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Bob Hillier
Born (1937-07-24) July 24, 1937 (age 87)
NationalityAmerican
OccupationArchitect
AwardsFellow, American Institute of Architects (1980)
PracticeJ. Robert Hillier;
The Hillier Group;
Hillier Architecture;
RMJM Hillier;
Studio Hillier
The East Windsor Municipal Building, designed by Steven F. DeRochi of The Hillier Group and completed in 1982.
Weston Hall of the New Jersey Institute of Technology, designed by Alan Chimacoff of The Hillier Group and completed in 1998.
The Princeton Public Library, designed by Alan Chimacoff and Charles Maira of Hillier Architecture and completed in 2004.
The expanded Virginia State Capitol, designed by Sonja Bijelić of Hillier Architecture and completed in 2007.

Bob Hillier FAIA (born July 24, 1937) is a Canadian-born American architect. Hillier established his eponymous practice in Princeton, New Jersey in 1966. Under his leadership during this practice grew to be the third largest architectural firm in The United States during the next four decades.

Life and career

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James Robert Hillier was born July 24, 1937 in Toronto to James Hillier and Florence Hillier, nee Bell. The family immigrated to the United States in 1941 and settled in Princeton, New Jersey. He was educated at Princeton University, graduating in 1959 with BA and in 1961 with a BA. He became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1961. After graduation he worked for Princeton architects Jean Labatut and Fulmer & Bowers before opening his own office in 1966, reorganized in 1972 as The Hillier Group.[1] By the 1980s The Hillier Group had grown to be the twentieth largest architectural firm in the United States, and though it had produced award-winning work, the firm did not have a reputation for exceptional design. This changed in 1986 with the hiring of architect and Princeton faculty member Alan Chimacoff as the firm's first director of design. Chimacoff was specifically charged with raising Hillier "to the first tier" in architectural design. Under his design leadership the firm began to emerge as a serious design force, and won and was shortlisted for a number of prominent competitions. Hillier later repeated this decision in the Philadelphia office, retaining Californian architect Wes Jones as director of design from 1995 until 1997.[2][3]

Hillier served as president of the firm until 1987, and thereafter as chairman of the board.[4] Expansion in the 1980s and 1990s led to the establishment of additional offices in Philadelphia, New York City and Washington, D.C. Their presence in the latter two cities led to their acquisition of The Eggers Group of New York in 1994 and W. G. Reed Architecture of Washington in 1995.[5] In 1995 the firm was ranked the fourth largest in the United States by billings, and would further grow into the third.[6]

In 2000 the firm was reorganized as Hillier Architecture. In 2003 Chimacoff and four other senior staff left amicably to establish their own firm, ikon.5, seeking "to return to the intellectual roots of design."[7] By this time, Hillier Architecture and its predecessors had been awarded some 300 design awards by various groups.[8] In 2007 Hillier merged with RMJM of Edinburgh, forming the third largest architectural firm in the world, with the United States component of the firm operating under the name RMJM Hillier.[9][8]

The acquisitin

Ultimately the merger was not a happy marriage. The Hillier name was dropped in 2008[10] and in 2009 Hillier, with his wife Barbara A. Hillier, departed to establish a new practice under the name Studio Hillier. Later, in 2011, Hillier and other former Hillier employees that had initially stayed with RMJM sued, alleging that RMJM had reneged on promised retention bonuses, charges which RMJM denied.[11]

Hillier is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects and has served on the boards of many organizations. In 2019 the College of Architecture and Design of the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) was renamed for the Hilliers, following a financial gift that was the largest donation in NJIT's history. The firm had previously been responsible for Weston Hall, the college's building, completed in 1998.[12]

Architectural works

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Works completed by Hillier and his firm include:

Personal life

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Hillier was married in 1961 to Susan Baldwin Smith. They had two children and later divorced. Hillier remarried in 1986 to Barbara Ann Weinstein, an architect and interior designer employed by his firm. After this marriage the Hilliers designed a new home, Autretemps, on the Delaware River in New Hope, Pennsylvania. They had one additional child. Barbara Hillier died November 21, 2022.

Notes

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  1. ^ Designed by The Eggers Partnership and The Hillier Group, associated architects, with Lev Zetlin & Associates, engineers.
  2. ^ Designed by the Grad Partnership and The Hillier Group, associated architects.
  3. ^ a b PA design citation.

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Hillier, J(ames) Robert" in Who's Who in America (Chicago: Marquis Who's Who, 1984): 1500.
  2. ^ Robert Gutman, Architectural Practice: A Critical View (New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1988): 18.
  3. ^ "Importing New Design Talent" in Architecture (July, 1996): 125-129.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Hillier, J(ames) Robert" in Who's Who in America (New Providence: Marquis Who's Who, 2006): 2020.
  5. ^ "Merger Mania" in Progressive Architecture (March, 1995): 18.
  6. ^ International Architecture Yearbook (Mulgrave: Images Publishing Group, 1996)
  7. ^ Melinda Sherwood, "Hillier architects split off to form own firm," Princeton Business Journal, November 4, 2003. Accessed February 22, 2024.
  8. ^ a b c "Hillier, J(ames) Robert" in Who's Who in the World (New Providence: Marquis Who's Who, 2006): 993.
  9. ^ Andrew Slocumb West, "Hillier Architecture and RMJM Group Unite," Architect, July 6, 2007. Accessed February 22, 2024.
  10. ^ https://www.e-architect.com/architects/rmjm-hillier
  11. ^ Ernest Beck, "Hillier Employees Sue RMJM Over Merger Bonus," Architect, January 11, 2011. Accessed February 22, 2024.
  12. ^ a b "NJIT renames College of Architecture and Design for Hilliers, icons in profession," ROI-NJ, May 21, 2019. Accessed February 22, 2024.
  13. ^ Architectural Forum (March, 1973): 10.
  14. ^ House and Home (June, 1972): 86.
  15. ^ http://kutower.com/2018/03/01/kean-history-buildings-hutchinson-hennings-hall/
  16. ^ Architectural Record (Mid-August, 1974): 86-87.
  17. ^ Architectural Record (October, 1979): 125-126.
  18. ^ Housing (July, 1979): 60-63.
  19. ^ Architectural Record (April, 1983): 114-117.
  20. ^ AIA Journal (May, 1983): 220-225.
  21. ^ Interiors (March, 1983): 102-105.
  22. ^ Progressive Architecture (December, 1985): 90.
  23. ^ Progressive Architecture (April, 1990): 81-83.
  24. ^ Progressive Architecture (April, 1990): 102.
  25. ^ Architecture (September, 1992): 76-81.
  26. ^ Progressive Architecture (October, 1994): 74-75.
  27. ^ Progressive Architecture (January, 1991): 35.
  28. ^ "Material Discourse" in Architecture (March, 1994): 82-89.
  29. ^ Architecture (February, 1994): 68-77.
  30. ^ Progressive Architecture (October, 1994): 76-77.
  31. ^ Virginia Kent Doris, "Cogeneration Plant" in Architectural Record (August, 1997): 82-85.
  32. ^ Architecture (March, 1994): 27.
  33. ^ Architectural Record (March, 1997): 80-83.
  34. ^ Landscape Architecture (August, 2001): 74-83.
  35. ^ Architecture (March, 1999): 124-128.
  36. ^ Architectural Record (May, 2000): 345-346.
  37. ^ Building Design & Construction (May, 2001): 70-74.
  38. ^ Architectural Record (March, 2005): 149-156.
  39. ^ Architectural Record (June, 2007): 167-174.