20th Anniversary Edition Celebrating the Past and...
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20th Anniversary Edition Celebrating the Past and Looking to the Future. Newsletter 2013—2014 Meet the Mayors Meet Lady Mockbee New Rural Studio Book Page 3 Page 12 Page 14 All of Rural Studio’s news from Hale County vol. 3 ACROSS 1 Freear’s birthplace 5 Mason’s Bend “Black –– River” 8 Town Hall wood 12 RS Chef 13 Protects electrical wire 14 RS construction loader “––cat” 16 Greensboro newspaper 17 Mister (Abbr.) 19 “–– sites” 21 AL neighbor 22 Mr. Eyes Cancer man in the phone book 28 Morrisette outdoor dining “Great ––” 30 “Newbern Volunteer –– Dept.” 31 RS photographer “–– Hursley” 32 Autodesk 3D modeling program 33 “Scout ––” 34 Natalie Butts (initials) 36 Property document 38 AL “Civil Rights Trail –– Museum” 42 Newbern school 48 Hudgens watercolor “–– Arts” style 49 20K –– 50 “Let us now –– famous men” 51 RS County 52 RS University 54 Sambo’s wife 57 Type of roof structure, i.e. 20K House 58 Arch. org. 59 Morrisette orchard 61 Perry Lakes Pavillion material 63 “Drill ––” or “Snake ––” 64 RS structure “Super ––” DOWN 88 Not urban 89 “–– and be Bold” 90 Knackered (two words) 91 Hale County soil 93 Ann Langford’s preferred hairdo 94 Newbern Volunteer Fire Dept 95 the Perry Lakes Birding Tower 99 “Proceed and be ––” 101 Brenda’s #1 rule 102 3rd-Year’s Professor Vendrell, for short 104 RS Co-founder 108 Arch. Licens. Exam. 110 Wooden vault structural system 111 RS action man Johnny –– 112 1994 House Project 114 Development officer middle name 115 Black, Red, or Fire 116 Gardening tool 117 “Whiffle ––” 118 Lions park color 120 Stops a day’s site-work 122 RS barrel scent 124 20K Challenge city winner 126 Newbern Little League field elm 127 Sunburn cause 2 One of Gardener Eric’s degree is in bio–– 3 Artifact above Redbarn door 4 Watercolor and History teacher Hudgens 6 Resonance Dampening Mechanism (acronym) 7 “–– Studio” 8 Steve Long’s woodshop class 9 Lions Park fitness equipment color 10 FEMA shelters protect 20K clients from bad –– 11 Timothy Hursley’s ongoing photo subject 12 Faunsdale eatery 13 Hale aquaculture product 15 Newbern street 18 Johnny Parker’s first dog 20 Closest commercial airport to Newbern 23 Project work locations 26 Letterpress friend “–– Kennedy” 29 Arch. licensing exams (abbr.) 31 Number of Perry Lakes restrooms 33 Bigger than big 35 Andrew’s beer of choice 39 The ‘F’ in NVFD 40 Sambo’s green-bottled beer 41 “Pick ––” 43 Intern hours org. 44 Places to meet at Lions Park 45 Hard knot in wood 47 Auburn sports conference 53 Hammer’s partner 55 Door hardware 50 “–– Roast” 48 Hale County region 123 Hospital courtyard fish 125 61, 25, and 69 129 Cross ventilation and ceiling fans instead of “––” 131 “–– Howard” Bike-ride 132 AU opponent 140 Tigers acronym 66 Tree for Kissing, pissing, and climbing 67 Lower Alabama (acronym) 69 Residential Code (acronym) 71 Hospital courtyard planter beds 74 “–– Bound” (a vaudeville song) 76 Freear licence plate “British ––” 77 Receipts go to “––” 79 Tire chapel 84 A type of welding 85 First RS truck 86 “hand ––” 128 Alabama (abbr) 130 Long-winded owl sound? 132 Catfish cooking method 133 Charlie Lucas, “–– Man” 134 Gone With the Wind writing location 135 Rural Studio’s design studio 136 Cow sound 137 Skatepark donor Tony 138 Critique, or Design –– 138 Christenberry barn color 87 Dufus dog breed 89 Thomaston treat 96 Southern food 97 First Newbern building in 98 years 96 Andrew and Elena’s bundle of joy 100 “Wild animal” park 103 Baptist Church project 105 Carpet House client “Lucy ––” 106 Semesterly week of service work 107 Former Tenampa name 108 Newbern gorilla 109 Down a tree 113 Small diameter tree removal 114 Ongoing 3rd Year project 119 Handle a hammer 121 Hartsfield-Jackson acronym 69 Building code (acronym) 70 Sunburn factor 72 Yancy material 75 Accessibility Code 73 Beneath the roses 78 SEC neighbor 83 Pod material 85 Office Manager, Gayle, originally worked at the Rural –– Center 81 Newbern Mercantile Store, previously 82 “Everything but the kitchen ––” 83 Lucy’s house tiles 80 Americans with Disabilities Act (acronym) 60 Redbarn icon 62 Barrels of fun 65 RS reappropriated building material 68 RS state Crossword answers on page 17 141 AU battle cry “–– Eagle” 142 Sambo’s favorite animal 25 First RS house project 80 Location of two RS built Boys & Girls Club 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 10 11 9 12 13 14 15 17 16 18 19 20 22 23 21 25 26 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 100 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 126 125 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142
Transcript of 20th Anniversary Edition Celebrating the Past and...
20th Anniversary Edition Celebrating the Past and Looking to the Future.
Newsletter 2013—2014
Meet the Mayors Meet Lady Mockbee New Rural Studio Book
Page 3 Page 12 Page 14
All of Rural Studio’s news from Hale County
vol. 3
ACROSS
1 Freear’s birthplace5 Mason’s Bend “Black –– River”8 Town Hall wood12 RS Chef13 Protects electrical wire14 RS construction loader “––cat”16 Greensboro newspaper17 Mister (Abbr.)19 “–– sites”21 AL neighbor22 Mr. Eyes Cancer man in the phone book
28 Morrisette outdoor dining “Great ––” 30 “Newbern Volunteer –– Dept.” 31 RS photographer “–– Hursley”32 Autodesk 3D modeling program33 “Scout ––”34 Natalie Butts (initials)36 Property document38 AL “Civil Rights Trail –– Museum”42 Newbern school48 Hudgens watercolor “–– Arts” style 49 20K ––50 “Let us now –– famous men”51 RS County52 RS University54 Sambo’s wife57 Type of roof structure, i.e. 20K House58 Arch. org.59 Morrisette orchard61 Perry Lakes Pavillion material63 “Drill ––” or “Snake ––”64 RS structure “Super ––”
DOWN
88 Not urban89 “–– and be Bold”90 Knackered (two words)91 Hale County soil93 Ann Langford’s preferred hairdo
94 Newbern Volunteer Fire Dept
95 the Perry Lakes Birding Tower99 “Proceed and be ––”101 Brenda’s #1 rule102 3rd-Year’s Professor Vendrell, for short104 RS Co-founder108 Arch. Licens. Exam.110 Wooden vault structural system111 RS action man Johnny ––112 1994 House Project114 Development officer middle name115 Black, Red, or Fire116 Gardening tool117 “Whiffle ––”118 Lions park color120 Stops a day’s site-work122 RS barrel scent 124 20K Challenge city winner 126 Newbern Little League field elm127 Sunburn cause
2 One of Gardener Eric’s degree is in bio––3 Artifact above Redbarn door4 Watercolor and History teacher Hudgens6 Resonance Dampening Mechanism (acronym)7 “–– Studio”8 Steve Long’s woodshop class9 Lions Park fitness equipment color10 FEMA shelters protect 20K clients from bad ––11 Timothy Hursley’s ongoing photo subject
12 Faunsdale eatery13 Hale aquaculture product15 Newbern street18 Johnny Parker’s first dog20 Closest commercial airport to Newbern23 Project work locations26 Letterpress friend “–– Kennedy”29 Arch. licensing exams (abbr.)31 Number of Perry Lakes restrooms33 Bigger than big35 Andrew’s beer of choice39 The ‘F’ in NVFD40 Sambo’s green-bottled beer41 “Pick ––”43 Intern hours org.44 Places to meet at Lions Park45 Hard knot in wood47 Auburn sports conference
53 Hammer’s partner55 Door hardware
50 “–– Roast”48 Hale County region
123 Hospital courtyard fish125 61, 25, and 69129 Cross ventilation and ceiling fans instead of “––”131 “–– Howard” Bike-ride132 AU opponent140 Tigers acronym
66 Tree for Kissing, pissing, and climbing67 Lower Alabama (acronym)69 Residential Code (acronym)71 Hospital courtyard planter beds74 “–– Bound” (a vaudeville song)76 Freear licence plate “British ––”77 Receipts go to “––”79 Tire chapel
84 A type of welding85 First RS truck86 “hand ––”
128 Alabama (abbr)130 Long-winded owl sound?132 Catfish cooking method133 Charlie Lucas, “–– Man”134 Gone With the Wind writing location135 Rural Studio’s design studio136 Cow sound137 Skatepark donor Tony138 Critique, or Design ––138 Christenberry barn color
87 Dufus dog breed89 Thomaston treat96 Southern food97 First Newbern building in 98 years96 Andrew and Elena’s bundle of joy100 “Wild animal” park103 Baptist Church project105 Carpet House client “Lucy ––”106 Semesterly week of service work107 Former Tenampa name108 Newbern gorilla109 Down a tree113 Small diameter tree removal114 Ongoing 3rd Year project119 Handle a hammer121 Hartsfield-Jackson acronym
69 Building code (acronym)70 Sunburn factor72 Yancy material
75 Accessibility Code73 Beneath the roses
78 SEC neighbor
83 Pod material85 Office Manager, Gayle, originally worked at theRural –– Center
81 Newbern Mercantile Store, previously 82 “Everything but the kitchen ––”83 Lucy’s house tiles
80 Americans with Disabilities Act (acronym)
60 Redbarn icon62 Barrels of fun65 RS reappropriated building material68 RS state
Crossword answers on page 17
141 AU battle cry “–– Eagle”142 Sambo’s favorite animal
25 First RS house project
80 Location of two RS built Boys & Girls Club
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County based company, Westervelt Lumber, provided all the framing for the 20K Houses, The Greensboro Boys & Girls Club, the Newbern Library and the Lions Park Scout Hut.
