Mike Ford (architect)
Michael Ford, known as the "Hip-Hop Architect", is an architect, designer, educator, and keynote speaker whose years of research, publications and lectures seek to fuse his two passions, hip-hop culture and architecture. In hip-hop architecture, Ford provides an alternative to the western canon in architecture and urban theory. This model is not only celebrates diversity, but it is also appealing to young people of color, encouraging them to join the profession and think critically about the built environment they live in. Ford is a professor in the architecture program at Madison College and founder of BrandNu Design. Ford was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. Education Ford received his Masters of Architecture degree from the University of Detroit Mercy, where he wrote his graduate thesis, "Hip Hop Inspired Architecture and Design." Career According to Ford, the built environment has a profound impact on the live.s of its inhabitants, but these effects are disproportionately detrimental for people of color. Through music, hip-hop specifically, communities of color excluded from the architectural discourse have been able to participate in the dialogue and voice critique. In response to these observations, Ford co-founded the Urban Arts Collective where he designed and launched the Hip-Hop Architecture