Photo Opportunity: Spring Review Showcases UA Department of Architecture

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The marble walls of Vol Walker Hall are papered with architectural sketches, plans and computer renderings, and a labyrinth of table-sized models present meticulously detailed buildings and city streets. Students and faculty will present and discuss the works on display as part of the UA Department of Architecture’s annual Spring Review Program, scheduled from 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. on Monday, May 3.

Since its inception in 1998, the Spring Review has provided the architecture department with feedback on its strengths and weaknesses as well as an opportunity to showcase the skills of its students to architects and educators from prominent graduate schools or professional practices.

Guest critics include William Conway, an associate professor of architecture from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, and , UA professor of architecture, who leads the School of Architecture’s Rome Study Center for Architecture and the Humanities. They will spend the day evaluating representative projects from every architecture studio taught in the spring, including the following:

• City Building Studio - Taught by Harvard professor Darell Fields, this studio engaged students in the urban design precipitated by Boston’s "Big Dig" - the 13-year, $14.6 billion megaproject to replace Boston’s elevated Central Artery highway with an underground expressway.

• Labs for the 21^st Century/Desert Challenge - Co-taught by University of Arkansas architecture professors , Jerry Wall and Eva Kultermann, this studio explored sustainable and energy efficient building practices and involved students in two competitions: the Laboratories for the 21^st Century Student Design Competition, which challenged students to design a chemistry and biology lab for the historic Georgetown University campus in Washington, D.C., and the Leading Edge Student Design Competition, which called for the design of an administration and classroom building for the College of the Desert in Palm Springs, Calif.

• Highway Ecology Studio - the highway enhancements that the University of Arkansas Community Design Center (UACDC) developed for the central Arkansas community of Morrilton recently won international recognition in the "Celebration of Cities" competition cosponsored by the International Union of Architects (UIA) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA). An international jury praised the UACDC team for developing "a Lego-kit for highway design.that can be used anywhere."

The review will pause at noon for a celebratory barbecue with students and faculty. The morning session will focus on first-, second- and third-year studios; the afternoon session will include the fourth- and fifth-year studios listed in this release and work by the UACDC. Please call for specific times.