Rhea Schmid

Rhea believes in a design approach that is sensitive and incremental, engages with environmental justice issues, and espouses important narratives. Outside of her home city of Zurich, Switzerland, she loved to get lost in the forest—a place that felt both finite and infinite, and yet safe to play. She attended high school in the Philippines and earned a Bachelor of Architecture from Barnard College and a Master of Architecture from the Yale School of Architecture, where she was a Teaching Fellow and Equality in Design Coordinator. Upon graduation, she received the William Wirt Winchester and Gertraud A. Wood Traveling Fellowships for her collective body of design work and academic performance. 

Rhea first joined Reed Hilderbrand in 2020, contributing to commissions for Storm King, Yale University, and private residences in Long Island and Connecticut. With the support of her Winchester Fellowship, she later embarked on a three-year journey exploring her dual heritage and the cultural dimensions of design. Traveling through South and Southeast Asia and Europe, she investigated how built and planted environments can move from “divide and conquer” toward “define and empower.” In the Philippines, she reclaimed her Filipino roots by teaching a reflective course on identity and place at an art university in Manila; in Switzerland, she reconnected with her European heritage through collaborations with the Circle of Young Humanitarians and the creation of an illustrated book on belonging and cultural continuity. 

Rhea returns to practice with a deepened perspective on relational design and the ways landscapes shape how we live, remember, and connect. Outside of work, she enjoys climbing, running, and drawing.