The major news this year was that Rural Studio was featured in one of Auburn University’s half-time football commercials. The commercial was shown in the last half of the season, and at the National Championship……War Damn Eagle……….y’all. In Newbern, we were sad to hear that Sunshine School, because of drastically falling enrollment, will close in after next year. The Newbern kids will instead, be bused to Greensboro. The Post Office opening hours have been reduced to four hours a day: the inconvenience of which will surely lead to reduced income and thus an excuse for closure. On the bright side, the Avery family, the current owners of the Newbern Mercantile Store, are making a real go of the downtown store. On a sad note: at the end of last year we lost our neighbor and friend Haywood Stokes. We miss him taking actual pot shots at the Morrisette Greenhouse and verbal pot shots at us with his wonderfully grumpy sense of humor. He was a real Newbern character and a lovely fella.
In Greensboro, we are instigating and helping with the first baby steps towards the creation of a City Parks and Recreations department. The department will manage all the City Parks, the Greensboro Recreation Center and the Boys and Girls Club as well as provide ideas for future Parks and Recreation Development. With the help of design drawings by John Marusich, the Mayor and the City of Greensboro have refurbished the Police station inside the City Hall: and Cameron Acheson with Mackenzie Stagg designed a new City Flag to be used at major city-wide occasions. In the Spring Semester, our 20th Anniversary Celebrations continued with more fabulous and diverse visitors from architects like Tom Kundig, Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, to the design-build guys Dan Rockhill and Adam Hopfner, to the so-called critical regionalist Brian MacKay Lyons and more great southern architects Frank Harmon, Steve Dumez and Roy Decker. In addition, on the first day of Spring, great southern Chef Scott Peacock helped us celebrate the 20th Anniversary and the Rural Studio Farm by creating a Springfest feast from our Rural Studio garden.
At the end of the academic year we closed out our anniversary with the Super Pig Roast and the mother of all parties. We celebrated not only this year’s graduating students, but also great folks from across the twenty years who have helped make Rural Studio what it is today.
It has been an unforgettable year. Thank you to everyone! Best,
Andrew Freear Director, Rural Studio
Academically this year, we have focused on the 20K House. Fifth Year and Outreach students started the year by building two one-bedroom show homes with the staff, based on previously designed models. They have now designed (and are in the process of building) four new two-bedroom models around Newbern. The 3rd Year students built two houses for our former clients and friends Rose Lee and Jason Turner, whose previous home burnt down.
The 20K House provokes living within your means: a house for everyone and anyone. It is a house that gains in value over time. It is a house that screams small is better; a house that is tightly built, and efficiently engineered. It is a house that relies on passive lighting, heating, cooling and ventilation strategies to encourage healthy living and low fuel bills and a house that learns from the past. The house is designed with high ceilings, big overhangs, good cross-ventilation and a celebratory porch. Most importantly, it is a house that looks to the future and strives for beauty in responsibility.
We believe that Rural Studio has both the opportunity and the moral responsibility to undertake the 20K House project. Since 2006, we have put in excess of 128,000 hours into 20K development and research: a project that because of the very financial constraints suggested by its name, has no budget for design. No other architect, builder or developer could afford the luxury of this kind of time for this research, the search for a beautiful affordable house.
Alongside the 20K Houses we have plethora of community projects that we are finishing this year: three projects in Lions Park; a Scout Hut, Fitness equipment, and a major landscaping and irrigation project. Alongside Lions Park, we have two very important institutional projects: a new library for Newbern and a study center for the Boys and Girls Club in Greensboro.
The Rural Studio staff have been working very hard to facilitate the projects and, in addition, to get the word out about the Anniversary. Mackenzie Stagg, Cameron Acheson and Clifton Burt have been working diligently to stay on top of the graphic output: including expanding our array of letterpress output with posters from Hatch Show print, Amos Kennedy and The Southern Letterpress. We want to use our graphic output as a way to celebrate, support, and promote the craft, beauty and ethic of these posters. We hope you agree that their spirit is a good marriage with Rural Studio.
The highlights of the other Rural Studio faculty and staff news is that our gardener Eric Ball went on a six-week course based on permaculture at the Lost Valley Education Center in Dexter, Oregon. Rusty Smith, our Associate Director and Architecture School Program Chair, is back in the harness after his well-deserved sabbatical. Marion McElroy, our 20K Manager, gave birth to the beautiful, bouncing Charlotte (born a Yankee can you believe). With his silly sexy accent, Barcelona and Chicago architect Xavier Vendrell has proved to be a wonderful replacement for 3rd Year Professor Elena Barthel. Elena took a leave of absence and presented us with a baby daughter, Cristina, in October! Our School, College, and University continue to offer great support. Melissa Denney and the College Development officers have worked tirelessly to find support for the Studio. Regions Bank recently recommitted their support to the 20K House program. The National Endowment for the Arts supported us with a grant for a short documentary to follow the 20th Anniversary. Alabama Power supported the 20th Anniversary Celebrations and the Hale
Letter from Hale County
Dear Friends,
I hope y’all are well and that you survived this year’s winter freeze. In Hale County, despite all of the Studio’s buildings getting at least one frozen pipe, our 20th Anniversary celebratory spirit was not broken.
We have had an incredible array of visitors over the school year and a number of events that we hope to see being held on an annual basis. One of the highlights for me, was being honored by a visit from Australian architect Glenn Murcutt, who generously piggy-backed his trip to Hale on his commitment to being a Jury member for the Pritzker prize. Glenn is a remarkable architect and a remarkable man. Never seeking stardom, he has kept his head down and simply chosen to try to do good work. He preaches responsibility. He works as a single practitioner, draws all his projects by hand, supervises on site and by choice has never sought projects outside of his home country. With humility and modesty he has learned from the people and seeks to understand the place that he lives in. He has refined an architecture that learns from, delights in, and reveals the surrounding landscape. In doing this, he has earned plaudits and unintended fame: the world has come to him.
We loved him when he came to Newbern: he toured West Alabama, critiqued our projects, jousted with students, lunched at Newbern Mercantile and for two memorable hours in Newbern Town Hall held an audience captive with his extraordinary energy, passion, commitment, rigor, resilience, humbleness and sheer delight in making architecture. In Glenn we found a kindred spirit, a role model and a really good guy. Glenn was just one of a number of like-minded visitors to grace us with their presence this year.
The greatest achievement of the 20th Anniversary Year has been the opportunity to connect with our former students and imagining that connection in a sustainable, long-term way. People ask where our alumni go and what are they doing? How did the Rural Studio experience shape their destiny? With this in mind, Natalie Butts, our 20th Anniversary manager, started to realize there were clear pockets of Rural Studio folks in many cities. They were there, often unknowingly, and often unknown to each other. This provoked us to suggest establishing an informal city-based network that could provide support, friendship, and guidance to a group of folks with a common background.
The city-based networks immediately threw out a challenge to each other to raise money towards 20K Houses for the Rural Studio 20th Anniversary. The results were incredible and the dollars figures achieved beyond our wildest dreams. Events were held in many cities. Rural Studio’s message was spread far and wide from San Francisco to Chicago to Birmingham: most often and most importantly to a whole new audience: new followers and new converts!
Another highlight of the 20th Anniversary was our Alumni Lecture Nights. On three occasions, we asked alumni from across the twenty years to make short slide presentations that explained who they are, what they are up to, and what they have achieved. From the gritty yet beautifully informal stage at CaJohns Bar and Grill in Faunsdale, Alabama, we were taken all around the world and down a wide variety of career paths. Man, were we proud.
From Kampala, Uganda to Birmingham, Alabama, from India to England, from newly defined careers with NASA and civil liberties law, from houses for rich folks to community planning and affordable housing developments. From vapor retardants to fancy glass structures. They blew us away with their passion and commitment. All of our alumni showed us how seriously they took their work, but most importantly showed how they didn’t take themselves too seriously. The evenings were filled with laughter (and beer).
AUBURN UNIVERSITY IS
AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY
EDUCATIONAL
INSTITUTION/EMPLOYER.
b i g c h e e s e
Andrew Freear
p r i n t i n g Auburn Opelika Printing
p r o d u c t i o n Cameron Acheson
e d i t i n g
Cameron Acheson
c o p y-e d i t i n g
Mackenzie StaggColleen Bourdeau
l ay o u t
Clifton Burt
i l l u s t r at i o n s
Mackenzie Stagg
c r o s s w o r d p u z z l e
Cameron AchesonClifton BurtWith help from:Alex HendersonJohn Marusich
R U R A L S T U D I O A T 2 0D E S I G N I N G A N D B U I L D I N G I N H A L E C O U N T Y A L A B A M A
— A V A I L A B L E N O W —
B O O K S - A - M I L L I O N
Portions of the proceeds from B-A-M go to Rural Studio
http://booksamillion.com
P R I N C E T O N A R C H I T E C T U R A L P R E S S
http://papress.com
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From March to April 2013, the University of Manitoba hosted an exhibit of Rural Studio work entitled ‘20K Houses.’ The exhibit highlighted the evolution of the 20K House from the first version (Elizabeth’s House, built in 2005) through the eleventh version (Turner’s House, built in 2012). The design of each house was shown in a display of plans, sections and finish photos along with facts and figures such as the building’s footprint and area. In addition to the project boards, the exhibit included sketches and process drawings from 20Kv8 Dave’s House and 20Kv9 Mac’s House. A final model of Dave’s House was also on display. The exhibit was placed in the gallery of University of Manitoba’s Department of Architecture.
