On Tuesday, September 12, 2017, the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) awarded its prestigious Wendy Fisher Award for Professional Excellence to veteran zoo designer Gary H. Lee. He is one of the world’s top experts in the field and is only the second architect to receive this honor since the award was established in 2004.
The zoos of today are a far cry from the caged menageries of a century ago, or the hard concrete enclosures of the mid-century. “The younger generation of zoo and aquarium professionals might take for granted the design of immersive and animal-welfare oriented exhibits they work in today,” according to Palmer “Satch” Krantz, the legendary director of the Riverbanks Zoo & Garden who nominated Lee. “They may not be aware of the profound and forward-thinking changes in zoo design which were ushered in by collaborative, even revolutionary teams of which Gary was often a part.”
Krantz said Lee also made major contributions to “the concepts of immersive habitat design, ethology-based design, flex-habitat design, wellness-inspired design and other trends which have made the zoos of today completely different than the zoos of the past.”
In speaking of Lee’s contribution to the field when presenting the award in Indianapolis during the AZA’s national conference, AZA Board member Gregg Hudson (President and CEO of Dallas Zoo) said, “He is on a constant quest to improve the model. The model for our visitors, for our animals, and for our profession. His impressive body of work has helped to shape the evolution of what today’s zoos are, and will have an impact many generations still to come.”
