The Rice School of Architecture proudly celebrates Associate Professor Reto Geiser and his design firm MG&Co., which AIGA, the professional association for design disciplines, has honored in its prestigious 50 Books | 50 Covers of 2023 competition. Two of their projects, Inhabited Machines and Cite 104: The Architecture and Design Review of Houston, were selected as winners, highlighting their outstanding contributions to book design.
The fortieth-anniversary issue of Cite, guest-edited by Professor Geiser, is a tribute to the publication’s role as a communal anchor in Houston. This landmark issue connects scholarly research with public advocacy, addressing critical urban, societal, and environmental issues. The first section presents a richly illustrated oral history featuring the founding members of the Rice Design Alliance, printed in two colors that fade and interact dynamically on the page. The second section brings together fifty voices reflecting on Houston’s past, present, and future, organized into three subsections that explore the city’s defining characteristics.
This innovative design combines a structured grid system with distinct typographic voices and dynamic layouts. Readers experience a visually engaging narrative that balances density and openness, playful title pages, immersive photography, and striking illustrations—all printed on light, tactile paper that enhances the reading experience.
Dean Igor Marjanović remarked, “Cite has long been a cornerstone of architectural and urban discourse at the Rice School of Architecture and within the broader architectural and design community, bridging scholarly inquiry with public dialogue about the challenges and opportunities facing Houston. This recognition of Reto Geiser’s work on the journal not only celebrates his design excellence but also underscores the journal’s enduring legacy.”
Cite is currently available for purchase at Basket Books and will soon be added to the Open Access archives at Fondren Library. Inhabited Machines is also available at no cost via Open Access.
Special thanks to Fondren Library for their help and support in making the archive accessible.