The award—one of the most generous unrestricted grants to architectural students in the United States—is managed by The Art Institute of Chicago's Department of Architecture, and has been presented annually since 1989 to local architecture students.

Karpova's entry proposes a new museum building in Azuma Village, Japan, commemorating the life and work of legendary Japanese poet and watercolor painter Tomihiro Hoshino. The design showcases the environmental beauty of the village with materials and building organization chosen in response to "SHI-GA"—the nature, landscape and presence of context in Japanese culture. The jury noted that the student's ideas were both "well-developed and mature."

Karpova's winning portfolio becomes part of the permanent collection housed within the Ernest R. Graham Study Center for Architectural Drawings at The Art Institute of Chicago. The collection includes important documents by Louis Sullivan, Daniel Burnham, and Mies van der Rohe, among others.

The Schiff Foundation Fellowship for Architecture is a result of the generous endowment fund established by Harold Schiff in 1988. Mr. Schiff's gesture was intended both to provide support for young architects and to give something back to the city where he established his successful career.

Adding to her honors, Karpova received the 2002 Master of Architecture Second Professional Degree Traveling Fellowship, an international competition that is part of the Architecture Traveling Fellowship Program, awarded by the Skidmore, Owings & Merrill Foundation. According to a foundation spokesperson, "Zane does exquisite drawings and has a very strong intuition about design—she's a very clear thinker."

The $10,000 award allows a student to complete self-determined travel itineraries specifically designed to complement his or her college studies and professional interests. Karpova plans to use the award to travel to Japan to explore its rich culture and architecture, which has long fascinated her.

"The Skidmore, Owings & Merrill traveling fellowship is perhaps the most important international award available to students anywhere," said Doug Garofalo, professor of the UIC School of Architecture. "The process of selection is rigorous, and it is an honor even to make it to the interview process."