Recent Press & Awards
Press
Exhibitions
Treasuring Alabama’s Black Belt | ed. Nancy Anderson & Foster Dickson | Alabama Humanities Foundation | 2013 “The Rural Studio” | www.designboom.com | Design Boom | 2013 “Rural Studio” | www.spatialagency.net | Spatial Agency | 2013
“Design for Dignity” | Gretchen Schnider | Architecture Boston | spring 2013
“Safe House Museum” | World Architects | www.world-architects.com | january 2013 “From the home front: $20K House project aims at affordable alternatives to trailers; accessible homes” | www.oregonlive.com |” | The Oregonian | april 2013
“Newbern Town Hall” | John Gendall | Architect Magazine | may 2013 “Sweet Home Alabama” | Carla Jean Whitley | Delta Sky Magazine | may 2013
“Inside the Rural Studio” | Andrea Jean | Made | june 2013 “Newbern Town Hall” | John Gendall | Architect Magazine | may 2013 “Sweet Home Alabama” | Carla Jean Whitley | Delta Sky Magazine | may 2013
“Rural Studio Celebrates 20th Anniversary with eight 20K Houses” | www.archdaily.com | Arch Daily | september 2013 “Newbern Town Hall” | www.architectmagazine.com | Architect Magazine Online | june 2013 “The Rural Studio Celebrates 20th Anniversary” | www.studioapla.auburn.edu | StudioAPLA | summer 2013 “Rural Studio Debuts the Newbern Town Hall Project” | www.studioapla.auburn.edu | StudioAPLA | summer 2013
“Country Fare” | Asad Syrkett | Architectural Record | july 2013 “Rural Studio – for Food” | www.designalabama.org | DesignAlabama | july 2013 “Newbern Town Hall” | www.archdaily.com | Arch Daily | july 2013 “Rose Lee House” | www.archdaily.com | Arch Daily | july 2013 “Lions Park Playscape” | www.archkids.com | Arch Kids | july 2013
“Well-designed $20,000 houses for the poor? Rural Studio makes them” | www.csmonitor.com | The Christian Science Monitor | july 2013 “Architects who improvise and innovate” | Edwin Heathcote | Financial Times | august 2013
“Rural Studio enseña a diseñar casas para los más pobres” | www.obrasweb.mx | Obras Web | august 2013 “The $20,000 Home: Lessons from the rugged frontier of low-cost design” | Belinda Luscombe | Time Magazine | september 2013
“The Heart of Hale County” | Rob Walker | Fast Company Magazine | january 2014
“The Rural Studio Turns 20” | Nick Kaye & Gregory Miller. | www.bittersoutherner.com | The Bitter Southerner | april 2014
“Can These $20,000 Houses Save the American Dream? || Slate | www.slate.com | may 2014
“Twenty Years Later, What Rural Studio continues to teach us about Good Design” | archdaily.com | Arch Daily | may 2014 “Cypress Timbers Called on for Good Looks, Durability” | www.building-products.com | august 2013
Inside the Phoenix Podcast with Andrew Freear | www.insidethephoenix.com | Warren Anderson | october 2013
“This Impeccably Designed $20,000 House Could Soon Be Yours” | www.fastcoexist.com | Sydney Brownstone | november 2013
“Hands-On Soulful Designs” | Business Alabama Maga-zine | Jessica Armstrong | november 2013
“Shelter for the Soul” | Lean Magazine | Jennifer Kornegay | winter 2014
Action Phase Podcast: Episode 7 with Marion McElroy | www.actionphasepodcast.com | Teagan Keating | december 2013
“La casa de Rose Lee, en Alabama, proyectada y construida por alumnos de Rural Studio” | www.arqa.com | ARQA | february 2014
“Want to build a $20K home? Auburn prepares to bring exper-imental house designs to market” | AL.com/Birmingham News | Evan Belanger | march 2014
“College Program Aims to Help People Build a Home for Just $20,000” | www.livability.com | Stephanie Stewart-Howard | march 2014
“Stories of Impact” | www.autodesk.org | Autodesk | March 2014
“Rural Studio Dwell” | http://issue04.formacollective.com/ | Joshua Robinson | Forma | Issue 04 - spring 2014
“RS20 Update” | www.studioapla.auburn.edu | StudioAPLA | spring 2014
“Breeding Grounds” | Fine Homebuilding Magazine | Sean Groom | april 2014
“Proceed and be Bold: Rural Studio enters its 21st Year” | Planet Weekly | Thelma Paulsen | may 29, 2014
“Born and Raised in Hale County” | Architectural Record | Beth Broome | june 2014
This year, Rural Studio is delighted to announce the release of its third book, Rural Studio at Twenty: Designing and building in Hale County, Alabama. It is authored by Andrew Freear, Elena Barthel, Andrea Oppenheimer-Dean and Timothy Hursley and published by Princeton Architectural Press.
Princeton Press states: Rural Studio at Twenty chronicles the evolution of the legendary program, co-founded by visionary Samuel Mockbee and his friend and colleague d. k. Ruth and now directed by their equally dedicated and forward-thinking successor Andrew Freear. In addition to showcasing an impressive portfolio of projects, stunningly captured by photographer Timothy Hursley, this book provides an in-depth look at how Rural Studio has thrived through challenges and triumphs, missteps and lessons learned. Significantly, it also looks to the future, as the studio takes on some of its most ambitious projects yet—from the Rural Studio Farm, a model for sustainable living, to the 20K House program, aimed at creating an affordable home for everyone. The volume is anchored by a collection of essays from advisors, consultants, community partners, clients, and alumni, whose support has been critical to the studio’s continued success.
Rural Studio Turns 20 at 49 Geary
In honor of the 20th Anniversary, Bohlin Cywinski Jackson showcased a selection of Rural Studio 20K House projects at San Francisco’s "First-Thursday" Open Galleries art walk this past October and November. Early and more recent 20K House propositions were exhibited on architectural presentation boards, and punctuated by a large format photo of Alberta and Shepard Bryant, donated by Timothy Hursley. Featured opposite were commemorative posters by Amos Paul Kennedy Jr. as well as archival prints from their Rural Studio stay by Mark Wise, Danny Wicke, and Sabina Nieto.
University of Manitoba Exhibit‘20K Houses’
Museum of Design Atlanta: Design for Social Impact
The Museum of Design Atlanta is featuring Rural Studio in their Design for Social Impact exhibit. The exhibit is open from May 25 – August 3, 2014 - and will demonstrate how designers, architects, community organizations, social entrepreneurs, students, and professors practicing in Atlanta and across the Southeastern United States are using design methodologies to tackle a wide-range of real-world challenges. The exhibit will feature both process and finished work from our 20K House project. For more information, please visit: www.museumofdesign.org.
Rural Studio is part of an exhibition currently on view in Paris at the Cité de l’Architecure et du Patrimoine. The exhibition, ‘Re-Enchanting the World,’ was designed in collaboration with winners of the Global Award for Sustainable Architecture. Our very own Elena Barthel worked on Rural Studio’s contribution to the exhibition, which will run through October 6, 2014. From the Museum’s press release:Re-enchanting the world is an exhibition-manifesto on the future of the inhabited world, designed with the prizewinning architects of the Global Award for Sustainable Architecture. As the years have gone by, these architects have created a research, experimentation, questioning stage, recognized in the worldwide debate on large-scale transitions — ecological, demographic or urban.
CITE Exhibit: Re-Enchanting the World
Photo: Luka NowickiPhoto: Gaston Bergeret
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Dick Hudgens
I grew up in the country outside of Linden, Alabama. My grandfather and grandmother lived on one side of our house and my uncle, aunt and their children lived on the other side of us. We were the only families that lived on our road for several miles in each direction. We visited my grandparents everyday and on many summer evenings, we sat on the porch while my grandfather and grandmother told stories about their parents and grandparents. I believe this ignited a keen interest in history to me. I think one childhood moment that changed my life was a Christmas gift from my first cousin of the book Natchez by Harnett T. Kane. I fell in love with the stories about the Natchez houses and the people that lived in them.
During my elementary school years, there were many estate sales in the Black Belt. Mother would go to these with friends, and I would tag along. Seeing wonderful antebellum houses and their contents really inspired me and encouraged my interest in architecture and antiques. I became aware of our heritage in the Black Belt and wanted to know more about it. I did not decide to become an architect until the 12th grade. I had no idea what I wanted to do, so I had applied and been accepted to the University of Alabama in Pre-Law. Both of my parents and my brother had gone to the University of Alabama. In March of my senior year, my high school guidance counselor talked to me and told me that I should apply to Auburn’s architecture program. She knew that as a child, I would come home from visiting local antebellum houses and draw elevations of imaginary classical houses with my drawing board and tee square. I was not sure about applying to Auburn. It was late in the spring to apply, but I said I would give it a try. I decided that if I was accepted, I would go to Auburn. I was accepted and that changed my life. Being in architecture school at Auburn was tough. I had several friends from high school that were going to Auburn in other fields. They typically finished classes by 1:00 or 2:00 p.m. We had classes all day long, not finishing until 5:00 p.m. We also had to work nights and weekends quite a bit. I had come from a small high school in a very conservative town where my graduating high school class was only 50 people. It was a shock to be thrown into a much larger environment where the teaching methods were very different from what I had been used to. During my 3rd year of school, I received a notice from the Draft Board to report for my physical. My draft number was relatively low, so after the physical, I put my name on the list to join the National Guard. My name was called up in late August or early September of the next year - which made me miss an entire year of school. When I returned to Auburn, I finished my Architecture degree and stayed another two quarters to get a second degree in Building Science. After I graduated from Auburn, I interned in Montgomery with PH&J Architects for three years and with Barganier McKee Architects for one year. I then went home to Linden and opened my own firm. It took about two years to build up enough work to keep me busy full-time. At first, I did a lot of public housing renovation, some residential and some National Guard armories and school work. I liked the mix of work I had and finally I was able to get some joint venture work with Jones and Herren Architects in Huntsville on Magnolia Grove, which is owned by the Alabama Historical Commission. I learned a lot about historical renovation and restoration work on this project and I also sought out and attended conferences on historical restoration. As a student at Auburn, I felt that I did not learn enough about historical
Faculty Profile
Profiles
restoration and preservation at school, and I wanted to pursue the subject more after graduation. I applied to the Attingham Summer School in England and was accepted. Attingham is an intensive three week course in the study of the English Country house with tutors from the English National Trust and the Victoria and Albert Museum. It focuses on architecture, preservation, landscape architecture, fine art, and the decorative arts. The English are more advanced than we are in historic preservation work and the Attingham course was cutting edge. The program enabled me to confidently pursue more preservation projects. However, I think my favorite projects are the ones where I am able to both restore an historic structure and also design an addition to it. It is the best of both worlds to me and the challenge of adding on to an historic structure is something that was influenced by my studies in England. Sambo Mockbee was a classmate of mine at Auburn. When he and D.K. Ruth started Rural Studio, they needed several other courses to give the students enough credits to be full time. Sambo knew I specialized in preservation projects and that I was familiar with historic buildings in the Black Belt. He asked me to teach a History and Theory Seminar to enable the students to see and experience the architectural heritage of the Black Belt. I had not done anything like that before, but I said yes. I started teaching at the Rural Studio the second quarter after it began and I have been teaching there ever since. I enjoy sharing our architectural heritage of the Black Belt with the students. It is fun to see them learn about the different architects and builders that worked in this area and for them to actually experience the buildings. That is a much more powerful teaching tool than looking at slides or pictures of historic buildings. My classes at Rural Studio have varied over the years. My primary class has been the History and Theory Seminar. I have also taught Architectural History One, Materials and Methods, Watercolor, and one summer I did an experimental architectural preservation course. My class usually consists of weekly field trips to antebellum structures in the Black Belt. After we tour the buildings, I have the students do thirty minute architectural drawings of the buildings we have seen; such as floor plans, sections, or elevations. I also encourage the students to take notes during the tours. With this method, the students learn about the architecture and history and also develop a sketching technique that they will use throughout their careers. I also assign the students a building to draw and watercolor in the Beaux Arts Style. The handcrafted work of the sketch book and the watercolor makes the students look at the buildings in an intense way and hopefully increases their understanding of these buildings and why they developed the way they did.
