Inside the 2025 Chicago Architecture Biennial

Lee Bey is architecture critic for the Chicago Sun-Times and ABC7 News Chicago, where he covers everything from the newest buildings to the latest preservation battle -- and the complex political, social and racial forces that shape the city's places and spaces.

He was also a member of the Sun-Times editorial board for six years where he wrote editorials on city governance, neighborhood development, politics and urban planning.

 Bey is the author of the much-praised book Southern Exposure: The Overlooked Architecture of Chicago’s South Side (Northwestern University Press, 2019), which showcases his architectural photography and social commentary. 

In addition, he was also the host of Building Blocks: The Architecture of Chicago’s South Side, a documentary based on his book, which aired on WTTW in 2023 and earned a Midwest Emmy nomination. 

Bey is an in-demand speaker and media commentator on the subjects of architecture, urban planning, Chicago history and late 20th century Black history and culture.

He is also a respected architecture photographer who has shot assignments for many of the city's top architectural firms. His photography has been featured in publications such as the New York Times, as well as international design magazines such as Germany's Bauwelt and Modulor.

Bey is an adjunct professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology College of Architecture.

He is the recipient of the 2021 Julius Shulman Institute Excellence in Photography Award, and the 2019 Distinguished Service Award by the Chicago chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Bey lives in an 1893 rowhouse in Chicago's historic Pullman neighborhood. He is currently working on a book that documents the architecture of Chicago’s West Side.

Florencia Rodriguez is founding principal of -NESS, an international cultural platform for architecture. As an editor, writer, and educator, she creates and leads initiatives related to architecture and design that span publishing, exhibitions, and consultancy, and her work is grounded in the belief that architecture is a vital cultural practice. Rodriguez is also Associate Professor at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Architecture (UIC/SoArch), where she was Director between 2022 and 2025. Before coming to UlC, Rodriguez was a lecturer in architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

In 2010, in Buenos Aires, Rodriguez founded PLOT, a publication focused on global architecture and contemporary discourse. She directed it until 2017, when she co-founded -NESS with Pablo Gerson. From that platform, she has edited books and organized events committed to the dissemination of new narratives, the exploration of alternative forms of design criticism, and discussions about the contemporary role of design.

In 2013, Rodriguez was awarded the Loeb Fellowship at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, where she researched new modes of criticism and the architecture of the Americas. In collaboration with Gerson, Rodriguez created Monte in 2015, an independent space in Buenos Aires, where she curated and promoted an active public program on architecture and related design disciplines. She has lectured, curated exhibitions, served as a juror and organized international symposia in institutions such as the CCEBA (Centro Cultural del España en Buenos Aires), the Harvard Graduate School of Design, the University of Illinois Chicago, and the Torcuato Di Tella University, among others.

Rodriguez has received awards for her editorial work and published several articles in books and specialized media such as Domus, Oris, summa+, Arquine, A+U and Uncube. In 2020, together with Mark Lee, she guest-edited America, the 48th issue of the Harvard Design Magazine. Her most recent book, MCHAP 2 Territory & Expeditions was published in 2022, by IITAC, Actar, and -NESS. Rodriguez is currently editing the book Machado Silvetti / Drawings 1975-1999, to be published by Harvard Design Press, and working on a collection of her writings to be published by Park Books.

Mark is a co-managing partner of Krueck Sexton Partners. Beyond design leadership, chief among his responsibilities is developing and fostering strong relationships with the firm’s clients, collaborators, and the broader community. Whether speaking of the firm’s work on a federal building in the Southeast, an embassy in Africa, or an educational institution a few miles from the firm’s office, Mark points out that successful design does not emerge of its own accord: it is a function of trust that evolves out of engaged and open dialogue with clients and partners throughout the process. 

An impassioned and tenacious problem-solver, Mark sees challenges and obstacles as critical to innovative solutions. The Crown Fountain, in Chicago’s Millennium Park, showcases his passion for material and structural innovation, as well as his ability to transform fragile concepts into powerful experiences. Leading the team that designed the tower’s glass blocks and the structure that supports them, he seamlessly integrated the materials, LED, and water technology to create a welcoming and inspiring space for all to enjoy.

A Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, Mark graduated from the College of Architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1980. He has recently joined the Board of Trustees at IIT and continues his college support, serving on the Board of Advisors Co-Chair for the IIT College of Architecture. He is a member of the GSA Design Excellence Program, National Registry of Peer Professionals, the Chicago Architecture Biennial board. He is an Adjunct Lecturer of Northwestern University, teaching in the Architectural Engineering and Design program at the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science.

​Chicagoan of the Year in 2005, Mark has received recognition for his work over the past four decades.

Mark lectures at diverse venues worldwide, including universities, cultural institutions, conferences, and symposia. He actively seeks out opportunities to engage with the public through open lectures, walk-throughs, and tours, sharing with a wider audience his love of design and his appreciation for both the material and craft of contemporary architecture.