After graduating from Washington University with a Bachelor of Architecture, Robert Vickery traveled to Spain on a Fulbright Grant. In 1969, Bob was invited to join the University of Virginia’s School of Architecture as the Thomas Jefferson Visiting Professor in Architecture. During his three-decade tenure at UVA, Bob made an indelible mark on the University’s architecture program by helping to implement the school’s 4-2 architectural curriculum and by mentoring close to 4,000 students, both in Charlottesville and through travel programs in Venice and Vicenza, Italy.
Bob’s passion for education and providing opportunities for young architects was realized in professional practice in 1976 with the founding of VMDO Architects alongside three students – Robert Moje, Lawson Drinkard, and David Oakland.