As much as I love teaching the students, I think I learn more from them. I relish the interaction with the students and their questions. It stimulates thought both for them and for me. I love to show the students some of my projects and share the experiences I have had in designing and building these projects. I hope that the conversations we have about these projects and buildings give the students some insights into the complex world of architecture and the many options ahead for them.
West Alabama native Richard Hudgens has been teaching at Rural Studio since 1993. Over the last twenty years, Dick has offered Rural Studio’s students a unique insight into the historical architecture of the Alabama Blackbelt. His dedication to the program and place have helped make Rural Studio what it is today.
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3rd Year Program
For the last five years, the 3rd Year students have focused on the Rural Studio Farm project, where they have been designing and building infrastructure to help the Studio live in a more local, self-sufficient way.
This year, to celebrate the 20th Anniversary, the 3rd Year students built two modified 20K Houses for their clients Rose Lee Turner and her son Jason.
For the past four years, as part of the 3rd Year course of study, an emphasis has been placed on developing and encouraging the use of wood as a renewable and readily available material throughout the Studio. The Rural Studio wood shop has served as a base for 3rd Year students to gain a solid understanding of woodworking skills and focus on the quality and characteristics of working with wood. They are challenged to develop and design the process of recreating iconic modern chairs through research, drawing, modeling and building. The final product yields extensive drawings and the actual reproduction of the chair. The goal is to reinforce a culture of rigor in research and craft that will extend beyond the woodshop into future projects.
Programs & Current Projects
In the 2009 academic year, the Second Year Studio designed and built a house for Rose Lee Turner in Footwash, Alabama. Led by Assistant Professor Elena Barthel and Instructor John Marusich, the studio investigated contemporary forms of rural housing. It was through this study that they discovered the idea of an expandable house; a housing strategy based on southern farmhouses. The client needed a home with flexible living spaces, but also with opportunity for easy expansion to accommodate her children. The courtyard was designed to bring natural light and landscape into the center of the dwelling, while simultaneously creating a flexible ‘outdoor living room’. These two design strategies helped frame the structure for each semester’s studio. The fall semester focused on “the Machine” or the social spaces of the house plus Rose Lee’s bedroom. The spring semester focused on “the Expansion” or two bedrooms for BJ and Jason plus the courtyard.
Rose Lee and her children moved into their home in August 2009. In January of 2011, Rose Lee’s House burnt to the ground. For the last three years, Rose Lee has lived in a trailer with her son Jason on the same property.
This year’s 3rd Year Studio used the knowledge from building Rose Lee’s original house with the nearly ten years of Rural Studio experience of the 20K House Project to build two modified 20K Houses for Rose Lee and Jason. With Elena Barthel on maternity leave, the 3rd Year Studio is being taught by visiting professor Xavier Vendrell and Instructors John Marusich and Alex Henderson. Xavier Vendrell is currently a Professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, School of Architecture and Principal of Xavier Vendrell Studio.
The design strategy of this year’s studio was to take two existing 20K prototypes, and build them around Rose Lee’s original courtyard. This offered Rural Studio an opportunity to test two 20K Houses in close proximity. Both 20K models were modified as a way to add needed bedrooms, but also to test new details.
The role of the fall semester was to analyze the existing 20K House Models and select two that were most appropriate for Rose Lee and Jason. The students analyzed the houses on their site, how the houses operated next to each other, how the houses sat within
The objective of the History and Theory Seminar at Rural Studio is to familiarize the students with the built environment in Alabama’s Black Belt and to gain understanding of the context of the buildings when they were built and how they relate to the world today. The physical, social, and cultural environments have to be understood in order to place these buildings in context, both nationally and internationally. The course consists of weekly trips to historic buildings in west Alabama, discussion of the buildings, and free-hand sketches of each building visited. Also part of the course requirements is a “Beaux Arts” watercolor of a historic building in the Black Belt.
the landscape, and how the houses used the existing courtyard. By the end of the fall semester, 20K v12 Eddie’s House and 20K v9 MacArthur’s House had been selected and sited, and construction was well underway.
The goal for the spring semester was to continue construction, while analyzing the materiality of both houses, designing the courtyard and designing the adjacent landscape elements. This semester focused on uniting the two houses as one house with a courtyard in between, an idea that pays tribute to Rose Lee’s original house. The houses are expected to be completed by July 2014.
C H A I R C L A S S H I S T O R Y A N D T H E O R Y S E M I N A R
Photo: Timothy Hursley
A view of the courtyard at Rose Lee’s original house.
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5th Year Program and OutreachInstructors: Andrew Freear, Mackenzie Stagg and Cameron Acheson
The 20K House has been the focus of the Outreach program since 2005. The Outreach Program was conceived as a way to bring outside students into the fold of Rural Studio. While the Outreach students have been embedded in the 5th Year studio since the program began, this year, the 5th Years and Outreach have the opportunity to work together.
Since 2005, Rural Studio has designed and built 12 iterations of the 20K House: a well-built, affordable house for everyone. With the exception of 20Kv1: Elizabeth’s House and 20Kv3: 32K Truss House, the houses have been one-bedroom homes, which could serve an individual or a couple. This year, the 14 5th Year and Outreach students have been challenged to design and build four two–bedroom homes. The two–bedroom homes will extend the potential client pool to include a wider range of family situations. With the expansion of the house, the students are also reexamining the budget of the 20K House. The original houses budgeted the
Programs & Current Projects
total cost at $20,000 where approximately $12,000 is allocated for materials and the remaining $8,000 would cover labor and profit. However, due to inflation of building material costs and the expanded square footage needed to accommodate the second bedroom, the budget is being reevaluated to assure that the 20K House remain affordable to everyone.
Designing and building four houses in tandem allows the students the opportunity to try four distinct two-bedroom schemes. Starting out as a group of 14, the students developed a variety of schemes based on different spatial diagrams. The students dwindled the diagrams down into seven schemes, which were developed further. Before choosing teams, the students analyzed each of the seven schemes using such criteria as feasibility, accessibility and efficiency of plan as well as ensuring a substantial amount of diversity among the schemes. From this analysis, four schemes were chosen to be developed by four teams of students. The two-bedroom 20Ks will be completed by the end of July.
For the 20th Anniversary Year, the 5th Year and Outreach students are working together to expand the 20K House Product Line by developing four, two-bedroom 20K House models.
Sylvia’s House, at 775sq.ft., is the smallest of the current two-bedroom models, a credit to its extremely efficient plan
Volumetrically, the house is two bars that slide past each other. These sliding bars distinguish the social space from the private space while also creating two corner porches.
The corner porches allow flexibility in placing the house on different building sites. The house can be oriented to align with cardinal directions while also addressing the street with a porch. The porches, one screened and one open, provide different outdoor living options for the homeowner.
Sylvia’s House is the first 20K House to use a hip roof. The hip roof also boasts site flexibility: its large overhangs protect each wall equally from sun and rain.
Bobby’s House is a rectangular volume on piers. It also provides adaptable clearances for its client, and features a ramp accessing the back door.
The house learns from 20K v9 MacArthur’s House, and utilizes an inset porch in the middle of the house.
The inset porch divides the social and private spaces of the home while also creating implied “rooms” in the social space.
The gable roof provides large overhangs that protect the porch and stair on the front of the house, and the accessible ramp behind the house. The front stair also features a double-height, or “stadium” section, which doubles as seating for the porch.
20K v13 Sylvia’s House 20K v14 Bobby’s House
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Idella’s House is an adaptable model on grade. The house’s square geometry mimimizes linear feet of exterior wall while mazimizing interior square footage.
Idella’s House also includes a tornado safe room built to FEMA specifications. The same room doubles as the bathroom for the house.
By placing the safe room near the center of the house, it helps to divide and define interior spaces such as the kitchen, dining room and living room.
The house is completed with a generous front porch that includes a small ramp and columns that support built-in benches. The roof bends at two points, breaking down the scale of the house.
Michelle’s House is the narrowest of the two-bedroom models, providing excellent cross-ventilation.
