Fay Jones School Recognizes Awards for Distinction, Award-Winning Alumni Design Work

The primary stair landing of Riggs CAT Headquarters sits in a glowing red box, cantilevered under the main porch. (Photo by Tim Hursley)

Clerestory windows at the executive offices flood the central spaces with natural light. (Photo by Tim Hursley)

A view of the bridge and porch of Dogwoodtrot House, looking northeast toward the living/master suite wing. (Photo by Tim Hursley)

A view of the living room, looking south toward the porch. (Photo by Tim Hursley)

A view of the Sculpture Studio from the southeast near the bioswale. (Photo by Tim Hursley)

A view of the foundry loading area with perforated ribbed metal panel on the west façade. (Photo by Tim Hursley)

House H was built completely in concrete and steel to express its structural characteristics and plasticity. (Photo by Juan Solano)

The home achieves privacy by turning its back to the street and facing toward the garden and the hills behind. (Photo by Juan Solano)

The iconic images of Finnish architecture are organized and incorporated into four panels. (Photo by Aaron Kimberlin)

The everyday objects are composed into displays of the actual things – available to view and touch. (Photo by Aaron Kimberlin)

Beth Hall

Front row from left, Mary Lee Shipp, Dr. Delbra Caradine, Ted and Leslie Belden, and Steve Kinzler. Back row from left, Reed Caradine, Jason Smith (ANCRC council member) and Debra Fithen (grants manager/ANCRC program manager). They all were presented with various Awards for Distinction from the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design during an Oct. 26 ceremony.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – For the second year, the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas honored several individuals who have made contributions to the school, university and culture of design with Awards for Distinction. These awards were presented, along with annual alumni design awards, during the school's Alumni Dinner and Recognition Ceremony, held Oct. 26 at the Janelle Y. Hembree Alumni House on the university campus.

"The Fay Jones School is fortunate to possess more than 3,000 talented and committed alumni in architecture, landscape architecture and interior design, and it's a pleasure to recognize our alumni design award recipients each year," said Dean Peter MacKeith. "At the same time, we're just as fortunate to be able to recognize those who have contributed to the school and the larger design culture of Arkansas through their service, wisdom and example."

Distinguished Service Awards were given to Mary Lee Shipp (B.S.H.E. '76), who was instrumental in bringing the interior design program into the Fay Jones School; Steve Kinzler (B.Arch. '73), who has served as president of the school's Dean's Circle for 13 years; and Leslie (B.Arch. '79) and Ted Belden (B.Arch. '81), former co-chairs of the school's Campaign Arkansas committee, longtime supporters of the school and Dean's Circle members. This distinction is awarded annually in recognition of a recipient's significant contributions to the students and resources of the Fay Jones School, the university and the community.

Distinguished Alumni Awards went to Leslie and Ted Belden, as well as the late Wallace Caradine Jr. (B.Arch. '74). Caradine was the first African-American graduate of the Fay Jones School, a founding principal at Woods Caradine Architects and later Caradine Companies, and founder of the Arkansas Chapter of the National Association of Minority Contractors. This distinction is awarded annually in recognition of an alumnus or alumna for significant contributions to the architecture and design culture locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.

The 2017 Distinguished Young Alumni Award, handed out for the first time this year, is an annual distinction for an alumnus or alumna who has graduated in the last 15 years for significant contributions to the architecture and design culture locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. Trinity Simons (B.Arch. '04), executive director of the Mayors' Institute on City Design, was designated as the inaugural Distinguished Young Alumni Award honoree. She currently serves on the school's campaign committee.

Dean's Medals were given to Robert Ivy, executive vice president and chief executive officer of the American Institute of Architects and the author of Fay Jones, a book of the late architect's work; and the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council (ANCRC), which has provided grant funding for the Fay and Gus Jones House, projects at Garvan Woodland Gardens, the renovation of Old Main, and numerous other preservation projects. This distinction is awarded annually in recognition of a recipient's significant contributions to the architecture and design culture of the state of Arkansas, and to students and their education at the Fay Jones School.

In addition to the Awards for Distinction, the Fay Jones School also recognized several alumni projects with Fay Jones Alumni Design Awards. Designs for residential, educational, outdoor, commercial, medical, office, historic, exhibition, recreational and public urban spaces were among 32 projects vying for recognition in this year's alumni design awards competition. Entries came from Fay Jones School alumni practicing in cities around the state of Arkansas, as well as in Missouri, California, Florida, Virginia, Michigan, Illinois, Texas, Tennessee, Washington, D.C., South Carolina, North Carolina and Peru. A six-member jury chose five projects for accolades - resulting in one Honor Award for Architecture, two Merit Awards for Architecture, and Honorable Mentions for Architecture and Exhibition Design.

