Cardona entered the School of Architecture of the University of Puerto Rico and was a member of its first graduating class, obtaining a B.Arch in 1972. He was a design professor in the UPR (1974–1984) and was principal at Segundo Cardona Architects before co-founding in 1984 Sierra Cardona Ferrer (now known as SCF Architects) with partners Luis Sierra and Alberto Ferrer.[2][3] He has remained active in academic and civic affairs. In addition to teaching architectural design at the University of Puerto Rico, Cardona has been a guest lecturer, visiting professor and juror at diverse institutions and universities including North Carolina State University School of Design, The Catholic University of America, The Contemporary Museum of Art in Puerto Rico, The Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico, and the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Architecture.[4] He is also a past president of the Puerto Rican Architects Association or Colegio de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas de Puerto Rico (CAAPPR). In 2001, Cardona became a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Puerto Rico, and was President of the Board from 2004 to 2007. An architectural monograph covering thirty-five years of his work was published in 2008.[5] In 2013, Cardona won a competition to rebuild the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.[6] In 2017, he participated in the UIA World Architects Congress in Seoul and received the Public Space Award for his design of the Paseo Puerta de Tierra, a promenade that connects two important tourist destinations in Puerto Rico.[7][8][9]
Honors
HENRY KLUMB AWARD of the Colegio de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas de Puerto Rico, 1992[10]
FELLOW of the American Institute of Architects, Washington DC, USA, 2006[11][1]
A selection of recent projects
Universal Insurance, Canóvanas (2013).
Library of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico (2013).
BPPR Popular Center Expansion / Phase II, San Juan (2008).
Medal Winner · Public Space, "Friendly and Inclusive Spaces 2017" Worldwide Competition by the International Union of Architects (UIA): Paseo Puerta de Tierra[23]
Honor Award, AIA Florida/Caribbean: Paseo Puerta de Tierra
Outstanding Work, Colegio de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico, Paseo Puerta de Tierra
2014
Nomination to MCHAP (Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize): Puerto Rico Supreme Court Library by Council of MCHAP Nominators, Chicago, Illinois.[24]
2013
Honor Award, Commercial Category · XXII Cemex Building Award · Puerto Rico Edition: Lofthaus, San Juan
Honor Award, AIA Puerto Rico: Universal Insurance · Client Service Branch, Canóvanas
Honor Mention, X
III Bienal CAAPPR: Universal Insurance · Client Service Branch, Canóvanas
2012
XXI Cemex Building Award, Residential Category · Puerto Rico Edition: Quantum Metro Center
XXI Cemex Building Award, Institutional Category · Puerto Rico Edition: Library of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico
^Rivera Marrero, Mildred (10 December 2017). "Distinguen el Paseo Puerta de Tierra". El Nuevo Día. El Nuevo Dia. Retrieved 14 February 2018. Arquitecto Segundo Cardona destaca la importancia de la obra y la necesidad de que gobierno y ciudadanos la cuiden
^Cobas, Jaime (Feb 14, 1988). "Muñoz Marín Foundation: a design 'the earth has welcomed'". The San Juan Star Sunday Magazine. Star Media Network. p. 2.
^Díaz, Astrid (May 5, 2007). "El metal que nos cobija: experiencias en acero". El Nuevo Dia. San Juan, PR: GFR Media. p. 15.
^ abCardona, Segundo; Hermida-Espada, Teresa, eds. (2008). Segundo Cardona (in Spanish and English). San Juan, PR: DASE. ISBN978-0-615-15402-2.
^"AIA Florida Region: Honor Award to Puerto Rico National Pavilion at Seville Expo '92". Florida Architect Magazine. AIA Florida. September 1992. p. 18.
Rodríguez, Francisco Javier (2010). Arquitectura Contemporánea en Puerto Rico 1993–2010. American Institute of Architects Capítulo de Puerto Rico / Escuela de Arquitectura de la Universidad de Puerto Rico. ISBN978-0982991114.
Mignucci, Andrés (1992). Arquitectura Contemporánea en Puerto Rico 1976-1992. American Institute of Architects Capítulo de Puerto Rico.
Moré, Gustavo L. (2005). 01 Arquigrafías: Monografías de Arquitectura Latinoamericana: SIERRA CARDONA FERRER. Editora de Arquitectura Antillana.
Cardona, Segundo; Hermida-Espada, Teresa, eds. (2008). Segundo Cardona. DASE. ISBN978-0-615-15402-2.
Rancier, Omar (2006). Arquitectos Iberoamericanos: Siglo XXI. Fomento Cultural Banamex, DF, México. ISBN968-5234-58-2.
Russell, AIA, James S. (1 July 2002). "Will a New Wave of Tropical Modernism Restore San Juan's Luster?". Architectural Record. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc.
