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University of Nebraska-Lincoln

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Ankerson named dean of UNL College of Architecture 

Katherine Ankerson, professor and head of the Department of Interior Architecture and Product Design at Kansas State University, has accepted appointment as dean of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Architecture. The appointment, pending approval by the University of Nebraska Board of Regents, was announced May 23.

“Katherine Ankerson is a proven administrator, educator and scholar with a track record in elevating programs and encouraging excellence,” Chancellor Ronnie Green said. “She also has a strong vision that understands the need for interdisciplinary collaboration to prepare the next generation of building and landscape architects, interior designers, and community and regional planners. This combination positions her as a transformational leader for our college of architecture.”

Ankerson, who was a professor and associate dean in the UNL architecture college from 1996 to 2011 before her tenure at Kansas State, will assume the dean’s post July 1. “I am honored to be named the dean of the College of Architecture at UNL,” Ankerson said. “I look forward to returning to this great university and leading the College of Architecture into its next era. I am committed to the transformative power of planning and design in our lives and communities and join with our faculty, staff, students and alumni to continue building the college into national prominence.” The College of Architecture’s programs in architecture, interior design, landscape architecture and community and regional planning have a tradition of excellence in education, research and service. Its fall 2015 enrollment was 493 students.

“This is an exciting time at the college. Faculty and students are involved daily with work that inspires, with a focus on how architecture and design must confront real challenges in today’s world,” said Marjorie Kostelnik, interim senior vice chancellor for academic affairs, who led the search committee for the position. “We are confident that the college will break important new ground under Katherine’s leadership.”

Ankerson is a tenured full professor and has concluded her fifth year as head of Kansas State’s interior architecture and product design department. A strong proponent of design education, Ankerson said she believes in the potency of interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary engagement, the value of design and making, and embracing new technologies in addition to strengthening traditional design tools.

Ankerson’s philosophy is that design education must prepare global design citizens who take leadership to foster synergy, embrace successful collaboration and recognize interconnectedness, with an awareness of the responsibility of individual and collective actions in personal, social and environmental arenas.

She is an award-winning author, and as lead of the 20th Anniversary Nuckolls Lighting Grant, she worked with nine other educators in architecture, engineering and interior design representing four major universities to initiate and produce the award-winning web-based resource Lighting Across the [Design] Curriculum. Ankerson just completed a three-year term of elected presidential leadership with the North American organization Interior Design Educators Council. She is a CIDA site visitor and the education member of the Nuckolls Lighting Fund board of directors. 

Ankerson also held academic positions at Radford University and Washington State University after spending many years as a practicing architect and designer. She received her bachelor of science in architecture and bachelor of architecture from Washington State. She also earned a master’s degree in architecture from Washington State. 

By Steve Smith

 

Music in the Library

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Barbara Opar and Lucy Campbell, column editors


Column by Maya Gervits, Director of the Barbara & Leonard Littman Library, College of Architecture & Design, New Jersey Institute of Technology

According to a recent Andrew Mellon Foundation report, many academic institutions are now investigating partnerships between the arts and other academic disciplines to foster connections between them [1]. During these discussions, music has received special attention. It has been proven that musical compositions can inspire higher brain functioning and unlock creativity [2]. Albert Einstein, who credited some of his discoveries to musical perception, believed that music is the driving force behind intuition. Links between music and spatial-temporal skills, those important in solving problems, have been discovered by neuroscientists. Mozart and Vivaldi effects [3] are discussed in scientific journals. There are many associations to be found between music and architecture, music and visual arts, and design. They have been discussed over the centuries and were part of the reasoning behind the Littman Library’s attempt to engage students in the College of Architecture and Design at the New Jersey Institute of Technology in further exploration of these connections by hosting musical events.

The relationship between architecture and music is well documented. Leon Battista Alberti believed that the same characteristics that please the eye also please the ear. Palladio echoed this by noticing that, “the proportions of the voices are harmonies for the ears; those of the measurements are harmonies for the eyes. Such harmonies usually please very much without anyone knowing why, excepting the student of the causality of things”. [4]  Johann Wolfgang von Goethe called architecture the “frozen music,” while 19th century art critic Walter Pater came to the conclusion that “all art constantly aspires towards the condition of music.”  We discuss rhythm, proportion, and ornamentation in both music and visual arts, and search for harmony between them.

