John Hejduk was a graduate of Cooper Union who later served as Dean of the School of Architecture for 25 years and also as an influential professor. Although Hejduk constructed relatively few buildings in his lifetime, he is well known for his contributions of written works and education in the field, and he was most interested in how spaces and shapes were organized and represented throughout buildings. Prior to teaching, he worked in the offices of I. M. Pei, who designed the Silver Towers and commissioned the Bust of Sylvette for New York University. Hejduk passed away a few weeks shy of his 71st birthday in 2000, and in 2003 Cooper Union established the John Q. Hejduk Award, which is given to graduates who have made an outstanding contribution in architecture.
