AIA New Jersey Celebrates our Female Fellows: Eleanore Pettersen, FAIA

March 1, 2021

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AIA New Jersey Celebrates our Female Fellows: Eleanore Pettersen, FAIA

 

Eleanore Pettersen, FAIA, who was born in Passaic, N.J., was a pioneer who helped pave the way for women in architecture.

Pettersen was one of the first women to be licensed as an architect in New Jersey and the first woman in New Jersey to open a private practice, which was in Saddle River, N.J., from 1952 to 2002. Her work, including single and multifamily residential and commercial facilities, won local design awards and international recognition.

One of her best-known projects was a 15-room house, swimming pool and tennis court on a four-acre plot in Saddle River, N.J., which she designed in 1971 for John Alford, a New Jersey businessman, who sold it to Richard M. Nixon, who moved there from the White House in 1981.

 

Pettersen Residence and Studio

 

Prior to establishing her private practice, Pettersen analyzed enemy building structures for the National Defense Research Committee, worked for the Tennessee Valley Authority designing power service buildings and visitors’ facilities and had a Taliesin Fellowship with Frank Lloyd Wright in Arizona and Wisconsin.

She was the first woman president of both the New Jersey Board of Architects in 1978 and of AIA-NJ in 1985; the first woman regional director for AIA-NJ in 1987; and, in 1991, she was one of the first women to be elevated to the College of Fellows in the AIA. 

 

Petterson Project Photo 1

 

In 2010, Ms. Pettersen was posthumously honored with the Michael Graves Lifetime Achievement Award at its annual awards gala held at Thomas Edison State College in Trenton, N.J. Pettersen, who passed away in 2003, received the award in recognition of her significant contributions to the field of architecture.

“Ms. Pettersen’s achievements are impressive to all who learn of them and are still alive in the memories of those who knew her,” said Jason Kliwinski, AIA, LEED AP, president of AIA-NJ at the time. “She helped pave the way for women in architecture.”

The award is given in recognition of a significant body of work of lasting influence on the theory and practice of architecture. The award is named after the famous architect, influential theorist, diversified and prolific designer and esteemed educator, Michael Graves, FAIA, who has been in the forefront of architectural design since he founded his practice in Princeton, N.J., in 1964.

 

Marks Residence

 

Her work is archived and electronically accessible at the International Archive of Women in Architecture at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Va.

 


Architects are creative professionals, educated, trained, and experienced in the art and science of building design, and licensed to practice architecture. Their designs respond to client needs, wants and vision, protect public safety, provide economic value, are innovative, inspire and contribute positively to the community and the environment. Founded in 1857, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) consistently works to create more valuable, healthy, secure, and sustainable buildings, neighborhoods, and communities. Through a dynamic network of more than 250 chapters and more than 95,000 member architects and design professionals, the AIA advocates for public policies that promote economic vitality and public wellbeing. Members adhere to a code of ethics and conduct to ensure the highest professional standards. The AIA provides members with tools and resources to assist them in their careers and business as well as engaging civic and government leaders and the public to find solutions to pressing issues facing our communities, institutions, nation, and world. The organization’s local chapter, AIA New Jersey, has served as the voice of the architectural profession in the Garden State since 1900. Based in Trenton, AIA New Jersey has over 2,000 members across six sections. For more information, please visit http://www.aia-nj.org

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Architects are creative professionals, educated, trained, and experienced in the art and science of building design, and licensed to practice architecture. Their designs respond to client needs, wants and vision, protect public safety, provide economic value, are innovative, inspire and contribute positively to the community and the environment.

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