Henry Myerberg

Education BA, University of Pennsylvania; Master of Architecture, Harvard University Graduate School of Design

Position Principal, Rockwell Group

Notable professional works Rhys Carpenter Library for Bryn Mawr College, and New York City Public School Libraries for the Robin Hood Foundation. Ongoing projects include the Albany Public Library, DeVos Children's Hospital, and the Motown Center (in collaboration with Architecture Research Office, ARO).

Where do you draw your inspiration for design? Collaborating with people at work, living in New York City, and recalling the line from Hamlet: "Brevity is the soul of wit"

What do you find to be the most exhilarating interior space you have ever been in? The Pantheon in Rome and the chapel at Ronchamp, La Bibliotheque Nationale, and John Soanne's home and museum in London

What inspired you to pursue a career in architecture/interior design? I've been hooked by architecture since I was 10 years old. My career has fulfilled my childhood fantasies first triggered by passing through old Penn Station in New York City and "trick or treating" at a Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian house that was in my neighborhood. My parents nurtured my interests in drawing and model building. My mother was an illustrator and decorator, and my father was a home builder. I had my first summer job in an architect's office when I was fifteen.

How would you describe your sense of style? Romantic Modernist.

Who or what has been the greatest influence on your work? Louis Kahn (his words and work), Edward Larrabee Barnes (with whom I worked from 1980-86), Jean Prouve, Carlo Scarpa, and my wife, Karen

If you could have selected another career, what might you have been? A chef

What do you consider your greatest achievement (personally or professionally)? Nurturing in my children the will to take chances

What is the best way to start your day? Experiencing the skyline and dawn of New York City while jogging around the reservoir in Central Park

What is the most fulfilling part of your job? The lively exchange of ideas

What is the one thing that you think people would be most surprised to know about you? That I re-write lyrics for popular tunes which I sing at special events for friends and family

What is your most treasured possession? Architecture and design book and slide collections, a Venini ceiling lamp, and a still-functioning 1977 Braun coffee maker

What is your worst pet peeve? Intolerance

What talent do you wish that you had? Speed

What three adjectives best describe you? Methodical, witty, adventurous

Disregarding all cost, what would be the most extravagant gift you would ever want? A pair of first class airline tickets to travel around the world

What advice do you have for A&D students? Learn to listen and communicate, love to draw

What era in the history of design do you most admire? The Renaissance, when it seemed art, commerce, and intellectual thought were united

What frustrates you? Being late

What is one thing that you have always wanted to do, but have never done? Climb Mt. Kilimanjaro

What is the word, saying or expression that you most overuse? "Now what?"

What would be your ideal design project? A World's Fair pavilion

What would you like to leave as your legacy? Places that inspire new thoughts and actions

If this were your last day on earth, how would you spend it? A long lunch in Rome with my family