In architecture and design, photography can make or break a story. The best photographs don’t just show what a building looks like; they convey what it feels like. Great architectural photography communicates what design does for the people who experience architecture and the ideas it represents.

Chicago’s global standing isn’t built by a single biennial, art fair, or weekend of exhibitions. It grows at the intersections—when architecture, art, and civic life meet. That was the focus of “City as Platform: How CAB, CXW, and EXPO CHICAGO utilize Global Reach for Local Impact,” a breakfast conversation at the Chicago Athletic Association featuring Nora Daley (Co-Chair, Chicago ArUhitecture Biennial), Christine Messineo (Director of Americas, Frieze), and Abby Pucker (Founder, Gertie; Producer, Chicago Exhibition Weekend), moderated by Kate Sierzputowski (Artistic Director, EXPO CHICAGO).

From The Raygency’s perspective—where we look at architecture as an expression of culture—the conversation revealed how Chicago can translate architectural creation into civic strength and international recognition.

At The Raygency, we spend a lot of time focusing on clarity: saying what you mean, saying it well, and making it matter.

So when Jeanne Gang spoke at Architectural Record’s Sustainability in Practice symposium and described language as a constitutive force in architectural practice, I was reminded of my architectural theory course at Harvard, when K. Michael Hays described architecture theory as a constitutive force, too.

Chris Barton’s NeoCon keynote, Bring Impossible Ideas to Life, was a lesson in what it takes to innovate: a mindset of defiance, a commitment to creative persistence, and a deep emotional connection to one’s work. Read to learn how he recommends that designers deploy his strategies.

Design is not a decorative overlay; it is a powerful agent of social, political, and ethical change. In her NeoCon 2025 keynote address, Rawsthorn challenged the audience to reframe design as an attitudinal discipline: a mindset rooted in resourcefulness, empathy, and urgency. And in doing so, she called on designers to see themselves not only as creators of beauty, but as shapers of systems, policy, and public trust.

Annie Jean-Baptiste, head of Universal Product Inclusion at Google and author of Building for Everyone, and Cheryl Durst, Executive Vice President and CEO of the International Interior Design Association (IIDA), discuss why design that includes is a form of innovation.

What if architects invested less time responding to requests for proposals and, instead, channelled their creative energy into storytelling? The result: longer-term value for your firm, because you’ve built an audience that wants to hire you.

Every June, the AIA Conference on Architecture offers a pulse check on where the profession is—and where it’s going. Here are the key takeaways from AIA 2025, curated for forward-thinking designers, firm leaders, and change-makers in the built environment.

As I return to Boston for the AIA Conference on Architecture, I’m thinking about my time at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. It was a defining period in my life because it sharpened my approach to thinking, questioning, and communicating design.

5 design lessons from the 2025 RHS Chelsea Garden Show: a first-timer’s view through an architectural lens.

Ten Ways to Strengthen Relationships and Elevate Your Brand on Social Media, by Leah Ray

The Raygency proudly announces its official launch, setting a new standard in public relations and content marketing tailored specifically for the architecture and design sectors.

Architecture is a way of life, a way of being alive, a way of living.