The house has two porches carved from the volume of the house: one screened and one social.
By placing bedrooms behind each porch, the rooms benefit from windows placed to provide cross-ventilation through the center of the room. This configuration also locates all of the social spaces centrally in the house.
Instead of using overhangs to shade the wall of the house, the team eliminated the overhangs and instead
opted for localized shading of the windows. This shading can be specifically displayed based on the orientation of the house to respond to multiple site configurations.
20K v15 Idella’s House 20K v16 Michelle’s House
D E S I G N A N D B U I L D T H E N E X T G E N E R A T I O N O F 2 0 K H O U S E S
— A P P L Y N O W ( O R T E L L A F R I E N D ) —
ruralstudio.org/get-involved
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Photos: Timothy Hursley
For years, Rural Studio was encouraged to take these houses to market and fill a void in affordable rural housing. In 2009, the 20K House students evaluated the existing seven versions and decided to build upon one of these designs instead of starting from scratch; the 2010 and 2011 studios made the same decision. This intense scrutiny by the teams over three years plus the houses they built became the foundation for the 20K House Product Line. Dave’s House (2009), MacArthur’s House (2010) and Joanne’s House (2011) currently form the basis for the Product Line. In 2011, Rural Studio hired Marion McElroy, a 2002 Rural Studio alumna, as the 20K House Product Manager. In the past year, Rural Studio has taken huge steps towards having a marketable product. Working in collaboration with Landon Bone Baker Architects (lbba) from Chicago, who is serving as the architect of record for the 20K House project, the construction sets for the three 20K Houses have been standardized, including compliance with the 2012 International Residential Code and guidelines provided by fha and hud. Also, as the cost is a driving factor in the success of the 20K House, Rural Studio wanted to gain a more in-depth knowledge of the value processes in bidding a small residential house. To this end, Rural Studio asked several contractors across the State of Alabama to participate pro bono in a Pricing & Bidding Study: to bid the job as-is, then work with Rural Studio and lbba to answer any questions that may arise from the bidding price. As Rural Studio is an academic program, this was an opportunity for Rural Studio students to learn from this bidding process and take this knowledge as Rural Studio continues with the 20K House and other projects. The Pricing & Bidding Study was a learning tool and not an actual opportunity for construction. The findings from the Pricing & Bidding Study were informative for Rural Studio and lbba. For lbba, the conversation with one of the general contractors was invaluable to the analysis process. However, Rural Studio lacks sufficient data to do an accurate evaluation on price and will continue to solicit general contractors willing to participate in the Pricing & Bidding Study. We hope to learn more as this process continues.
In the development of the release plan, Rural Studio has decided to take an alternate path to a social enterprise business; an approach that focuses on an institutional collaboration instead of going door-to-door to find clients. The institutional buyer, or rural housing advocacy group, gives Rural Studio a hybrid approach to the delivery of the 20K Houses. In addition, this user would have experience in federal funding and other loan sourcing to adequately advise a 20K House client. Rural Studio will not construct the house(s), but will work in partnership with the buyers to answer questions and provide quality control. Rural Studio will also look to these groups for direction in future designs. This approach will allow Rural Studio to continue to focus on education of our students while simultaneously allowing us to stay involved with and learn from the 20K House as it evolves from project to product. Rural Studio is taking an aggressive step to identify rural housing advocacy groups and introduce the 20K House.
Rural Studio is sad to announce that at the end of this summer, Marion McElroy will be stepping down as 20K Manager. We will miss Marion, but are excited that 20th Anniversary Manager Natalie Butts will be staying on as our new 20K Manager. For more information about the 20K House, contact Natalie Butts at [email protected].
20K House
Marion McElroy graduated from Auburn University School of Architecture in 2002 and is an alumna of Rural Studio; her thesis project was the Antioch Baptist Church. After graduation, she moved to New York City and for eight years worked on both national and international projects with the firm of Philip Johnson / Alan Ritchie Architects. Marion has served as Rural Studio’s 20K Project manager for the last three years.
Profiles
As part of the 20th Anniversary Celebration, Rural Studio 5th Year students, Outreach students, and staff are currently in the process of constructing the 20K Model Homes in Newbern. The model homes are replicas of existing 20K designs, Dave’s House (2009), MacArthur’s House (2010), and Joanne’s House (2011), all built in tight proximity to one another. They test construction methods, material choices, efficiency and durability. Ultimately, these houses will be used to showcase the 20K House concept to potential clients and donors without disturbing our 20K homeowners. Chicago architecture firm and Rural Studio consultant Landon Bone Baker Architects (lbba), has provided services and advice in developing thorough construction documents of the three houses that will be used and tested throughout the construction phase.
The model homes are an important step in the marketing process of the 20K House and will be owned, operated and used by Rural Studio. The model homes are not intended to be student housing, but will be used as Rural Studio guest housing for visiting consultants and critics and as office space for Rural Studio product development. The studio can also use the model homes to conduct efficiency testing by recording energy bills and performing blower door tests.
Not only will this be an opportunity to test the buildings, but also used as a teaching tool for Rural Studio. 5th Year students and Outreach students will be building these houses alongside staff. Seeing and participating in the construction of these houses will inform the students’ current two-bedroom designs. All three model homes will be complete by December 2014.
2 0 K M O D E L H O M E S
The 20K House began in 2005 as a Rural Studio research project to address the need for affordable housing in Hale County, provide an alternative to the mobile home, and accommodate potential homeowners who are unable to qualify for commercial credit.
Natalie Butts graduated from Auburn University School of Architecture in 2005, and is also an alumna of Rural Studio; her 5th Year project was the Perry Lake Birding Tower. For the last two years, Natalie has served as Rural Studio’s 20th Anniversary Manager. This fall, she will become the new 20K Project Manager.
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Consultant ProfileJersey Devils
RURAL STUDIO: Where did your love of craft and building come from?
JOHN RINGEL: As a child I was drawn to making things—model boats and planes, erector sets,
Lincoln logs, tinker toys and 3-D puzzles. I did some model buildings from scratch for 0-gage model railroads. I built some home projects such as a dog house, and car port, and basic home repairs.JIM ADAMSON: I have always had an inventive and mechanical nature —loved to take things apart and try to put them back together
again. Took an early interest in wood construction. During a pyrotechnical phase, built rockets, pipe canons, giant sling shots, and perfected the “Molotov Cocktail” with a unique detonator that worked in the air and underwater (NSA, if you are listening: for recreational use only).
This phase abruptly ended when my parents’ basement caught on fire. The house, which survived, was designed for passive solar: It was oriented True south, with broad overhangs that controlled sunlight on a seasonal basis. Early on, I became aware of the house’s relationship to the site, climate, and the sun. These passive solar principles have been with me ever since.STEVE BADANES: My love of craft and building was genetic, maybe. My dad was a builder and I grew up around jobsites and worked on
carpentry crews as soon as I was old enough. Making things is an extension of what you do as a kid, and is even more fun as you get older.
RS: Tell us about your time in school. What did you like or dislike about architecture school?
JR: Initially, I received a degree in civil engineering. However, it was the 1960s and the Vietnam War led me to seek something more humanistic. I thought architecture would be that study. I found Princeton’s program fascinating but too formalistic and prescriptive in its stylistic approach. (I also was a bit unstable personally at the time.) It was a time when students (including me) were striking to protest the Vietnam War, and studies seemed secondary. The first “Earth Day” happened and the Whole Earth Catalogue. These pointed a new direction for design.JA: At the time, the school’s (Princeton’s) focus was the International Style and they pushed the likes of Le Corbusier. My leanings were more toward the work of Herb Greene, Bruce Goff, and Frank Lloyd Wright—architecture that was humanistic, artful, and fun. I was frustrated by the exclusive theoretical nature of the design curriculum, which we all know is important, but in the end, nobody knew how to build a building, including the professors.SB: I enjoyed the intellectual challenge of designing things from scratch, and I particularly loved the Architecture Lab, which was run by an incredibly skilled craftsman named Leon Barth. Frank Lloyd Wright, Buckminster Fuller, Paul Rudolph, and the Olgyay brothers had all worked at the Lab with Princeton students, and there were fabulous machines and big spaces to build mockups. Leon taught us a tremendous amount while we were in school, about tools, about making things, about life.
RS: Why design/build? What delights you so much about this type of practice versus other conventional practices of architecture?
JA: Design/build is a time honored practice going back thousands of years. It connects the brain to the hands to the material. The act of making teaches you the nature of materials, how they want to be assembled, and in turn, the process informs you about the implications
Affectionately known to Rural Studio as the “Godfathers of Design/Build,” Steve Badanes, John Ringel and Jim Adamson have been practicing and teaching architecture since they first met at Princeton University. In 1972, they founded Jersey Devil Design/Build. All Jersey Devils continue to collaborate on projects, teach, and run their individual practices. Rural Studio is delighted to have them as consultants. Recently, we sat down with them to talk about their experiences with design/build as a model for architectural practice.
of your design. Also, it is a lot of fun…it evolved into a lifestyle. In the early days, we camped out on the site in our trailers and site-built structures, inviting friends to join us. We designed and built our way across the country.JR: Design/Build is a reintegration of the making of architecture as one continuous process from conception to actualization. It reintegrates the professions of designer and builder. It offers the opportunity to get feedback from a project as it proceeds and improve upon it as it develops. It harnesses our inherent abilities to make things and empowers us through the alchemy of creating something from start to finish.
RS: What was it like practicing design/build when you started?
SB: When we started building, the aia had a code of ethics that forbade its members from engaging in construction, so getting licensed was out of the question, and probably contributed to our reputation as “outlaws.” After we had been building for about ten years, the code was revised by the aia to allow its members to build, but the situation has not really changed. Architects design and builders build, and there’s a history of animosity between the two parties. Architects blame builders for the decline in craftsmanship, while builders fault architects for not understanding construction technology. Design typically stops at the drawing board (or computer screen) and on-site improvisation is rare and extremely expensive.Jersey Devil evolved as a response to this relationship, and as builders, the design process is extended onto the site and we’re able to avoid the locked-in mindset that characterizes most building projects once they’re committed to paper. The designer/builder becomes part of the drama that unfolds as the structure grows and comes alive, and the three-dimensional reality provides inspiration and suggests solutions to problems that are elusive or simply impossible to detect during the paper design phase.