Typically associated with German Romantics, the idea of Gesamtkunstwerk described as a complete, unified, or as it often referred to, a “total work of art”, was formulated in 1849 in Richard Wagner’s “Das Kunstwerk der Zukunft“ ( “The Artwork of the Future” ). Although, Hans Sedlmayr insisted that it existed long before that time [5]. Initially related to the synthesis of  arts in opera, it also has been manifested in Charles Baudelaire and
Stéphane Mallarmé’s poetry, Josef Hoffmann’s and Joseph Maria Olbrich’s architecture, James McNeil Whistler’s paintings, Sergei Diagilev’s ballet, and Alexander Skriabin’s musical compositions. The 20th century provided more tools to rethink the boundaries between the visual and musical. Creation of the “total work of art” was the ultimate goal of the Bauhaus program and the cornerstone of their educational system. Oscar Schlemmer’s “Triadisches Ballett” and Wassily Kandinsky’s experimental performances, rooted in his synesthesia (ability to see sounds), are just two of several Bauhaus projects created as an interplay of music, dance, and painting. “Poème électronique” and “Philips Pavilion” at Expo 58 – collaborative works by Edgard Varèse, Le Corbusier, and Iannis Xenakis, which combined electronic music, projections, and architecture, also came into existence with the purpose of creating a “total work of art.”

Understanding the idea of the “total work of art” can be an important lesson for students and, recently, more attention has been drawn to it. Gesamtkunstwerk has once again become a subject of numerous discussions, proving that this idea is still relevant. The exhibition, “Der Hang zum Gesamtkunstwerk” in Kunsthaus Zurich (1983) and in Vienna (1984), a recreation and performance of Skriabin’s “Prometheus” at Yale University (2010), and the latest collection of essays, “The Death and Life of the Total Work of Art,” presented at the Bauhaus Colloquium in 2013, highlight the historic meaning of the term, and apply it to more recent events and works. Technological advancements provide the tools that allow for the creation of immersive artistic experiences, which remove “the borderline between object and observer, stage and audience, art work and spectator,” [6] and create projects that can be considered a “total work of art” of the 21st century. Although some of its political implications have been criticized, the idea of aesthetic unity of all the arts and their “wholeness” deserves attention, even if only for the purpose of providing students with more well-rounded educations that help to contextualize what they learn at school. Building on these ideas, in the spring of 2015, the Littman Library at the College of Architecture and Design at NJIT began “Music in the Library,” a series of concerts performed by the Montclair Trio [7] – musicians affiliated with the John J. Cali School of Music at the Montclair State University.

Although open to the whole university community, the concerts are mostly focused on the needs of the College of Architecture and Design population. The concert series directly supports several courses, including “Music for Designers,” which is focused on the theory and history of music, its relation to culture, and its use in cinema, digital and interactive media. Each concert is accompanied by a short lecture and PowerPoint presentation related to the theme of a concert, providing context as well as background information. Students design posters advertising the series. A book exhibition further enhances each event. The collaboration with musicians–a group of talented and dedicated educators–helps to develop programs that are both popular and educational. These events take place in an intimate “chamber-like” environment of the college Library which is located in the physical center of the building. Folding chairs that can be easily assembled form an auditorium. The Library remains open and fully functional during these events, which usually take place at night. Light refreshments help to create a pleasant and relaxing atmosphere. Free of charge, funded and supported by the college administration and alumni, these concerts have become popular and well attended. They help to alleviate stress, expand students’ horizons, improve their exposure to music, link performed musical compositions to the subjects of study in classes and studio, provide a historical context, and establish the Library as a place which can provide cultural and educational opportunities, often not possible within a curricular setting.

 

 

[1] https://mellon.org/about/annual-reports/2014-presidents-report/#higher-education

[2] E. Glenn Schellenberg Music and Cognitive Abilities in Current Directions in Psychological Science, v.14,n.6,2005.p317-320; R. Root-Bernstein Music, Creativity and Scientific Thinking Leonardo, v.34,n.1,2001,pp63-68

[3] K.Nantais and G.Schellenberg The Mozart Effect: an artifact of Preference. Psychological Science, July 1999.v.10,n4,pp370-373; L.Riby The joys of spring: Changes in Mental Alertness and brain functions Experimental psychology, vol. 60, 2013,p.71-79.

[4] M. Trachtenberg  ”Architecture and Music Reunited: a New Reading of Dufay’s Nuper  Rosarum Flores and the Cathedral of Florence” in Renaissance Quarterly, is.54,2001,p, 740.

[5] Hans Sedlmayr Der Verlust der Mitte: Die bildende Kunst des 19 und 20 Jahrhunderts als Symptoms und Symbol der Zeit. Frankfurt am Mein, 1985.

