6 minute read
Jonathan Moody: Building on an Architectural Legacy
Words by Jaelani Turner-Williams / Photography by Priscilla Dwomoh / Layout by Atlas Biro
Jonathan Moody, President and CEO of the architectural firm Moody Nolan, didn't always want to succeed his father, Curtis. In his youth, Moody aimed to venture into a career that sounded good on paper, like aerospace or aeronautical engineering. Still, his mind changed over time, seeing how respected his father was. Curtis Moody's' work on The Schottenstein Center and the former Sawyer Towers (now Latitude Five25) fascinated his son, who was urged by relatives and family friends to follow his father into architecture. Now over 40 years since its inception, Moody Nolan has become one of the world's most prominent architecture practices and the largest AfricanAmerican-owned and operated firm.
“We went from being good architects to realizing that we could lead the profession in many respects, even challenging our clients beyond what they were originally thinking,” Moody tells (614) Refined.
But initial projects were overwhelming for Jonathan, who joined the firm as a senior associate in 2011. “Every time it felt like I could swim, my dad would say, ‘alright, I need you to join this meeting,’ and throw me in another pool and a new defense,” he recalls. “It was a realization every time [I was] thrown into something new that he was throwing me into it because he saw a confidence that I could handle it and that I needed to.”
That confidence has brought extensive growth in the last decade and a chance for Moody to clarify what the firm can become. His father founded the firm, but Moody and his close-knit design changemakers have reinvented Moody Nolan, introducing it to new cities and markets. While we chat over Zoom, Moody's in San Francisco, where he's contemplating whether the firm should have a role in Northern California and internationally.
If we're looking at a new frontier, not to say that we leave anything behind, but how do we bring everything together collectively? How do we look to new things but also reinvest in where we currently are?” he asks.
Moody grew up in Northeast Columbus before the sprawling and continuously-renovated Easton Town Center was constructed. Places inside of I-270 have always interested the Cornell University and UCLA graduate. He cites the Near East Side neighborhood of King-Lincoln as one of the most historically well-known areas before its disconnection from downtown when I-71 was built in 1966. In conversation, Moody knows each locale like the back of his hand and shows concern for downtown-adjacent neighborhoods needing attention. “There's this dynamic of people who helped build the history of a neighborhood and a current surge of change happening in Columbus. There's this urgency around a place losing its identity. All these places have unique identities that need to be maintained,” says Moody.
The projects that Moody Nolan has established in different cities nationally harken back to Columbus, where Moody resides with his wife, Montra, and their two children. Here, the firm led the contemporary renovation of East High School, the interconnected design of Upper Arlington High School, the progressive and postmodern Linden Community Center, and more. Moody's work stems from collaborating with residents, who share their input to preserve the neighborhood's historic attributes while looking toward the future.
“When you add into it a deep understanding of how neighborhoods work and not just an outsider coming in and taking over, it leads to better outcomes,” he says. “I think the most unsuccessful projects are the ones where outsiders come in and just do something, and then the people who live there feel so alienated that they don't use it. And I think some of the most successful projects are the ones where, even though it's new, people feel so connected to it, like, ‘I had a part in that design outcome,’ that they become some of the most used places.”
Diverse by design, Moody incorporates different perspectives into the work at Moody Nolan, creating teams that engage communities to solicit opinions and challenge the firm's viewpoint. That deep understanding translates to Moody's newest endeavor as a guest speaker, where he visits educational institutions to motivate aspiring architects. “I've constantly — especially in the last few years — been shocked when I go to a college or university to talk to students, and they show sketches of our buildings. I think, ‘I had no idea you were watching.’ I had no idea people saw us in that light. It's an honor to be recognized by another generation of architects who may not believe they could be architects.”
Moody's outreach to Gen-Z students has created a ripple of possibility for rising architects and designers to build lasting hubs, especially through the unpredictability of artificial intelligencegenerated technology. A recent visit to Hampton University in Virginia, also one of seven HBCU architecture schools, showed Moody that being philanthropic can be as simple as inspiring others to reach, or even surpass, the success of their forerunners.
There's only about two percent of Black architects in the country. So, when they see me, it's a reminder of what’s possible. I didn't know that just by being and doing that, people are realizing that they could be and do in a similar manner,” says Moody.
One of Moody's biggest projects to date, the cultural enclave of the International African American Museum in Charleston, South Carolina, opened in June. At Gadsden's Wharf, which overlooks Charleston Harbor, IAAM is a space of honor and exhibition, revealing the untold stories of enslaved people and their descendants through genealogy. Moody sees the museum and educational destination as an important site for AfricanAmericans seeking to know where their family's story in America began. “It's exciting because it is another level of storytelling for–I like to use the phrase ‘historically overlooked groups’–people who haven't been able to tell their story,” he says.
“To say that this building sits on the site where nearly forty percent of all African-Americans who are American descendants of slaves can trace their ancestors-and to have a memorial and a touch point for it-it's going to be an exciting place.”
Constantly innovative, Moody's mission-minded purpose has its sights on advancing architecture through creative thinking. “We just want to be really good architects first and foremost and effective in what we do,” says Moody. “I've recognized more and more that you never know who's watching, and you never know who's being inspired by just seeing us be successful.”
