Maya Lin

Maya Lin
Maya Lin, in 2023
Born	Maya Ying Lin (1959-10-05) October 5, 1959 (age 64) Athens, Ohio, U.S.
Nationality	American
Education	Yale University
Known for	Land art, architecture, memorials
Notable work	Vietnam Veterans Memorial (1982) Civil Rights Memorial (1989)
Spouse	Daniel Wolf
Children	2
Awards	National Medal of Arts Presidential Medal of Freedom
Website	mayalin.com

Maya Ying Lin (born October 5, 1959) is an American architect, designer and sculptor. Born in Athens, Ohio to Chinese immigrants, she attended Yale University to study architecture. In 1981, while still an undergraduate at Yale she achieved national recognition when she won a national design competition for the planned Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.^[1] The memorial was designed in the minimalist architectural style, and it attracted controversy upon its release but went onto become influential.^[2] Lin has since designed numerous memorials, public and private buildings, landscapes, and sculptures. In 1989, she designed the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama. She has an older brother, the poet Tan Lin.

Although best known for historical memorials, she is also known for environmentally themed works, which often address environmental decline. According to Lin, she draws inspiration from the architecture of nature but believes that nothing she creates can match its beauty. She also draws inspirations from "culturally diverse sources, including Japanese gardens, Hopewell Indian earthen mounds, and works by American earthworks artists of the 1960s and the 1970s".^[3]