[6] .Hans Ulrich Reck  Immersive environment: the Gesamtkunstwerk of the 21st century? At: http://www.khm.de/kmw/reck/essays-ecrits-writings-saggi-ensayos/english/immersive-environments-the-gesamtkunstwerk-of-the-21-century/

[7] Montclair trio – Robert Radliff, Aurora Mendez and Paul Vanderwall

Auburn University

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Marlon Blackwell Architects in Fayetteville, Arkansas has received a 2016 National Design Award for Architecture from Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. The design firm was recognized “for exceptional and exemplary work in” architecture design for its body of work. Marlon Blackwell, a 1980 Auburn architecture graduate, is principal and founder of Marlon Blackwell Architects. For more, click here.
 
At the AIA National Convention in Philadelphia in May, the AIA presented a short documentary film on Rural Studio, Auburn University’s community-oriented, design-build program dedicated to improving the western Alabama region with good design. The Rural Studio film launches the 2016 Film Challenge, inviting filmmakers and architects to team up and tell stories of how architecture is solving a problem facing us today in communities, big or small, across the country. Visit here to learn more about the AIA’s Film Challenge.

The Rural Studio contributed to two international art and architecture exhibitions this spring: the XXI Triennale di Milano open from April to September of this year in Milan, Italy, and the 15th International Architecture Exhibition in Venice (La Biennale Architettura 2016) opened May 27th Images will be featured in the Summer Issue of StudioAPLA.

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

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As part of the Chicago Architecture Foundation’s 50th Birthday Bash on Saturday, April 16, 2016, University of Illinois School of Architecture students showcased work from their current investigations into city improvement projects around the CTA Red Line, including ideas for streetscaping, retail and new mid-rise towers. 

Randy Deutsch – Associate Professor

Leading a Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) Executive Education course for the third year, BIM: Lessons in Leadership, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. http://bit.ly/1YVWseC

 Presenting “21st Century Skillsets: Assuring Architects and Emerging Professionals Stay Ahead,” at the AIA National Convention, Philadelphia, PA May 19, 2016 http://bit.ly/1SNsQyG

 Invited to present “Big Data in the Construction Industry,” Executive Management for Design and Construction, McCormick School of Engineering, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, June 15, 2016

Invited guest speaker, Strategic Workshop on Big Data in the Built Environment, Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada, June 16-17, 2016

Serving as the BIM SME, BRE Research Group, London

New book published: Data Driven Design and Construction: 25 Strategies for Capturing, Analyzing and Applying Building Data (Wiley) http://bit.ly/1Oe2XDh

Book reviewed, Data Driven Design and Construction: 25 Strategies for Capturing, Analyzing and Applying Building Data, by Lachmi Khemlani, AECBytes, March 24, 2016 http://bit.ly/1rCNIjx

Forthcoming book, Convergence: The Redesign of Design (AD, March 2017)

Featured in ARCHITECT magazine, “The Tech to Expect in 2016” http://bit.ly/1Kfwr2k

Delegate, Design Futures Council, Leadership Forum on Design Education, Philadelphia, PA,  May 18, 2016

Invited to serve as NIBS buildingSMART Alliance as Special Advisor 2016-17

 

Drury University

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Professor Emeritus Michael Buono elected to AIA College of Fellows.

The College of Fellows, founded in 1952, is composed of members of the Institute who are elected to Fellowship by a jury of their peers. Fellowship is one of the highest honors the AIA can bestow upon a member. This honor not only recognizes the achievements of the architect as an individual, but also elevates before the public and the profession those who have made significant contributions to architecture and to society.

“The American Institute of Architects has over 85,000 members, and each year only around 150 AIA members are elected to the Institute’s College of Fellows,” says Dr. Robert Weddle, dean of the Hammons School of Architecture. “This news truly demonstrates Professor Buono’s caliber and dedication as an educator and is emblematic of the quality of the HSA program, which he led for over a decade.”

Buono is only the third AIA member from the southwest Missouri area to be elected an AIA Fellow. The first was Richard P. Stahl, a 1936 Drury graduate and architect of many distinguished buildings, including on the Drury campus. HSA alumnus Andrew Wells ’91 — principal of Dake Wells Architecture in Springfield — was the second.

Buono, AIA, LEED AP, served as Director of the Hammons School of Architecture from 2000 until 2012. Prior to joining Drury, he served as associate dean and also director of the architecture program at the University of Arkansas for 15 years. He has also taught at Texas Tech University, the Georgia Institute of Technology and Mississippi State University. Buono has practiced architecture with firms in Atlanta and Denver, and maintains his own practice. His primary interest is in sustainable design.

(via Drury News)

Landscape Architecture Students Play With Legos to Learn About the Library

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Barbara Opar and Lucy Campbell, Column editors

Column by Megan Lotts, Art Librarian
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey

One of the most interesting aspects of the Art Library Lego Playing Station is coming into the library each day to see what has transpired at the table.  Some days it appears a group of grubby young children have been let loose at the table and Legos are strewn everywhere, including the floor. Other days I find elaborate models that tell stories about the students, their lives, their imaginations, and their dreams” (Lotts, 2015).