RS: What does it mean to be a Jersey Devil?
JR: I really have only one frame of reference for designing and building and it is Jersey Devil and the Design/Build approach. In that approach Designing and Building form a seamless, iterative, process. For small scale project this might be an unconscious internal process.For larger scale projects it becomes an exercise in communication and collaboration. The designer is the initial builder, creating an image from an intention. The builder is the final designer, fashioning the physical version of the intention from the image. All involved are conscious of the process and conscious of the need to coordinate and communicate to achieve the design/build process.On another level Jersey Devil went early and naturally into “green-solar-natural-sustainable design.” As Devils, we just assume that good architecture understands the sun, the site, and the other forces of nature and harnesses them for comfort and beauty.We share a commitment to understanding how buildings are made as a way to improve how we design things. I think there is a sense of playfulness in the way we work—which can be very hard and serious work indeed—but which is aided by finding the humor in things.Finally, I think we share a joy in spreading the design/build process through our various teaching endeavors. “Splaining” things at students and seeing how they approach problems is gratifying but also edifying for the teacher.
RS: What are you all working on now?
JR: More specifically to my present situation, I work by myself day to day and collaborate on design and build as projects require with a group of people I have worked with over the years in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.JA: In recent years, Steve and I have been working on park furniture for a greenway bike path in Ft. Lauderdale. We are just now finishing production, and all will be installed by January.For the past four years I have been co-teaching
a Design/Build Studio at the University of Miami with Professor Rocco Ceo. Our most recent project is a self contained bathroom facility for farm workers on an organic farm here in Homestead, Florida. It is moveable, on skids, providing a composting toilet and a shower. It collects rain water through a first flush diverter into 50 gallon drums. Daily, the water is hand pumped into two 15 gallon storage tubes: one under the roof for gravity-fed cold water, the other along the glazed ridge for solar hot water. The low technology and simplicity of form was intentional to make this accessible and applicable to other regions needing low cost sanitation facilities.SB: After 25 years on the road, living on job sites, in an old trailer, I wanted to put down some roots. The offer from University of Washington to help develop design/build programs in Seattle and Mexico provided an opportunity to establish a base in the Pacific Northwest, and for the past 13 years I’ve collaborated with my wife, artist Linda Beaumont, on building our house and studios on Whidbey Island north of Seattle.Most of the buildings we’ve built are really simple, elemental gable roofed forms, clad in metal for low maintenance in the damp Northwest climate: including a house and a work studio.The auxiliary structures I’ve built on the site (woodshed, solar greenhouse, etc.) are made with local wood and recycled windows and are more expressive, funky, and sculptural, inspired by the old Jersey Devil work. We’re currently working on the ‘Love Shack,’ a small accessible building where we can “age-in-place.”
RS: Should Design/Build be taught in school?
JA:Design/Build programs are very important and needed in architecture schools. At um, the students learn how to work collaboratively, build sustainably, and do a rewarding project that serves the greater community. One of the messages I try to bring to my students is simple. When you draw a line on the computer it is not an abstract entity that will be rendered into an incredible “eye wash,” meaningless, drawing...it is a representation of a real material and it should be given respect. There is so much ignorance in student drawings, and one way to give them truth, is by having them build what they draw. In the studio, we teach them how to use tools effectively and safely, and in the process, they make a connection with the materials represented in their designs. It is truly liberating for them to be able to use their own hands to build a project that they designed. It will make them better prepared when they hit the road. I only wish I had the same opportunity when I was in school.SB: I started the Neighborhood design/build Studio at uw in 1988, and every spring we build a small project for a Seattle area non-profit. Both design and construction take place during spring quarter, which is eleven weeks long and I typically find the project in the fall and help with grant writing and fundraising in the winter.In terms of educational goals, I want to teach students how to build and to understand the repercussions of the lines they draw on paper. Since most work in “the real world” is done in teams, we have a consensus design process, which leads to group ownership of ideas and enthusiastic participation of everyone during construction. I want them to have confidence in their ability as makers and professionals, but also to realize that architecture can make a huge difference in the lives of people who can’t afford it, and that there are many alternatives to a traditional career in architecture.
Profiles
What is a Jersey Devil?
A Jersey Devil is a legendary creature said to inhabit the Pine Barrens of southern New Jersey, United States. The creature is often described as a flying biped with hooves. The common description is that of a kangaroo-like creature with the head of a goat, leathery bat-like wings, horns, small arms with clawed hands, cloven hooves and a forked tail. It has been reported to move quickly and often is described as emitting a “blood-curdling scream.”
source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jersey_Devil
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Alumni Lecture Series
What is the Alumni Lecture Series?
As part of our 20th Anniversary Celebration, Rural Studio invited alumni to come back for three different nights and give short, timed lectures. Each Alumni Lecture Night featured multiple presenters who were each allowed 20 slides, which were shown for 20 seconds each (six minutes and 40 seconds in total).
The fall and spring lecture nights together featured one alum from each of Rural Studio’s 20 years, and at Soup Roast, we featured Rural Studio’s young staff alumni. Below, you can see what our alumni are up to and what they learned from Rural Studio.
Scott Stafford 1993bryant smokehouseStafford ArchitectureHuntsville, AL
Bruce Lanier 1995thom aston farmer’s m arketStandard CreativeBirmingham, AL
Robert Sproull 1996butterfly houseAssistant Professor, Auburn University SoAPLAAuburn, AL
Steve Hoffman 1997, Staffakron pavilliond/b/A design buildNew York, NY
Thomas Palmer 1997 supershedPalmer Built EnvironmentsChattanooga, TN
James Kirkpatrick 1998newbern baseball f ieldsBohlin Cywinski JacksonSan Francisco, CA
Jamie Phillips 1998composting privy & bathhousecmg LandscapeSan Francisco, CA
“Buffy” Reinhardt-Taylor 2000m ason’s bend basketball courtMarion Military InstituteMarion, AL
Jennifer Bonner 2001, Staff perry lakes pavillionAssistant Professor, Georgia Tech School of ArchitectureAtlanta, GA
Jack “Jay” Sanders 2001, Staff newbern baseball f ieldsDesign Build Adventure Company Austin, TX
Margaret Sledge 2001, Staffnewbern playgroundLake | Flato ArchitectsSan Antonio, TX
Jared Fulton 2002antioch bapt ist churchWilliam Blackstock ArchitectsBirmingham, AL
Sarah Dunn 2002perry lakes bathroomsDesign Manager/Staff Architect eMi East AfricaKampala, Uganda
Emily McGlohn 2003, Staffrural heritage center gift shopAssistant Professor, Mississippi State School of ArchitectureStarkville, MS
Daniel Boone McHugh 2004, Staffgreat hallStudent, Ole Miss School of Law, Mississippi Innocence ProjectOxford, MS
Sam Currie 2005perry lakes learning centerGLUCK+New York, NY
Kelli Stokes 2005, Staff20K v1 elizabeth’s houseYale FES Doctorial programNew Haven, CT
Daniel Splaingard 2006, Stafflions park baseball f ieldsGraduate StudentCapetown, South Africa
Mark Wise 2006, Stafflions park baseball f ieldskem StudioKansas City, KS
Lindsay Butler 2007, Stafflions park surfacesStudio bna ArchitectsAthens, GA
Sabina Nieto 200720k v3 32k truss houseUniversity of San FranciscoSan Francisco, CA
Danny Wicke 2007, Staffakron boys & girls club iiWheeler Kearns ArchitectsChicago, IL
Ryan Stephenson 200820k v5 loft houseStephenson DesignSeattle, WA
Brett Jones 2009lions park skate parkDavid Baker ArchitectsSan Francisco, CA
Clem Blakemore 201020k v9 m acarthur’s houseStudent, Royal College of ArtLondon, England
Will McGarity 2011thinnings bathhouseJones Valley Teaching FarmBirmingham, AL
Alex Henderson 2012lions park landscape3rd Year Instructor for Rural StudioNewbern, AL
Fall 2013 Spring 2014Soup Roast
Matt Edwards 2004perry lakes covered bridgeKennon | Calhoun WorkshopNashville, TN
Fernando Abreu 200620k v2 frank’s houseStudio AbreuMerida, Mexico
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“Practice the way you want to practice.”— jack “jay” sanders, 2001
“I learned to bring refinement and organization to irregularity.”— scott stafford, 1993
“Rural Studio taught me to understand that Architecture is about people and community, and that the process, as well as the final result affects the community and the people for which it was built, both directly and indirectly for generations to come.”
— thomas palmer, 1997
“I learned the value of collaboration.”— james kirkpatrick, 1998
“My experience with Rural Studio forged my relationship to place in my own work and gave me the confidence to express that.”
— “buffy” reinhardt-taylor, 2000
“I acquired confidence about building, architecture and the interest to pursue something beyond the status quo.”
— jennifer bonner, 2001
“Ultimately, Rural Studio fueled my desire to be a part of the making of architecture, not just the thinking.”
— sam currie, 2005
“I continue to learn from Rural Studio. I continue to be amazed by the confidence, consideration and enthusiasm of the program, its students, faculty and the community who supports it. I strive to bring that energy and excitement to both our projects and office culture.”
— danny wicke, 2007
“I learned that being a part of the community for which we are designing is essential to the creation of meaningful architecture.”
— brett jones, 2009
“Rural Studio taught me not only a huge amount about design, but also about how to approach architecture as a whole: collaboratively, ethically, and humorously.”
— clem blakemore, 2010
“My work at Rural Studio taught me the importance of craft and iteration”
— kelli stokes, 2005
“If you are given the opportunity, you should take it.”— lindsay butler, 2007
“It takes time and patience to make something thoughtful and useful.”
