Memorial projects often require more than an architect and a construction team. They can involve historians, archaeologists, artists, educators, descendants, students, and community groups, each bringing different forms of knowledge to a site. Universities have increasingly used such projects to address parts of their own histories, including connections to slavery and racial inequality. The process can take years because research and consultation often shape the physical design. Burt Pinnock’s professional work has included several projects where these groups have worked together. His collaborations with William & Mary, the University of Richmond, Emory University, preservation groups, museums, and community organizations have placed architecture within broader efforts to research and interpret cultural history.
At William & Mary, Pinnock served as architect of record for Hearth: Memorial to the Enslaved. The university acknowledges that enslaved labor formed part of its history for almost 170 years. The memorial was developed through a process that involved students, faculty, descendants, historians, artists, and university officials. Pinnock and Baskervill led the architectural work, while the broader project drew on historical research and community input. The resulting structure uses the form of a hearth as a reference to domestic labor and the center of household life. In 2023, the university dedicated an interior vessel designed as part of the memorial. Thirteen additional names were also added before the dedication.
The University of Richmond provides another example of a long collaborative process. Research published in 2019 identified a burial ground for people enslaved by former owners of land that later became part of the university campus. The university established a Burying Ground Memorialization Committee in January 2020. It consulted descendants and held community discussions while researchers continued to study the site. Pinnock was retained as design consultant and later led the memorial design. Archaeologists and ground-penetrating radar surveys helped locate graves and reduce the risk of disturbing them. Construction began in March 2024, and the memorial was dedicated in April 2025. Its final design reflected input from both descendants and the university community.
The University of Richmond project also shows how historical research can influence architectural decisions. The memorial committee established three design principles: the burial ground should remain sacred and lightly touched, remain accessible and inviting, and acknowledge both reconciliation and continued struggle. The design uses Virginia Mist granite, a local material linked to the area’s history of quarry labor by enslaved people. Descendants also contributed to the memorial’s portraiture, with artists studying historic family photographs to develop representations of members of the descendant community. The work brought together university researchers, descendants, architects, archaeologists, artists, and community engagement advisers. Pinnock’s role was therefore part of a larger process in which design followed research and consultation.
Emory University created another setting for this approach through its Twin Memorials project. In 2021, the university announced plans for memorials at its Atlanta and Oxford campuses honoring enslaved people and their descendants. The project included a working group and community engagement sessions before the university made final design decisions. Baskervill became involved in community engagement and concept design, with Pinnock serving as the primary design consultant. During 2022 sessions, he presented design concepts developed from what Emory described as a “collective design narrative.” Participants were then asked to discuss what elements reflected the intended meaning and what needed to change. The process brought historical scholarship and descendant perspectives into the early stages of design.
Pinnock’s involvement with preservation organizations has extended this collaborative model beyond universities. In 2022, Menokin’s Elements program included Pinnock in a webinar titled “Building Architectural Community.” The program examined connections between architecture, community development, construction trades, and preservation. Menokin described its broader goal as supporting architectural trades and preservation while exploring how the built environment can serve communities. Pinnock also served on the board of Storefront for Community Design. This Richmond nonprofit connects residents with design resources and community planning assistance. These activities placed him in settings where architects worked alongside residents and other professionals rather than treating design as a process limited to architectural offices.
His work has also intersected with museums and cultural organizations concerned with preserving African American history. The Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia states that its mission is to share, interpret, preserve, exhibit, and commemorate African American history and culture in Virginia and beyond. Pinnock has been professionally associated with the museum as part of his broader Richmond civic and cultural work. The museum itself occupies the historic Leigh Street Armory, a building constructed in 1894 and 1895 by Black craftsmen and laborers. Its current role combines historic preservation with exhibitions, research, education, and community programs. This setting reflects the wider relationship between Pinnock’s architectural practice and institutions concerned with cultural memory.
These collaborations have also affected how architectural firms approach memorial work. Emory’s account of its Twin Memorials process described Baskervill as one of the participants working with the university’s community engagement process. The University of Richmond similarly relied on archaeological surveys, descendant consultation, historical research, and design development before construction. At William & Mary, the memorial process drew on institutional research and community participation before the final structure was installed. Across these projects, architecture was one part of a larger group effort. The architect translated research, discussion, and historical evidence into physical form, while historians, descendants, archaeologists, educators, artists, and institutions helped define what those places should communicate.
Pinnock’s collaborative record therefore extends beyond conventional architectural commissions. From his work with William & Mary, University of Richmond, Emory University, Menokin, Storefront for Community Design, museums, and community organizations, it is clear that he has engaged in various forms of gathering and using information. His projects may differ in size and intention, yet they share a commitment to consultation and history. In addition, his work shows that designing memorials involves researching cemeteries, institutional archives, genealogies, archaeology, and local memory before construction begins. In this environment, Burt Pinnock operates at the intersection of architecture and academia.