When I started the Art Library Lego playing Station in 2014 at the Rutgers University Art Library, located in the heart of New Brunswick, New Jersey, I was looking for ways to connect with the departments with whom I am a library liaison.  I wanted to form deeper connections with the Landscape Architecture and Mason Gross Visual Arts, departments that are located a 15-30 minute walk from the Art Library.  Coming from a background in Art & Design, I was concerned that these students did not know or understand the value that the library has to their education I also wanted to learn more about who the students, faculty, and staff are in these departments and how the library could best support these individuals.

Shortly after installing the Lego Playing Station, I contacted the Chair of the Landscape Architecture Department, Dr. Laura Lawson. After a brainstorming session we came up with an active learning assignment for her Environmental Design Analysis course that would incorporate the Art Library Lego Playing Station, and get her students into the library in person.  The objective of the assignment was to introduce 100 incoming freshmen in the Landscape Architecture program to me (their library liaison), the Art Library Lego Playing Station, and the resources Rutgers University Libraries have to offer.

In September 2014, I was introduced to the EDA course and gave a 30-minute lecture that included a conceptual overview of the physical space of the art library, the resources available, an overview of the Art Library Research Guides, and an introduction to the Art Library Lego Playing Station (Lotts, 2015). Following my presentation Dr. Lawson introduced the assignment to the students and explained what would be required of them.  Within days the Art Library Lego Playing Station saw an enormous increase in play and models made.  Figure 1 shows 4 students working together to create a model for their assignment.

Figure 1  Students from Landscape Architecture EDA course.  Photo credit:  Megan Lotts

Since this collaboration with Dr. Lawson and her EDA course I have seen an increase in reference questions from the Landscape Architecture students and a decrease in my office candy supply.  I have learned more about the needs of the LA department and now hold weekly office hours in the Blake Hall lobby, where the department resides.  This gives students, faculty, and staff an opportunity to see me in person each week to ask questions or let me know anything new happening in their department.  These hours also give me the opportunity to learn more about the individuals who are part of the LA community as well as share with them what is happening in the Rutgers University Libraries.

In conclusion, the Art Library Lego Playing Station has explored and expanded the conventional research functions of an academic library through encouraging creative problem-solving techniques associated with art and design and makerspaces (Lotts, 2015). If you would like to read a more about the Art Library Lego Playing station or an in depth version of this collaboration please read the paper, Playing with LEGO, Learning about the Library and ‘Making’ Campus Connections: The Rutgers Art Library Lego Playing Station, Part One, noted in the additional readings section.

Additional Readings:

Lotts, Megan. “On the Road, Playing with LEGO, and Learning about the Library: The Rutgers Art Library Lego Playing Station, Part Two.” Journal of Library Administration. Vol. 56, Iss.5 (Summer 2016).

Lotts, Megan. “Playing with LEGO, Learning about the Library and ‘Making’ Campus Connections: The Rutgers Art Library Lego Playing Station, Part One.” Journal of Library Administration Vol. 56, Iss.4 (Spring 2016).

Lotts, Megan. “Lego® Play: Implementing a Culture of Creativity & Making in the Academic Library.” ACRL Conference Proceedings, 409-418.

Top 4 Tips: 

  • When acquiring Legos, consider crowd-sourcing and asking for donations.  This can be much cheaper and easier than purchasing the bricks from Lego, craigslist, ebay, or a garage sale.
  • Create signage for your Lego Station and consider creating a comment box.  You can also invite patrons to take pictures not Legos, to detour possible thefts.
  • Find a good table or space where the Legos can be spread out and players have room to move.  Remember Legos and players can be noisy so keep this in mind when locating your Legos.
  • Find partners and co-collaborators.  Think about who else might have interest in Legos or making things.  Consider partnering with another course or organization within your campus or community.

 

Landscape Architecture Research Guide: http://libguides.rutgers.edu/landscapearchitecture

Rutgers Art Library Research Guide:  http://libguides.rutgers.edu/artlibrary

University of Southern California

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Victor Regnier FAIA is working on a new book that deals with Longevity and Housing that Wiley will publish in 2017.

It looks at the implications of the growing worldwide population of people 85+ and 100+ and the housing and service options available to care for their needs in a residential, non-institutional context.

Charles A. Lagreco attended the ACSA Annual Meeting in 2015 to represent the USC School of Architecture as one of the 14 selected schools to participate in the NCARB IPAL initiative  to integrate registration requirements with professional degree graduation. Professor Lagreco with coordinate the program at USC which is on track to start in the fall of the 2016-07 Academic year.

