AIA Arizona 2026 State Conference

Join colleagues and friends at the AIA Arizona State Conference on Friday, October 23 at Clayton House in Scottsdale! More than 400 architecture professionals will gather for an inspiring day!

.

The conference is chaired by 2026 AIA Arizona President-elect Dan Maher, AIA, a Tucson-based Regional Executive with Kitchell. With the theme of Liminal, the conference is a day of insight, inspiration, and connection with an excellent lineup of featured speakers.

.

A liminal place or moment is a transition—a threshold or an intermediate state, phase, or condition—often with extraordinary potential. At a time between familiar paradigms and an uncertain future, the 2026 AIA Arizona State Conference will explore the liminal nature of this moment in which technological, environmental, and cultural forces are reshaping the discipline. As established boundaries are dissolving and new possibilities are emerging, architects can redefine the boundaries of practice, expanding our role as designers, advocates, and stewards of the built environment.

.

General Timing for Friday, October 23:

7:00 a.m. Registration opens, with coffee and light breakfast

8:00 a.m. Program begins

5:00-6:30 p.m. Closing Reception

.

Sponsors receive unique codes to then register their complimentary seats. Not yet a sponsor? Sponsorships remain available from $425 to $2,000.

.

Early bird individual ticket prices ended on September 30. See ticket prices below.

Attendees from Tucson

AIA Arizona is offering a free roundtrip bus from Tucson (departs CAPLA at 5:30 am. After the conference, it departs Clayton House at 6:00 pm) for all attendees, students and professionals alike. If interested in this transportation, you will answer "yes" to the question about the bus as you register. On the morning of the conference, you will find the bus in the parking lot next to CAPLA prior to the 5:30 am departure. More detail will be provided to those who click "yes" to the question about the bus.

CONFERENCE SPONSORS [confirmed as of September 30]

Title Sponsor

Arcadia

.

Platinum Sponsors

Amrize / Arizona Architecture Foundation / Arkance / DWL Architects + Planners / Kimley-Horn / McCarthy Building Companies / Primak Construction Group / Sherwin-Williams / SWBR / USA Shade

.

Arizona Restaurant Consulting / Ayers Saint Gross / Century Sign Builders / Clark Hill / coLAB Studio / Concord General Contracting / Corgan / DLR Group / Gensler / HDR / Inpro Architectural Products / Kovach / Merge Architectural Group / Nelsen Partners / Optima / PK Associates / Rider Levett Bucknall / Salt River Project / SmithGroup / Sundt Construction / Terracon / triARC Architecture & Design / Varitec / Walter P Moore / Weddle Gilmore Architects / Western States Metal Roofing

.

Airpark Signs / BWS Architects / GLHN Architects & Engineers, Inc. / Illumination Systems / Meyer Borgman Johnson / Professional Underwriters / Telgian Engineering & Consulting / Wendell Burnette Architects / YKK AP

.

180 Degrees Design + Build / Bjerk Builders / Caliente Construction / Commercial Lighting Industries / Dibble Corp / Daltile / First Citizens Bank / Holly Street Studio / KCL Engineering / PENTA Building Group / Repp + McLain Design & Construction / Schaefer Structural Engineering / Shepley Bulfinch

.

1GPA / AIA Phoenix Metro / Arizona Masonry Council / Dig Studio / Gammage & Burnham / Grace Design Studios / High Peak Advisors / Okland Construction / PHX Architecture / Schneider Structural Engineers / Swaim Associates

.

ALINE Architecture Concepts / RLGA Technical Services / suoLL Architects

.

American Institute of Steel Construction / DeBartolo Architects / Line and Space / Michael Taylor Architects / Sazan Group / Shepley Bulfinch

.

University of Arizona CAPLA

Info: Introductory remarks by AIA Arizona Executive Director John Czarnecki, President Elizabeth McLean, AIA, Conference Chair Dan Maher, AIA, and emcee John Cary.

Info: Designer, activist, academic, and author Julia Watson is a leading expert on indigenous nature-based technologies. She is the co-lead of Lo–TEK Office of Intercultural Urbanism, and has authored “Lo-TEK: Design by Radical Indigenism” and “Lo―TEK. Water. A Field Guide for TEKnology (Varia).”

Info: Winka Dubbeldam is the founding partner of Archi-Tectonics NYC, a design studio in New York City, Amsterdam, and Hangzhou. Since September 2025, Dubbeldam is Director and CEO of SCI-Arc in Los Angeles. She is Professor Emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania, where she chaired the Department of Architecture (2013-23).

Info: John Cary is the Founding President & CEO of the Eames Institute of Infinite Curiosity, a 501c3 public charity dedicated to advancing the legacy of Ray and Charles Eames and their approach to creative problem-solving positively shaping our world.

Info: Lunch is included with all tickets. The lunch hour will include book signings with multiple featured speakers.

Info: Germane Barnes is an architect, designer, tenured professor, and Director of the Community Housing Identity Lab (CHIL) at the University of Miami School of Architecture. He is the director of the Miami-based design firm Studio Barnes.

Info: Jing Liu s an architect, educator, and co-founder of the award-winning design firm Solid Objectives - Idenburg Liu (SO-IL) in New York City. Through building practice and interdisciplinary research projects, Liu has led SO–IL in the engagement with the socio-political issues of contemporary cities.

Info: Alan Ricks is Founding Principal and Co-Executive Director of Model of Architecture Serving Society (MASS), and co-author of the new book "Seeking Abundance." Rooted in leading research and deep local knowledge, MASS creates civic spaces that set new standards for design excellence. MASS was honored with the national AIA Architecture Firm Award in 2022.

Event venue & nearby stays

3715 N 75th St, 3715 North 75th Street, Scottsdale, United States

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.

Get the app →

Discover more events by tag