Julian Phillips holds a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from Southern Illinois University and a Master of Architecture from Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt), where he received the Academic and Community Leadership in Architecture award. His work integrates architecture, art, and cultural narratives to create spaces that honor history while remaining relevant to their contemporary communities.
As a historical architect for the National Park Service (NPS), Julian worked on significant preservation projects across the National Northeast Region where his technical expertise and design insight were integral to the longevity of historically significant sites such as the Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, and Springfield Armory National Historic Site. At Bruner/Cott Architects, he played a key role in major preservation projects, including the restoration of Arlington Street Church and the Blackstone Steam Plant at Harvard University, and the adaptive reuse of the Moderna Forbes Hill Mansion.
He is active in a variety of local and national industry organizations such as the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) and its Boston Chapter, BosNOMA, where he served as executive secretary and cofounder/program coordinator for the BosNOMA Project Pipeline Architecture Camp. Phillips served on the Boston Society for Architecture (BSA) Membership Committee, the 2022 BSA Unbuilt Architecture Design Award Jury, the BSA 2021 Intersections symposium, and ABX 2020 planning committees. Julian is currently a board member for the Legacy Fund for Boston, a grantmaking public charity that supports the endurance of places and spaces that are meaningful to Bostonians and the historic character of the entire city of Boston and remains active as a Young Advisory Board member for the Boston Preservation Alliance.
Beyond practice, Julian is dedicated to community engagement, education, and curatorial work. He has served as an adjunct professor at MassArt’s Architecture Department, developed the Community Design/Build course for MassArt’s Artwork Bound program, and was a lead instructor for MassArt youth programs for six years. His work extends to public programming, public memorial design, and exhibitions that make architectural and cultural history accessible to broader audiences. His most recent project, a historic architecture exhibition at the Designery at YouthBuild Boston, was awarded a 2023 Graham Foundation grant.