Michael Ellars, AIA, recently completed his first year as an instructor in the undergraduate Building Science program at the University of Southern California School of Architecture; the second semester project focused on competition entries for the Timber in the City competition co-sponsored by ACSA. In February, he presented a three-hour professional education course on accessibility changes in the California Building Code to the San Fernando Valley Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (http://www.aiasfv.org/newsletter/2015/12-2015Elevations.pdf). Ellars recently wrote an article about using Virtual Reality to boost the K-12 educational experience for Insights, an on-going publication series by DLR Group thought leaders (http://www.dlrgroup.com/insights/articles/ellars-virtual-reality/). His article, Virtual Reality: A Revolutionary Evolution in Building Design, was published in the February 2016 issue of Connection, the architecture and design journal of the Young Architects Forum of the American Institute of Architects (https://issuu.com/youngarchitectsforum/docs/160216_-_1401_-_vol_14_issue_01_dra/32).

Prof. Graeme M. Morland,  Principal, GEM Architects, has just completed a series of schematic design sketches for a 25 unit, research scholar housing complex within the Huntington Garden estate in San Marino, Ca.  The project design was greatly influenced by the large cloister and garden cells of the Carthusian Monastery of Pavia, Italy, which Morland visited many times with USC architecture students when he directed the study abroad program in Italy.    

Assistant Professor David Jason Gerber was invited to co-Chair the “Positions on Smart Environments” Special Panel at the 2016 ACSA national convention this year. Professor Gerber will participate at this years’ Simulation in Architecture and Urban Design conference in London to present his research on Multi-Agent Systems for Design. Professor Gerber has been awarded a Scholar in residence Fellowship by The Borchard Foundation to pursue a research titled “Descriptive Surfaces, From Desargue to De Casteljau and their mathematical influence on instrumental and design knowledge in Architecture.” 

Alexander Robinson was invited to present his design research on Rome’s Tiber River at the International Federation of Landscape Architect’s 2016 Conference in Turin, Italy in April.  He exhibited this work in March at the American Academy in Rome’s Cinque Mostre exhibit curated by Illaria Gianni.

Vittoria Di Palma’s book, Wasteland, A History (Yale: 2014), was awarded the 2016 Elisabeth Blair MacDougall Book Award by the Society of Architectural Historians.  This prize recognizes annually the most distinguished work of scholarship in the history of landscape architecture or garden design.  At the Society of Architectural Historians’ meeting in Pasadena, Vittoria was elected Vice President of the SAH Landscape History Chapter.

Jennifer Siegal, founder of Los Angeles-based Office of Mobile Design (OMD), has been announced as the winner of the fourth arcVision Prize – Women and Architecture, an international award to women’s architecture organized by Italcementi. Siegal was unanimously chosen by the jury for being “a fearless pioneer in the research and development of prefabricated construction systems, at low prices for disadvantaged users and areas, who has been able to invent and build practical solutions and a new language for mobile and low-cost housing.”

The keynote presentation of Prof Goetz Schierle at the IEREK Conference Cairo will be posted at: http://uscarch.com/structures/Arch499/index-DG.html

Trudi Sandmeier recently chaired the jury for the Los Angeles Conservancy’s annual Preservation Awards honoring the best conservation projects in Los Angeles County.

Mina Chow has launched an international social media campaign for FACE OF A NATION on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to provide a public platform for intelligent discussion about the role of architecture and design in cultural diplomacy and conflict resolution.  As a result of the film’s significance, Skywalker Sound (George Lucas/THX) has agreed to join our team, and they are exploring ways they will contribute.  A venture capitalist has invested further resources with another generous contribution.  Mina also has presented her works-in-progress at several symposiums at USC Annenberg’s Center for Public Diplomacy between 2014-2016.    FACE OF A NATION showcases America’s best architects and engineers (including Buckminster Fuller, Ray and Charles Eames, and Davis Brody) working together to promote the American image.  The film has progressed to fine-cut with 34 animations-in-progress.

Kyle Konis will give a presentation entitled Daylighting Design Performance Metrics to Enhance Health and Well-being at the National AIA Convention in Philadelphia on May 20.

