architects

Today's Best Architects
Felicia Paik

Louis XIV did it. Cornelius Vanderbilt and John D. Rockefeller did it. Bill Gates is doing it too. Did what? Created enormous monuments to themselves by building vast beautiful homes designed to last long after they're gone.

Throughout history fewer monuments have appealed to the both the vanity and comfort of the superrich than the creation of a magnificent home. But, of course, in order to create a great home one needs to have a great architect.

What makes a great architect? Part designer, part engineer, part shrink, the truly great architects must be able to interpret his client's wishes, leaven them with reality and, finally, achieve a vision that stands out as a work of art.

There are a handful of architects working in this country who have secured national prominence through their residential and commercial work. There are the heavyweights like Philip Johnson, Richard Meier, Michael Graves, Cesar Pelli, Robert A.M. Stern and Jaquelin T. Robertson. To be a client of Johnson's holds a tremendous amount of cache as the architect approaches his 95th birthday and, while Meier and Graves are known for their civic projects, they certainly command considerable renown for their residences. Pelli only does a handful of residential commissions while Robertson has an A-list clientele up and down the East Coast.

Names like Francis Fleetwood and Jeffery W. Smith garner significant recognition in the Hamptons and Palm Beach, respectively. Both Fleetwood and Smith have become the architects of choice for those building lavish vacation homes in these two seasonal destinations. Up-and-coming architects are partners Robert Rogers and Jonathan Marvel, and Peter Pennoyer, who gain increasingly higher profiles with every project they complete.

Here follows Forbes.com's list of the nation's leading architects, in alphabetical order:



Francis Fleetwood
Michael Graves

Philip Johnson
Richard Meier

Cesar Pelli
Peter Pennoyer

Jaquelin T. Robertson
Robert Rogers and Jonathan Marvel

Jeffery W. Smith
Robert A.M. Stern