A native Chicagoan, Michelle Alletto attended Miami University in Oxford Ohio where she received her BFA in Architecture. After graduation she returned to Chicago and began working at a design/build firm, Normandy Remodeling. Here she had the opportunity to focus on interior architecture, renovation, and preservation. This experience sparked an interest to further delve into the connections between interior architecture and historic preservation at SAIC. During her time at SAIC, Michelle has collaborated with fellow students, professors, and design professionals. This work includes the runway and tent design for SAIC’s 2014 Fashion Show, “The Walk.” A student-led EAGER Research Grant (HistRe) which was a collaboration with SAIC students in the Historic Preservation Department. As the Architecture branch of HistRe, Michelle has focused on existing buildings and their relationship to the past.
Arch HistRe
“How can historic buildings act as a manifesto for our neighborhoods?”
Arch HistRe is an experimental project that introduces a new vocabulary for ARCHitecture, HISToric preservation, and REstoration where the building acts as manifesto. Combining the historic elements of a building’s narrative, with the cultural fabric of the surrounding community allows a programmatic manifesto to evolve. The restoration of architecture materializes the paradoxical relationships between North Lawndale, Chicago, and American Consumerism.