Adjunct Associate Professor Michael Hricak, FAIA, recently participated in a Metropolis Magazine “Think Tank” panel moderated by long-time Publisher/Editor in Chief Susan S. Szenasy held at the Los Angeles offices of AECOM. Professor Hricak represented the southern California design education community addressing current housing policies, real estate trends and workplace design and innovation. Also on the panel were representatives of the real estate, design and business communities. DISCUSSION STATEMENT: “Urban vs. Suburban…where to place the workplace.’  As technology, work-styles, generational demographics, work-life balance issues and the war for talent continue to drive workplace evolution, our Think Tank panel will discuss how these issues affect a company’s decision on where to physically place the workplace.  Traditional considerations of cost,  ‘a downtown address’, and ease of mass transportation, to name a few, often define the workplace in an urban setting.  Can the suburban setting better address the drivers of the evolving workplace given real estate costs in urban centers (both office lease and housing) such as home-based working, reduction of carbon footprint, and the rise of co-working/co-shared work environments?  We will explore how the evolving workplace is driving new thinking around the importance of “address.””

Professor Kelly Shannon has been selected as a Research Fellow for the Landscape Architecture Foundation’s (LAF) 2016 Case Study Investigation (CSI) program.   Professor Shannon is one of six fellows who will each lead a team who will assess and document benefits of high-performing landscape projects, resulting in Case Study Briefs for LAF’s Landscape Performance Series, an online, open-source database of paradigmatic landscape projects.   The projects and firms that Shannon will be working with are Vista Hermosa Park (Mia Lehrer + Associates), South Los Angeles Wetland Park (Psomas), and Shenzhen Bay (SWA Group).

Joon-Ho Choi has been awarded a Zumberge Grant in support of his project, “User-Centered Integrative Building System Control Using Human Bio-Signals for Environmental Health and Sustainability.”   “Joon-Ho has brought strong promise to the School’s research agenda, through which architecture will gain new ground in our concerns for the environment,” said Dean Qingyun Ma.   Choi’s research focuses on developing intelligent environmental controls in buildings based on occupants’ physiological responses and maximizing the building’s environmental performance

Rob Ley’s design office was a winner of the Architizer A+ 2016 Award for the Eskenazi Hospital parking structure facade.  His firm will be recognized in an event held in New York on May 12th.

Diane Ghirardo presented an invited paper on Lucrezia Borgia’s treasury at a conference on The Borgias in Art in Xåtiva, Spain, in May.

Eight teams of students in the graduate and fifth year undergraduate programs, led by Kim Coleman and Warren Techentin in conjunction with USC Architecture graduates Chiu Man Wong and Maria Warner Wong, of WOW Architecture in Singapore, designed proposals for a creative financial hub to be built in Bhartiya City, a new city currently in construction in Bangalore, India.  Thanks to the generosity of the Bhartiya corporation, the group began the semester with a twelve day trip to India, researching the country’s culture and traditions.  Design strategies for the two-million square foot project explore typologies that provide a strong identity and sense of place and that encompass a mix of housing, office, and retail functions, resulting in a mix of scale and use and a commitment to public open space. Snehdeep and Arjun Aggarwai of Bhartiya came to USC for the final reviews and celebratory reception on Thursday, 28th.  An exhibit and publication is planned for fall, 2016.

Gary Paige’s award-winning proposal for the Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design competition Dingbat 2.0 was featured in the new book Dingbat 2.0: The Iconic Los Angeles Apartment as Projection of a Metropolis, edited by Thurman Grant and Joshua Stein, (DoppelHouse Press, 2016).

Karen Kensek is planning the tenth annual BIM Symposium at USC for Friday, July 22nd.  The theme of this year’s presentations is efficient, productive, and profitable workflows. The 2015 BIM Symposium focused on visual programming.

Hraztan Zeitlian directed the design of the Los Angeles Southwest College School of Career and Technical Education building that received an American Institute of Architects Los Angeles Valley Chapter Design Award.

Professor Marc Schiler moderated a panel on “Glare and Solar Convergence” at the Façade Tectonics Forum at the University of Texas, San Antonio, on April 7, 2016.   He is working hectically on the scientific program for the Passive and Low Energy Architecture (PLEA2016) conference to be held in Los Angeles from July 11-13, 2016.  This is the first time that the conference has been held in the United States in its 35 year history.  Approximately 500 abstracts were accepted out of 1000 submissions.  Based on completed manuscripts, about 300 full papers were accepted for presentation and publication.  Thom Mayne and Ed Mazria are two of the keynote speakers.  There will be tours of sustainable built environments of Los Angeles. 

Lecturer Scott Uriu and his firm Baumgartner+Uriu is one of the 10 invited architects, artists and designers, invited to participate in the J. Irwin and Xenia S. Miller Prize as part of the inaugural 2016 symposium for Exhibit Columbus, “Foundations and Futures,” held Sept. 29 to Oct. 1. In Columbus Indiana.   Exhibit Columbus is an exhibition put on by the city of Columbus Indiana in association with Ball State University, The Ohio State University, University of Cincinnati, University of Kentucky, University of Michigan, the Indiana University Center for Art+Design, and Columbus-Ivy Tech. http://www.exhibitcolumbus.org/

Douglas Noble and Karen Kensek are hosting the Façade Tectonics World Congress in downtown Los Angeles October 10-11, 2016.

