Damon
Rich is the
founder and Creative Director of the Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP), a nonprofit
organization that makes educational projects about places and how they work.
After training as an architect at Columbia University, Damon worked for New
York City Department of Parks & Recreation, eventually becoming the Chief
of Staff for Capital Projects. Since leaving Parks in 2000, in addition to running
CUP, Damon has taught design at schools including the Parsons School of Design,
Heritage High School, the Brooklyn Museum, the Cooper Hewitt National Design
Museum, and the Queens Library Adult Learning Center. He also writes regularly
about architecture and politics for publications including the Village Voice,
the Nation, Metropolis, and Architecture magazine. Recently, Damon was awarded
a New York State Council on the Arts award for his work with adult literacy
and architecture, as well as a fellowship from the MacDowell Colony for his
work on the history of urban renewal.