Dietz & Company Architects Welcomes Three New Employees

SPRINGFIELD — Dietz & Company Architects Inc. announced that James Barbier, Zonglin Li, and Timothy Wang have all joined the firm in the role of architectural associate.

James Barbier

Barbier recently earned his bachelor of architecture degree from the Syracuse University School of Architecture, where he completed his thesis exploring kinematic systems and how they can be used to create interactive facades that respond to environmental phenomena. He is also currently exploring the potential of using topological joinery to create wooden structures that satisfy design for disassembly and adaptive reuse strategies. Barbier’s experience includes internships in which he worked on log cabin homes, multi-family housing, and medical buildings. He also participated in research investigating how architecture can be used to design opportunities in low-income communities.

Zonglin Li

Li interned at Dietz & Company last summer and worked at the firm during breaks throughout his final year of school. He recently graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with his bachelor of architecture degree, where his thesis focused on reimagining Penn Station through the perspective of interior urbanism and structured improvisation. He investigated how interior public spaces can operate as urban systems, merging the boundaries between circulation, commerce, and public life, and suggested areas that redefined urban movement and fostered new layers of interaction between the old and new city systems. Li also participated in the construction of Rise, Repeat, a pavilion structure exploring modular repetition and material economy through standard construction components, featured at the BuildFest 2024 Woodstock Pavilions.

Timothy Wang

Wang recently earned his master of architecture degree from the University of Hartford, where his thesis focused on transforming an underutilized park in San Francisco’s Chinatown into a culture and arts center. His concept reinterpreted traditional Chinese architectural elements to match the contemporary style of the building while still making subtle gestures at the history. While completing his degree, Wang interned with architectural firms in Connecticut, where he worked on high-end residential, master planning, and K-12 educational projects.