— will mcgarity, 2011
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Mayor Johnnie Washington
Mayor Stokes • Newbern, Alabama
Woody Stokes was born in Newbern, Alabama. He graduated from Southern Academy, and attended Shelton State, where he studied Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Technology. At Shelton State, he spent 18-months in class, and six months in a job training program.
After school, Woody moved to Columbus, Mississippi where he worked for Air Control, Engineering. During his 14 year tenure in Columbus, Woody helped grow the company from seven employees to fifty-four employees.
“Growing up in Greensboro in the 1960s was tough, but I fondly remember spending my summers learning to lay brick with my family and all of my free time building model airplanes.”
“I’ve always loved flying. My most memorable experiences are from acrobatics training where I flew a single wing plane...a Cessna 150 Aerobat. I learned to do all the flips and tricks; it was a lot of fun.”
When he moved back to Newbern in 1994, Woody started Magnolia Heating and AC, LLC. He also ran Harrison Hardware for a number of years. Currently, Woody serves as the Maintenance Director for the Greensboro Nursing Home. He has served as the Mayor of Newbern since 2008.
Johnnie Washington grew up in Greensboro, Alabama. He graduated from Hale County Training School and in 1961 received a B.S. degree in Architecture from Tuskegee University. While at Tuskegee, he enrolled in flight school, where he received a private pilot licence, commercial pilot licence, multi-engine licence, flight instructor license, and instrument flight instructor license. Upon completing his training, he worked as a part-time flight instructor for Professional Flight School.
He served for two years in the U.S. Army and eventually settled in DC, where he lived and worked for 15 years: first as a school teacher
for the District of Columbia school system, then as a housing code enforcement specialist for the DC government. In 1969, he became a partner and vice-president in Reaves Masonry Company where he worked for eight years.
In 1978, he moved back to Greensboro where he worked started Washington and Company, General Contractor. He also serves as managing partner at Washington and Paige Mortuary. He has been active in community politics since 1980 and currently serves as the Mayor of Greensboro.
Mayor Washington and Mayor Stokes have worked with Rural Studio over the last ten years on projects in Greensboro and Newbern. Their tremendous energy and support are invaluable to Rural Studio.
Mayor Washington • Greensboro, Alabama
On growing up in Greensboro...
On flying planes...
On the future of Greensboro...
“You can’t stand still; you’re either moving forward or backward. My goal as mayor is to grow the city and improve the quality of life in Greensboro as much as I can.”
Mayor Woody Stokes
“If you want to go way back, I always loved Evel Knievel…and he rode a Harley-Davidson. When my kids graduated from high school; I thought I would love to ride again and bought my first Harley. My wife rode for a while, my daughter, my son — and even my sister. It was our family hobby — and I’ve made a hobby out of collecting them.
On growing up in Hale County:
On riding motorcycles:
On being Mayor:
“We’re a small town, and really don’t have any revenue. But this is a really nice, friendly town — and we want to do everything we can to keep it going. Everything we do is volunteer work, and we have a lot of great citizens who are willing to pitch in. Newbern is a great place.”
Profiles
“We had a carefree life. We walked and rode bikes everywhere. As a teenager, we all picked up odd jobs in the summer: working as butchers, hauling hay, loading up catfish feed. and farming.
Local SupportersMayor Johnnie Washington and Mayor Woody Stokes
Supported Projects:
Newbern Fire StationNewbern Town HallNewbern Library
Supported Projects:
Greensboro Boys & Girls ClubGreensboro City ParksGreensboro Parks & Recreation DepartmentGreensboro Farmer’s Market
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Friend of the StudioDr. William Sledge
Dr. William Sledge is a member of Rural Studio’s advisory group and a tremendous supporter of the Studio. He is a native of Hale County, and his daughter Margaret is both an Outreach alumni and a former 3rd Year Visiting Professor. William currently serves as a Professor of Psychiatry at Yale University and is the Medical Director of the Yale/New Haven Psychiatric Hospital.
I was born in January, 1945 just as World War II was ending. My family (a decade older sister and decade plus older brother, my elderly grandmother (roughly the age I am now) and youngish mother (36) (my father (39) was deployed in the US Army), along with Blackie, the family canine (6)), were there to greet me at 1301 North Powers Street. I started school in 1951; the Powers Elementary School for grades 1-3 was across the street from where we lived. My best friend, Calvin Burton, lived 50 yards away and between our houses and next
to the school grounds was the home of John Jay, the father of a future mayor of Greensboro. He had a small truck garden and some livestock in chickens, sheep (with a big ram named Ike) and maybe a cow. But most importantly, he had a group of teenage black youth who worked for him; Bunch and Pilgrim were whom we knew best and hung out with. And he had a great big red caboose from the Southern Railway Company, parked on about 100 feet of track in his side yard. He provided a wonderful spirit of generosity and permissiveness in letting us play among his animals, workers and caboose and other railroad memorabilia.
I had gone to church, kindergarten and Gulf Shores by the time that I started school, but this school business was a great leap forward and set the stage of endless wonder that the world has held for me since. I have basically stayed in school all my life- student, teacher, researcher, and manager. But school started rather grimly for me. After a couple of days at school, my pee turned brown and I was found to have a serious kidney problem secondary to a mixed up immune response to a skin infection. I had to stay home in bed and get a shot of penicillin twice a week. I hated and feared this sentence and longed for being a big boy and taking the big developmental step of marching across the street to school. Instead, I was an invalid
Profiles
in bed, cowering over the prospect of those painful shots, resolving not to cry. But I was betrayed by my rage and frustration more than once. I knew I was going to be left behind. I acted like a political prisoner, bargaining with my health by refusing to get this bi-weekly shot without being paid. Finally, Dr. Ramey convinced me to give in for a dime with each injection, and we were all happier. Perhaps, most importantly, I resolved to throw myself into the world of school and activity and not to let this illness dominate me. But I was marked by this early disease in another way and thus began my slow march into a career in medicine.
School turned out to be wonderful place and I loved almost all of it. But the red caboose and hanging out with Calvin, Bunch and Pilgrim was really special. This happened mostly in the summer but not always. We would taunt Ike, the big ram, by trying to ride him and making sure that he never got to butt us (or almost never). We learned to play cards, twirl ourselves around until we could not stand up, and hide from each other. In the summer we never put on shoes except to go church.
What was perhaps a relatively grand achievement by our older mentors was the education classes that Calvin and I got. The first course was sex. At first I resisted this knowledge; I could not believe it could be true. But with a rich collection of pornographic cartoon characters (Popeye has never been the heroic figure to me that he seemed to be for others as a result) and with the additional evidence of the barn yard, I finally got it.
But the most enduring lesson could be called something like compassion or loyalty. And it was learned through the chance to exercise it rather than someone preaching it to us. One day, one of our mentors at the Jay operation did something at work that was not acceptable and he was suspended. Calvin and I took turns giving him a ride home that day. For a 10 year old, the major achievement might have been muscular for we had some pretty steep hills to climb. We never considered the biggest hill of all, the possible challenge to Jim Crowism or a statement about civil rights, an issue that was about to erupt over the next 8 -10 years. It was just the right thing to do for a friend. He was re-hired the next day. This is one of the small ways Hale County raised me.
William Sledge, age five, receiving a Greensboro Watchman.
William Sledge, age fifteen
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Friend of the StudioJackie Mockbee
Profiles
My family is from Mississippi. My father was born in Suqualena, and my mother was born in Meridian. I graduated from Greenwood High School and Mississippi College for Women (mscw). Several years later, I earned my Masters in Education from Auburn while Sambo was getting his undergraduate degree. War Eagle!
I met Sambo when I was teaching in Meridian; a friend set me up on a blind date with him. It was New Year’s Eve, but the sparks didn’t fly. Fast-forward two years and my cousin set me up on another blind date with Sambo. This time around, we hit it off. We stayed out all night and ate steak and eggs at the Russell Truck Stop at 4:00am. When Sambo took me home, he walked me to the door and asked me four questions:
“Are you a Baptist?”—“Yes”“Did you go to mscw?”—“Yes”“Were you in the Lockhart Social Club?”—“Yes”“Will you marry me?”—I just smiled.
That second blind date was on August 15, 1970. We were married four months later on December 26.
Sambo and I have four children. Margaret lives in New York City and is an attorney with j.p. Morgan Chase Bank. Sarah Ann lives in Austin and is the Deputy Director of the Austin Film Society. Her husband, Sam Wainwright Douglas, directed the documentary citizen architect: samuel mockbee and the spirit of the rural studio. Carol lives in Oxford and is the Program Director for the Mississippi Innocence Project and the um Law School Clinical Programs. Julius lives in Canton and works for the Mississippi Department of Information Technology.
I was always supportive of Sambo’s vision. He was confident, grounded and sincere in his convictions. And, he made everyone want to go along for the ride. In the mid-1980s,
Jackie Mockbee and her children have provided endless support to Rural Studio since its inception. Whether serving on our advisory group, attending annual events, being an alumna of the Outreach program, or tirelessly fundraising and egging on their competitors— the Mockbee family never cease to amaze us with their energy and enthusiasm.
Sambo worked with Sister Grace Mary, a Catholic nun, to design and build a home for Phillip “Foots” Johnson, the patriarch of a destitute family in rural Mississippi. Sambo and his firm built it on the weekends, and they got to know the family and the community really well. Looking back, it’s easy to see the roots of the Rural Studio in that experience.
By the early 1990s, Sambo had established a critically successful practice, but the daily struggle to meet the bottom line was taxing. This made it easy to accept an invitation from d.k. Ruth to teach at Auburn, and we both welcomed the stability that came with it. That year, Sambo and d.k. brainstormed ideas that would evolve into the general concept for the Rural Studio. They wanted to make an impact beyond the classroom, and they recognized that moving students off of the university campus was the key to realizing their vision. As much as we love Alabama, we never considered moving our family from Mississippi. We were too deeply rooted in our community. This may not have worked for other families, but it worked for us. Sambo always made it home to watch the children’s basketball games, to terrorize the girls’ Homecoming dates, and to perform magic tricks at the weekend sleepovers. During the sole year he taught in Auburn, the five-hour drive from our house to campus did take its toll, and it’s not a coincidence that the Rural Studio headquarters put Sambo three hours closer to us. That being said, congressmen from all over Alabama courted Sambo in the hopes that the program would be located in their district, and Hale County was an obvious and judicious choice.
