Bill Hellmuth

Bill Hellmuth (June 3, 1953 – April 6, 2023) was an American architect who designed several notable projects worldwide. Since 2005, he had been president of HOK, a global architecture, engineering and planning firm, while also heading its Washington, D.C., office.^[1][2]

Hellmuth at HOK 60th anniversary (2015)

Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia

In April 2016, Hellmuth succeeded Patrick MacLeamy as HOK's CEO while continuing to serve as the firm's president and design principal in Washington, D.C.^[3]

Life and career

Hellmuth was a nephew of George F. Hellmuth,^[4] who founded HOK and its predecessor, Hellmuth, Yamasaki and Leinweber, in 1949.^[5]

Hellmuth received a Bachelor of Science (Architecture) degree from the University of Virginia, and, in 1977, a Master of Architecture from Princeton University, where he studied under Michael Graves.^[1] After leaving school, he joined Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. In 1991, he joined HOK (the "Hellmuth" in HOK was his uncle), and became president of the firm in 2005.^[1]

As a longtime champion of sustainable design, Hellmuth began integrating sustainability into projects long before LEED certification became commonplace.^[6]

In 2014, Hellmuth was named a Senior Fellow of the Design Futures Council, an interdisciplinary network of design, product and construction leaders.^[7]

Hellmuth was married and had two children.^[1] He died of glioblastoma on April 6, 2023, at the age of 69.^[8]

Projects

Projects that Hellmuth has designed include:

• Greenland Dalian East Harbor Tower, Dalian, China (108 stories)^[9]
• Abu Dhabi National Oil Company Headquarters, Abu Dhabi, UAE (74 stories)
• King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) Residential Community, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
• DC Consolidated Forensic Laboratory, Washington, D.C. (LEED Platinum)
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Center for Climate and Weather Prediction,^[1] Riverdale Park, Maryland
• Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, Chantilly, Virginia^[1]
• The Collection at Chevy Chase,^[10] Chevy Chase, Maryland