Professor James Steele has been awarded a 2016-17 Fulbright grant to Malaysia.   Next semester, Professor Steele will be working with Ezrin Arbi, Professor Emeritus at the University of Malaya, on a multi-publication project on the mosques and vernacular housing of both Malaysia and the Minangkabau people, an ethnic group of West Sumatra, Indonesia.   Steele previously worked with Arbi to establish the USC Architecture study abroad program in Malaysia, and in 2012, Arbi asked Steele to collaborate with him on the project.   Steele explained, “Arbi, now an octogenarian, is a devout Muslim of Minangkabau origin and has been collecting materials on both the distinctive vernacular houses and mosques of his homeland, and those of his adopted country of Malaysia, since he was a student in Jakarta more than 50 years ago.”   Steele plans to frame Arbi’s materials by constructing the context of Minang and Malaysian villages. During the grant period, a group, including Steele, Arbi, and a few University of Malaysia colleagues, will be photographing houses and mosques within their village contexts using a drone. This will be done in both Sumatra and Malaysia.

On April 27 Edward Bosley, the Director of the Gamble House for USC, spoke to 1st, 2nd and 3rd-year students at Plymouth University School of Architecture in the UK about the Gamble House. The students were particularly interested in the Greenes’ use of materials and their attention to the details of craftsmanship, and generally their eyes were opened to the existence of architecture as a fine art.

Dimitry Vergun retired after teaching at the USC School of Architecture for over 40 years.  Vergun is considered one of the finest teachers in the program, and taught in the building science studios for decades.  He remains a beloved professor for all of his former students.

Adjunct Assistant Professor Tigran Ayrapetyan together with the USC undergraduate Building Science students participated in the symposium organized by Simpson Strong-Tie at their Riverside facility on 4-8-16.  The participants were students from UCI, CSULB, CSUF, and USC.  The students representing USC won the Simpson Engineering Jeopardy competition at the event.

Eric Haas, Adjunct Associate Professor, was the recipient of a 2016 USC Mentoring Award given by USC’s Center for Excellence in Teaching for his work with undergraduate students. His firm DSH // architecture exhibited their contribution Spiral Kitty, a 3d-printed reciprocal shelter for cats, at a benefit for Architects for Animals in March. He also exhibited Efflorescence Cognitionum, a microlibrary assembled from vintage card catalog drawers created with USC librarians Melissa Miller and Marje Schuetze-Coburn, on the USC campus as part of the Visions and Voices event “Microlibraries in the Everywhere.” His firm is currently at work on several preschool and charter school projects, among others.

The Courtyard at La Brea, a low income family housing project for persons with special needs located in the City of West Hollywood, by MUTLOW + TIGHE, (John V Mutlow, professor, and Patrick Tighe, professor of practice), is featured in the April 4 – 16 issue of NEW YORK magazine in an article titled ‘The Urbanist: Los Angeles Architecture. New buildings embrace nature, density and public spaces’, and in an online article by the Daily Intelligencer titled ‘A Guide to Los Angeles Widely Inventive New Architecture.’  See link: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/04/guide-to-las-inventive-new-architecture.html

Auburn University

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Charlene LeBleu, FASLA , Associate Professor and Chair of the Graduate Program in Landscape Architecture in Auburn University’s School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture (APLA), was presented with the 2016 CELA President’s Award;  David Hill, ASLA, LEED AP, Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture, received the 2016 Excellence in Design Studio Teaching Award, Junior Level.  Both faculty were honored at the CELA annual conference in Salt Lake City, March 23-27. CELA (Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture) is the premier international organization for educators in landscape architecture.  Read more here.

Auburn APLA Alumnus Dan Ballard, MLA ’11, and DESIGNhabitat, created by APLA professors David Hinson and Justin Miller, recently received 2016 Spirit of Sustainability Awards at the Auburn University Office of Sustainability fourth annual awards ceremony on April 20 at the Pavilion at Ag Heritage Park.  Read more here.

The Master of Landscape Architecture program in the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture (APLA) has been granted re-accreditation for a six-year period by the Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board. The LAAB based its re-accreditation decision on the MLA’s program self-evaluation report, the visiting team report, the institution’s response to the team report, and discussions with team members and program faculty.  For more information about the MLA program, click here.

Auburn University College of Architecture, Design and Construction (CADC) faculty have been busy presenting research abroad. Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Research, Karen Rogers, was a presenter at the “National Encounter of Deans and Directors of Schools of Architecture” sponsored by the Colombian Association of Schools of Architecture in Villa de Leyva, Colombia, March 29–31. Her presentation, “Rethinking the Relationship between Academia and Community: the Experience of Auburn University’s Rural Studio” was made in Spanish to the deans and directors of 38 Colombian architecture schools. Read more here. 

