Michael Murphy
Founding Principal, Michael P. Murphy Studio, Thomas Ventulett Chair of Architecture, Georgia Institute of Technology, Founding Principal & Trustee Emeritus, MASS Design Group
Michael Murphy
Founding Principal, Michael P. Murphy Studio, Thomas Ventulett Chair of Architecture, Georgia Institute of Technology, Founding Principal & Trustee Emeritus, MASS Design Group
Biography
Michael Murphy is an architect, leader, educator, and writer whose work focuses on how the built environment shapes our lives, our health, and our communities. Murphy is the Founder and a Board Member of MASS Design Group, an architecture firm that expands access to design that is purposeful, healing, and hopeful, where he served as CEO until 2022. He was the lead designer on a number of acclaimed projects, notably including The National Memorial for Peace and Justice with Bryan Stevenson of the Equal Justice Initiative, the Embrace/MLK Jr. Memorial in Boston, and the Butaro District Hospital with Dr. Paul Farmer and Partners In Health in Rwanda. Murphy also curated the acclaimed “Design and Healing” exhibit for the Cooper Hewitt Museum in the wake of the pandemic.
Murphy is also the author of two books that bring his ideas about architecture, health, and human dignity to a broader audience. His newest book, Our World in Ten Buildings: How Architecture Defines Who We Are and How We Live (2026), explores the powerful ways architecture shapes identity, community, and everyday life. He is also the author of The Architecture of Health: Hospital Design and the Construction of Dignity (2024), which examines how healthcare design can promote healing, equity, and dignity. Together, these books extend Murphy’s work beyond practice, offering a compelling case for design as a force in shaping a more just and humane world.
Murphy’s work has been featured in distinguished exhibitions in the U.S. and abroad. He has been honored with numerous awards, including being named a TED Prize finalist, receiving the AIA Architecture Firm of the Year Award, being recognized as Architecture Innovator of the Year by The Wall Street Journal, and earning the Royal Institute of British Architects International Fellowship, The American Academy of Arts & Letters Award in Architecture, and the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award for Architecture, among many others.
Murphy and his work have been featured on 60 Minutes, in a TED Talk viewed more than 1.8 million times, and on Bill Clinton’s podcast, Why Am I Telling You This? His work has also been profiled in The New York Times, The Atlantic as part of their “Tomorrow’s Greatest Inventors,” Wired, Fast Company, The Boston Globe, and many others. His own writing has been published in Harvard Design Magazine, Volume, The Boston Globe, Huffington Post, Stanford Social Innovation Review, The Journal of Architecture, Design Observer, and Humanitas.
He has held academic appointments as the Thomas Ventulett Chair of Architecture at Georgia Tech University and at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design, Ohio State University, MIT’s School of Architecture, Cornell University, the University of Michigan, Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture & Planning, Harvard University’s School of Public Health, and many more. He holds an M.Arch. from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design and a B.A. from the University of Chicago.
Murphy has keynoted and lectured for a wide range of audiences, including universities, healthcare and public health organizations, foundations, cultural institutions, design and architecture communities, and mission-driven corporate and nonprofit groups. He has spoken at numerous institutions, including The Mellon Foundation, The Museum of Modern Art’s Ambasz Institute, the International House of Japan, PopTech, and the Aspen Ideas Festival. Michael Murphy works in partnership with APB Speakers for speaking engagements worldwide.
He is from Poughkeepsie, New York, and currently lives in Boston with his wife and two children.
Speaker Videos
Architecture that's built to heal | Michael Murphy
Speech Topics
Our World in Ten Buildings: How Architecture Defines Who We Are and How We Live
What if the buildings we pass every day are quietly shaping who we become? Michael Murphy takes audiences on a powerful journey through the building types that define modern life, revealing how architecture influences identity, behavior, equity, and opportunity. Drawing from his newest book, he explores how spaces like schools, hospitals, memorials, and public institutions embed values into the physical world—and in doing so, shape our collective future. Blending global case studies with personal experience, Murphy challenges audiences to see the built environment not as static, but as a living system that reflects and reinforces societal priorities. He invites leaders, designers, and communities alike to rethink the spaces they create and inhabit. This talk offers a transformative lens on how thoughtful design can build a more just, connected, and human-centered world.
Audiences will learn:
How everyday spaces shape human behavior, identity, and outcomes
How design reflects and reinforces social, cultural, and economic systems
Ways to think differently about the spaces they lead, design, or influence
The Architecture of Health: Designing Spaces for Healing, Equity, and Dignity
What if the spaces where we receive care are just as important as the care itself? Michael Murphy explores how healthcare environments shape outcomes, dignity, and trust—revealing that design is not neutral, but a powerful driver of health and equity. Drawing from his book The Architecture of Health and groundbreaking projects around the world, he shares how thoughtful design can improve patient outcomes, support caregivers, and strengthen entire communities. Through deeply human stories and real-world examples, Murphy challenges audiences to see healthcare not just as a system, but as an experience shaped by the built environment. He demonstrates how intentional design can either reinforce inequities or become a tool for healing and justice. This talk offers a compelling vision for creating spaces that foster dignity, compassion, and connection at every level of care.
Audiences will learn:
How design directly impacts health outcomes and patient experience
Examples of healthcare environments that improve equity and community trust
Practical ways to create spaces that support healing, dignity, and human connection
Testimonials
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