

- Historic documentation of Palladio's Villa Emo at Fanzolo. Considers purpose, correlation to environment, and socioeconomics of villa architecture of the Italian Renaissance. Further study traces the style's development through England into New England and Virginia and through France into the southern Louisiana plantations.

 

Presentations & Visiting Lectures

See the complete list HERE

 

Selected Publications

See my recently published works HERE

Blogs

The Architecture Student's Toolbox http://architecturestudentstoolbox.blogspot.com/

The Architect's Guide to Taos http://taosarchitecture.blogspot.com/

The Old Spanish Trail Documentation Project http://oldspanishnationalhistorictrail.blogspot.com/

The Kin Domain Design Guide http://kindomains.archinia.com/

 

Bibliography (books and lectures I've been featured in)

Melanie Megdalena, "Rachel Preston Prinz: Archaeo-Architecture." Bermuda Quest (Online Archaeology Magazine). March 2012.

Cindy Brown, "The Girls Guide to Swagger," publisher contract pending, September 2012.

Elissa Heyman, "Accessing Intuition for Success: Stories from Architects and Designers," Applied Intuition, Dallas, Texas, October 2010

 

Exhibitions

Optimysm Taos; Salmon Ruins; Taos Art in Town Hall; Taos Sacred Places; Lama Foundation; Ranchos Church; Vista Paz Taos

Photos featured in Taos News; Taos Horsefly; Trend Magazine; Gozaic; New Mexico Tourism.

Six-time winner of First Place in photography at Taos County Fair.

 

Professional and Community Organizations

Current

Taos Historic Preservation Commission; International Network for Traditional Building, Architecture & Urbanism; American Institute of Architects; National Trust for Historic Preservation; International Labyrinth Society; Society of Architectural Historians; New Mexico Historic Preservation Alliance

Previous

American Institute of Architects:past Regional Associate Director – Region of the Virginias, past Architecture Week Chair

Virginia Chapter of the American Institute of Architects Award of Merit For Public and Community Service

Rainforest Sanctuary Initiative Committee of The Heart of the Healer Foundation; American Red Cross Advisory Board; Vilar Center for the Arts Volunteer; OK Corral Camp; SOS Outreach Field Coordinator; Red Cross Disaster Action Team Field Coordinator; Red Cross Damage Assessment Team; Vail Valley Charitable Fund; Women of Wonder; Alliance Français Event Coordinator; Brazos Valley Children's Museum: Facilities Committee & Exhibits Committee; Brazos Valley Heritage Society Silent Auction Director

 

Travel Abroad

France; Switzerland; Italy; Okinawa, Japan; sacred Mayan archaeological sites, Mexico; Belgium; Netherlands; Germany; Canada

 

Languages

Reading-comprehension of French and Italian, and decidedly less so in Latin and German. Very limited speaking ability but fair comprehension when spoken to in French and Italian (from previous travels)

 

Hobbies and Interests

NIA white belt (dance instructor), aikido, photography, arts, archaeology, travel, food, wine, storytelling