FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The School of Architecture has organized a weekend of special events that will culminate in a formal dedication of its new name, the Fay Jones School of Architecture, in front of the school’s home, Vol Walker Hall, at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 4. The public is invited to participate in this event, which will celebrate Fay Jones’ legacy as an architect and professor and look forward to the school’s future.

The new name is thanks to a generous $10 million planned gift from Don and Ellen Edmondson, former clients of Fay Jones. Internationally acclaimed for his soaring sacred spaces and modern homes responsive to their natural settings, Jones began his career in 1946, when he enrolled in the University of Arkansas’ fledgling architecture program. He taught classes as an undergraduate, was a member of the university’s first graduating architecture class, returned to teach for 35 years and served as the school’s first dean. His long relationship with the school makes the naming especially resonant for the school’s faculty, students and staff.

“Fay Jones has been associated with our program from the very beginning and had a major hand in shaping how we teach our students,” said Jeff Shannon, dean of the School of Architecture and a former student and employee of Jones. “His international reputation was also key in bringing world class designers to campus to lecture and teach. We are proud to carry Fay’s name, and deeply grateful to Don and Ellen Edmondson for making this possible.”

Don and Ellen Edmondson and Mary Elizabeth “Gus” Jones, Fay Jones’ wife and partner for 61 years, will be on hand for the dedication. Speakers include state Sen. Sue Madison; state Rep. Lindsley Smith; Alan Sugg, president of the University of Arkansas System; Chancellor G. David Gearhart; Carolyn Allen, dean of the University of Arkansas libraries, and Dean Shannon. More than 350 people, including numerous students, have registered to attend.

Members of the public are invited to attend the following events. Ticket holders will have priority seating. Special events with seating still available include the following:

Friday, April 3

1 – 4 p.m.       Symposium, Light Seeking Shade: The Architecture of Fay Jones,
with Robert McCarter, noted scholar of one of Jones’ mentors, Frank Lloyd Wright; Roy Reed, former New York Times columnist who conducted three-year oral history with Jones; and Robert Ivy, editor-in-chief of Architectural Record
Union Ballroom

7 p.m.            Inaugural Fay Jones School of Architecture lecture by Glenn Murcutt, 2002 Pritzker Prize laureate and 2009 AIA Gold Medal Honoree. This will be Murcutt’s last lecture in North America.
Union Ballroom

Saturday, April 4

2 p.m.             Formal Dedication of School’s New Name
In front of Vol Walker Hall; rain location Giffels Auditorium, Old Main

3:30 p.m.       Premier of Sacred Spaces: The Architecture of Fay Jones,
a documentary by Emmy-award-winning professors Larry Foley and Dale Carpenter
Giffels Auditorium, Old Main; overflow seating available in Shollmier Hall, Vol Walker Hall.

Fay Jones’ models, sketches and plans and photographs of his work will be displayed throughout Mullins Library. Also on display will be personal photographs and memorabilia related to Jones and his family, some never before seen by the general public.

For more information about the naming celebration and to view the full list of attendees, visit http://architecture.uark.edu/514.php.