Our children relished their visits to the Rural Studio. Julius broke the lawn mower, got Sambo’s red truck stuck in the mud, wrecked the Hay Truck, left them all and
was found asleep in the Morrisette house. Carol’s favorite times, by far, were the Last Suppers at Dick Hudgen’s — hiding empty Heinekens around the house was the ritual. She’s sure Sambo hid a few Dick still hasn’t found! Sarah Ann tagged along with Sambo all over Hale County; most prized were their afternoon naps at Japonica Path. The first Pig Roast Margaret attended, the Tire Chapel was under construction. Sambo let her camp out with the students and she slept under the tall beams and rafters.
My children and I are grateful to have been part of the Rural Studio’s beginnings, and we look forward to many generations of Mockbees supporting the good work taking place in Hale County and beyond.
Did You Know?
Subrosa was originally designed and conceived by Samuel Mockbee as a memorial to recently bereaved friends. After her father’s death, Carol Mockbee came to Rural Studio as an Outreach student to realize her father’s design. Having no building or architectural experience this bold concrete undertaking is an extraordinary feat. It provides a place for contemplation, a place to remember Sambo and a place to tell secrets as the Romans did, ‘sub rosa,’ underneath the roses.
Subrosa translates into Latin as “underneath the roses.”
subrosa
Photo: Timothy Hursley
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“Super Thesis”
Because of the scale of the 5th Year community projects, it often takes more than nine-months to design and build them. “Super Thesis” is a term coined by Rural Studio to describe graduates of the program, who commit to stay as volunteers until the completion of their projects. The studio wants to recognize these students for their hard work and dedication to their projects and the community.
N E W B E R N L I B R A R Y
The Newbern Library Project will transform the 1906 Bank of Newbern building into a community library. The library will provide the town with a diverse collection of books, public computers and Internet access, and after school tutoring sessions. The student team will begin construction by restoring
Programs & Current Projects
G R E E N S B O R O B O Y S & G I R L S C L U B
The Greensboro Boys & Girls Club Project will create new facilities for the Boys & Girls Club of Greensboro at the site of the Greensboro Recreation Center. The structure will be one of the largest built by Rural Studio to date, covering a footprint of 5,100 sq.ft. The program will include a
classroom, restrooms, computer lab, office, snack area, and a 2,400 sq.ft. covered outdoor space. The building will have a simple gabled form with minimal overhangs and will be clad in blue corrugated metal, blue being the signature color of the Boys & Girls Club. To provide shade and protection
the existing brick structure, preserving the image of the historic bank. The team will then build a small addition to the back. A large public room with an oversized reading table will run the length of the building, and floor to ceiling bookshelves constructed with natural-finish plywood will line the
interior walls. Along one wall, passageways through the bookshelves will lead to alcoves housing computers, a private study, window seats, storage, bathrooms, and a second entrance. Expected completion: Fall 2014
for entryways and windows, portions of the exterior wall will be recessed. The recessed areas will be highlighted with a change of exterior cladding from metal to wood. The interior finish, covering the walls and ceiling, will be Oriented Strand Board sheathing. Expected completion: August 2014.
From left to right: Yesufu O’Ladipo, Stephen Kesel, Allyson Klinner, Andrew Dolder
From left to right: Will Gregory, Morgan Acino, Ashley Clark, Stephen Durham.
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Recently Completed
2 0 K V 1 2 E D D I E ’ S H O U S E
20K v12 Eddie’s House is the first 20K House built with a slab-on-grade foundation. Compared to the typical raised pier foundation used for 20K Houses, a slab-on-grade allows the house to be easily accessible, eliminating the need for a ramp or stairs. The floor plan of Eddie’s house consists of a living and dining area connected to a kitchen over a bar height counter, a bathroom, a bedroom, and a tornado safe room that doubles as a bedroom closet.
Along the front of Eddie’s House, the roof structure cantilevers eight feet beyond the front façade, creating a generous porch. The ceiling of the porch rests just above the front door frame at a height of six foot nine inches. The low ceiling compresses the entry to house, making the interior volume feel bigger by contrast. The bold form and close attention to detail in Eddie’s House once again raises the bar for future 20K iterations. Eddie’s House was completed in August 2013.
L I O N S PA R K L A N D S C A P E
The Lions Park Landscape project takes advantage of unused, interstitial spaces in Lions Park by transforming them into zones for storm water management and planting. Two acres of land in the center of Lions Park are excavated and planted with native prairie grasses, creating a large, low maintenance retention basin. The excavated fill is consolidated into a berm that provides seating for an adjacent football field.
170 newly planted trees are clustered around sports fields and activity areas to provide shaded space for park users and to create boundaries between large scale “rooms” of the park. Five perennial rain gardens planted with native flowers and grasses highlight park entries and provide dense borders along the walking path. The landscape project comes after years of student work concentrated on specific sites within Lions Park and succeeds in unifying the park as a whole by implementing intervations across the entire 40–acre landscape. Lions Park Landscape was completed in May 2014.
L I O N S PA R K S C O U T H U T
The Lions Park Scout Hut Project will create a home in Lions Park for the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts of Greensboro. The student team constructed the Scout Hut using a series of wooden bent frames assembled on the ground and raised into place atop a concrete slab. In an effort to further Rural Studio material research, the team harvested pine thinnings as an exterior cladding and structural ballast by stacking treated logs into in the raised bent frames.
The Scout Hut is 1,800 sq.ft. and includes a multi-purpose space, kitchen, restroom, and storage space for two Scout equipment trailers. In addition to the Scout Hut, the team built two public restrooms and water fountains for park users. The Scout Hut was completed in May 2014.
L I O N S PA R K F I T N E S S
The Lions Park Fitness Project provides the community of Greensboro with seven pieces of outdoor fitness equipment. The fitness equipment is positioned along a forest edge near the south-west corner of Lions Park where it can take advantage of existing shade and views to a nearby pasture. A small stone pathway leads visitors from one machine to another in a sequence designed to provide an efficient full-body workout.
The pieces of equipment are bright red so that their angular geometries become highly visible against the forest and they appear not as utilitarian machines but as sculptural art forms. The machinery sits on metal grate platforms which are cantilevered over a small forested bank and oriented so that users will have great views of the surrounding landscape. The Fitness Project was completed in May 2014.
Photo: Timothy Hursley
Photo: Timothy Hursley
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Staff Initiatives
To celebrate the Rural Studio Farm, and in the spirit of the 20th Anniversary, Rural Studio held its first Springfest on March 21, 2014.
Since starting the Rural Studio Farm project in 2010, producing, cooking and eating seasonal and organic food has become one of the Studio’s priorities. One of the many things we appreciate about Hale County is its landscape shaped by the farmers. The Studio’s aim is to support the West Alabama small food systems and become more self-sufficient through the Rural Studio Farm project. Thanks to our gardener Eric Ball, our chef Catherine Tabb, and their work in the kitchen garden, the Studio’s appreciation of springtime continues to increase. Springfest was conceived as a meal, prepared by Rural Studio and its partners, and served to our farmers, our students, our
CROSSWORD SOLUTION
Springfestcommunity partners, and neighbors. The day was designed to celebrate Hale County, and the meal uses only locally sourced, seasonal ingredients grown by Rural Studio and local farms.
The 2014 Springfest suggested that good
food is like good architecture, because they both rely on the best local ingredients. The evening was curated by Chef Scott Peacock. Scott is a well-known chef born in Alabama. He worked abroad for many years (in Georgia!): first as a chef in the Governor’s Mansion, then as the founding chef for Horseradish Grill, and later for the restaurant Watershed. Scott is most well known for his collaborations with Edna Lewis; the two
chefs co-wrote The Gift of Southern Cooking in 2003. In 2007, Scott was awarded the Best Chef in the Southeast by the James Beard Foundation. Scott, who has since moved to Marion, Alabama, has taught us to enjoy the Southern Culinary culture. He continually inspires us with healthy,
tasty ingredients and frugal, elegant ways of preparing local Southern meals. We were honored to have Scott organize our first Springfest event and prepare our meal.
The meal was prepared by Scott and his team of helpers: including professional chefs, Rural Studio staff, and the Studio’s friends Tod Williams, Billie Tsien, Butch Anthony, Natalie Chanin and Roxanne May. Rural Studio’s staff and “Super-Thesis” students helped serve the meal. Music and entertainment was provided by the Spencer family, local Marion farmers.
Upon arrival, each guest was greeted by Rural Studio staff and assigned a ribbon. Each ribbon corresponded to a series of chairs, which gave the Studio the opportunity to mix up our guests, and introduce our students, farmers, and friends to people they may not have already known.
Appetizers were served in the courtyard behind Morrisette House. Guests mingled while they drank lemonade and enjoyed catfish appetizers made by Five Farmers Catfish, of Newbern.
Dinner was served family-style under the Great Hall as guests sat underneath a pine- leaf ceiling. The meal included a vegetable soup, prepared for hours in a copper pot sitting on a wood fire pit, as well as fresh salad, deviled eggs, and pork raised by the Spencer family, and prepared by Bobby Scott of Newbern. Dessert (yes there was more!) was homemade banana pudding.
The meal was a great tribute to the West Alabama spring harvest and an experience that will live with us forever. Rural Studio thanks all of our local supporters for helping us with this event, and all of our guests for attending. It was a fitting start to a new Rural Studio tradition!
“Good architecture is like good food; they both rely on the best local ingredients.”
Invest in Rural Studio’s future. Your gift, no matter the size, signals strong confidence in our students and faculty and their ability to make a difference.www.supportruralstudio.org
A U B U R N U N I V E R S I T YR U R A L S T U D I OP . O . B O X 2 7 8N E W B E R N , A L 3 6 7 6 5
or contact our Development Officer Melissa Foster Denney at [email protected] or 334.844.5436
