Renzo Piano, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (; born 14 September 1937) is an Italian Pritzker Prize-winning architect. Architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff said of Piano’s works that the “…serenity of his best buildings can almost make you believe that we live in a civilized world.” In 2006, Piano was selected by TIME as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. He was selected as the 10th most influential person in the “Arts and Entertainment” category of the 2006 Time 100. In August 2013 he was appointed Senator for Life in the Italian Senate by President Giorgio Napolitano.
