Lee Bey is architecture critic for the Chicago Sun-Times.

He is also a member of the Sun-Times editorial board, where he writes editorials on city governance, neighborhood development, politics and urban planning.

Bey is the author of the much-praised book Southern Exposure: The Overlooked Architecture of Chicago’s South Side (Northwestern University Press, 2019), which showcases his architectural photography and social commentary.

He was also the host of the public television special, Building Blocks: The Architecture of Chicago’s South Side, which aired on WTTW in 2023.

He is also the main photographer of the book, Who is the City For? Architecture, Equity and the Public Realm in Chicago (University of Chicago Press, 2022), written by Blair Kamin.

Bey is currently working on a book about the architecture of Chicago’s West Side.

Bey’s photography of the built environment has appeared in magazines and periodicals such as the NewYork Times, Architectural Digest, Chicago Architect, Architect, CITE, and in international design publications such as Bauwelt, and Modulør.

He is also an in-demand speaker and media commentator on the subjects of architecture, urban planning, Chicago history and late 20th century Black history and culture.

Bey’s previous positions include stints as director of media and government affairs for the Chicago office of SOM, executive director of the Chicago Central Area Committee, and deputy chief of staff for architecture and urban planning under Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Bey is also an adjunct professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology College of Architecture.

He is the recipient of the 2021 Julius Shulman Institute Excellence in Photography Award, and the 2019 Distinguished Service Award by the Chicago chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Bey lives in an 1893 rowhouse in Chicago’s historic Pullman community.

Purdue Professor Emeritus Matt Kubik will be the interviewer.