After nearly 15 years with Perkins+Will, Eva Maddox has retired from her position as design principal and head of the offices Branded Environments studio.

Perhaps most noted for her coining and use of the concept of “branded environments,” Maddox’s work focused on realizing spaces and experiences that specifically responded to the needs, or brand, of her clients. Much of her design revolved around a research-based approach which was inherently multi-disciplinary. With more than 100 design excellence awards, speaking engagements around the world, and published writing in dozens of journals, magazines, and books, Maddox has helped define the way in which many architecture and design offices practice.

Inducted into the Interior Design Hall of Fame in 1992, Maddox’s career has spanned context, scale, and program. Starting in the mid-1970s with the design of multiple record label interiors, Maddox founded Eva Maddox Associates in 1992, which would ultimately merge with Perkins+Will.

From the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York, to the headquarters and showrooms for office furniture manufacturer Haworth, her work continues to be recognized in and out of the field. Her design for the Haworth headquarters was the recipient of the Good Design/Good Business Award from Business Week/Architectural Record. Fast Company named her one of the “change agents, designers, and dreamers who are creating your future.”

Outside of her professional practice, Maddox co-founded Chicago’s alternative design school, ARCHEWORKS, with Stanley Tigerman, in 1993. Her leadership in founding and running ARCHEWORKS earned her two Purpose Prizes from the Civic Ventures think tank.

She is also currently on the Board of SACI, a U.S.–accredited art school in in Florence, Italy, as well as on the State of Illinois Governor’s Technology Advisory Board. Maddox is also an active member of the International Women’s Forum, the Chicago Network, the Architectural Society of the Art Institute of Chicago, and the World Future Society.