Cornell University Scholar Wins Book Award From the Society of Architectural Historians

Samia Henni, an assistant professor in the College of Architecture, Art and Planning at Cornell University in ithaca, New York, has received the 2020 Spiro Kostof Book Award from the Society of Architectural Historians.

The award, established in 1993 in recognition of the career and writings of architectural historian Spiro Kostof (1936–91), is given to outstanding interdisciplinary studies of urban history that make the greatest contribution to the understanding of the growth and development of cities.

Henni, who teaches in the History of Architecture and Urban Development Ph.D. program, was honored for her first book, Architecture of Counterrevolution: The French Army in Northern Algeria (GTA Publishers, 2018). The book examines the intersection of French colonial policies and military counterinsurgency operations in architecture in Algeria during the Algerian Revolution from 1954 to 1962.

“I am thrilled that my first book is one of the recipients of this eminent award given in memory of Professor Kostof ’s influential scholarship and his exceptional approach to architectural history,” Dr. Henni said. “This is truly the highest distinction and the most honorable recognition that I can aspire to. I am extremely grateful to the SAH for supporting and endorsing scholarship on the destroyed and built environment resulting from violent colonial practices and military measures, which, to this day, continue to be part of the daily lives of millions of people around the world.”

Dr. Henni received her Ph.D. in the history and theory of architecture from ETH Zurich in Switzerland.