Could Be Design
About
Could Be Design creates seriously playful spaces that initiate participation, companionship, and solidarity among multiple communities. Directed by Joseph Altshuler and Zack Morrison, the Chicago- and Urbana-based design practice imagines the built environment as an animate being with agency of its own. From exuberant interiors to interactive public spaces, the practice positions architecture as an active character in the world, enacting a built environment full of vibrant color, shapely form, and intimate encounters. Could Be Design is a curatorial partner for the 2024–25 cycle of Exhibit Columbus and the Artistic Director of the Chicago Sukkah Design Festival, a community-driven public art and architecture exhibition in the North Lawndale neighborhood. Could Be Design’s work at the intersection of architecture and public art has been featured at Exhibit Columbus, Chicago Architecture Biennial’s fifth edition, Miami Art Week, the Milwaukee Art Museum, and the Elmhurst Art Museum. Could Be Design was awarded the 2024 Roberta Feldman Architecture for Social Justice Award by the AIA Chicago Foundation and the 2023 Architectural League Prize by The Architectural League of New York. Joseph is assistant professor of architecture at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; Zack is a frequent guest critic at architecture schools throughout the Midwest.