J. Scott Finn, Associate Professor of Architecture and Director of the APLA’s International Studies Program in Rome, presented a seminar to Italian design professionals entitled “Dialogues of Architecture” on March 29. Finn, Carmelo Baglivo, and Laura Negrini, Italian architects and theorists of architecture, discussed Rome and its role in the education of Italian and foreign students of architecture. Read more here.

 

University of Southern California

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The libraries of the University of Southern California are proud to announce the additions of several new digital archive collections featuring architects and architectural photography.

The Fritz Block and Pierre Koenig slides are two of the smaller unique collections in the possession of the USC Libraries. They document examples of 20th century California architecture that developed stylistically from the foundations of the International Style as established by the 1932 exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, titled Modern Architecture: International Exhibition, and of European pre-World War II Modernism. Koenig. Fritz Block (1889-1955) was a German-trained architect, who moved to Los Angeles in 1938. He shot slides of many private homes, as well as of some housing developments. Pierre Koenig (1925-2004) was among the most important Modern architects working in Southern California, and a long-time faculty at the USC School of Architecture. He is noted, among many projects, for participating in the Case Study House program, and for designing Case Study Houses #21 and #22. The digitized slides were selected by Pierre Koenig. Funding for digitization of the Architectural Teaching Slide Collection was provided by Victor Albert Regnier, ACSA Distinguished Professor and Professor of Architecture and Geronotology at the USC School of Architecture. This information was provided by Ruth Wallach, Head (1999-2014) of the Architecture and Fine Arts Library, USC.

The archive of Wayne Thom, a renowned architectural photographer who shot only with natural light, worked without assistant and meticulously printed his own images,” came to the University of Southern California Libraries in September 2015. “Thom’s stunning photographs of landmark buildings throughout the American West and Asia… include many buildings on the USC campus, including images of von KleinSmid Center, the 1968 USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism building, Heritage Hall, Varian Hall and others.” The collection dates from the 1960s through 2012 and in addition to his photographs include his extensive graphic design work such as architectural brochures for clients. [All quotations are from Allison Engel. “Architectural photographer Wayne Thom’s beautiful images head to USC Libraries” in USCNews (2015 August 31)]

USC alumnus Carl Maston was an influential Los Angeles mid-century modern architect. Upon graduation, Maston worked for the offices of Floyd Rible, A. Quincy Jones, Fred Emmons, Phil Daniel, and Allied Architects before opening his own office. His homes, shopping centers, military housing units, and university buildings can be found throughout Southern California. Known for his stark, no-frills modern buildings such as the Maston (or Marmont) Residence and Hillside House, his career spanned over 40 years in public and private sectors. The bulk of the collection consists of architectural project files as well as architectural photographs by longtime-collaborator Julius Shulman.

The Edward H. Fickett Collection contains a selection of items digitized from the archives of the architectural office of Edward H. Fickett (1916-1999), FAIA, in Special Collections, USC Libraries. The physical collection contains 664.04 linear feet of architectural drawings, renderings, and photographs as well as other material stored in 360 boxes, including 99 long boxes, 163 document boxes, 2 banker’s boxes, an additional 96 boxes of various sizes; and 52 flat file drawers. Another set of renderings is stored in flat folders. In addition, there are 4 3-D models of Fickett projects. The entire physical collection dates from 1945-2013. Examples in the digital selection include some of Fickett’s more notable designs: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles Police Academy, Hotel Cabo San Lucas, Los Angeles City Hall tower renovation and the Port of Los Angeles Passenger and Cargo Terminals. The rights to the archive as well as the physical materials were transferred to USC. The USC Digital Library acknowledges the support provided by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission in making this material available online.

University of Nebraska-Lincoln

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Students Explore the Future of the Congra Campus

ConAgra, formerly headquartered in Omaha, Neb. moved its headquarters to Chicago. Now the city of Omaha and ConAgra are considering redevelopment.  Instructors Emily Anderson and Geoff Deold‘s 411 studio reimagines Omaha’s ConAgra campus and Heartland of America Park as housing, mixed use, and a new anchor tenant. Students were charged with adapting existing urban building typologies to imagine new models of urbanism, adapting form to be responsive to use, context, and public or open space.  

The Omaha World Herald picked up the story earlier this week. http://www.omaha.com/money/what-s-next-on-riverfront-uncertain-future-for-conagra-s/article_cd1a3904-7293-5494-a557-3462bfc6fc33.html  

 

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