Alumni from Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects of Little Rock received an Honor Award for Architecture, the highest award in this year's awards competition. Reese Rowland (B.Arch. '90), Cindy Pruitt (B.Arch. '95), David Porter (B.Arch. '82) and Josh Newton (B.Arch. '02) won the Honor Award for Architecture for Riggs CAT Headquarters, located in Little Rock. The new headquarters of a family owned, statewide Caterpillar (CAT) representative replaced a ​50-year-old building with a light-filled, expressive ​structure overlooking the operations. The project reflects ​the branding, quality and technical prowess of the world-renowned manufacturer of heavy equipment.

"The mission and purpose of the building are capitalized upon to create an exciting environment that fully integrates interior design and the architecture," the jury said. "It is holistically conceived and consistently detailed inside and out."

Chris Baribeau (B.Arch. '03), Suzana Annable (B.Arch. '12), Michael Pope (B.Arch. '10) and Philip Rusk (B.Arch. '03) won a Merit Award for Architecture for the Dogwoodtrot House in Fayetteville. This design team is with Modus Studio in Fayetteville. The project represents a synthesis of the vernacular typology of a dogtrot house and the woodland hillside to create a modern model for a suburban home.

"This is an interesting design solution, well detailed and crafted, that draws upon regional form," the jury said. "The outdoor space becomes the heart of the house and provides a powerful frame to the landscape."

Chris Baribeau (B.Arch. '03), Josh Siebert (B.Arch. '02), Jason Wright (B.Arch. '04), Jody Verser (B.Arch. '10) and Suzana Annable (B.Arch. '12) received a Merit Award for Architecture for the University of Arkansas Art + Design District: Sculpture Studio in Fayetteville. The design team is also with Modus Studio, which partnered with El Dorado Inc. in Kansas City, Missouri. This project ​is the beginning of a new campus district. An existing warehouse became a stark, simple ​form transcending humble origins.

"The quality of light and use of natural light and the economy of means creates an ethereal environment for art studios. The sculpture studios will function beautifully over a long span of time," the jury noted.

Jaime Ortiz de Zevallos (B.Arch. '03) won an Honorable Mention for Architecture for House H in Lima, Peru. Zevallos is with Jaime Ortiz de Zevallos in Peru. The project is an exploration of the promenade, creating a composition between privacy and circulation while maintaining constant conversation with materials. ​

"This is a beautifully executed and crafted home with a spare and carefully considered material pallet," jury members said. "The home integrates the landscape and garden to create a strong indoor-outdoor relationship."

Jonathan Boelkins (B.Arch. '04) and Laura Cochran (B.Arch. '16) won an Honorable Mention for Exhibition Design for The Iconic and the Everyday, in Washington, D.C. The design team is with Jonathan Boelkins Architect of Fayetteville. The project proposes an explicit condensed assertion of the contemporary presence and influence of Finnish design, industry and identity in the United States. ​

"The form and detailing of display cases position the exhibited objects as a power veil to the adjacent courtyard space," the jury said. "The exhibit cases are exquisitely detailed in conceptual alignment with the content."

Marsha Maytum, founding principal at Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects in San Francisco, served as jury chair for the design awards competition. Fellow jury members included two faculty members of the Fay Jones School, Carl Matthews, department head and professor of interior design; and Phoebe Lickwar, associate professor of landscape architecture. Additional jury members were Bo Ebbrecht, program manager and project architect at Harrison French and Associates in Bentonville; Trinity Simons, executive director of the Mayors' Institute on City Design in Washington, D.C.; and Martin Smith, principal at Ecological Design Group in Little Rock.

About the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design: The Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas houses professional design programs of architecture, landscape architecture and interior design together with liberal studies programs. All of these programs combine studio design education with innovative teaching in history, theory, technology and urban design. A broad range of course offerings equips graduates with the knowledge and critical agility required to meet the challenges of designing for a changing world. Their training prepares students with critical frameworks for design thinking that also equip them to assume leadership roles in the profession and in their communities. The school's architecture program was ranked 26th in the nation, and the 12th best program among public, land-grant universities, in the 16th Annual Survey of America's Best Architecture and Design Schools, a study conducted in 2015 by the Design Futures Council and published in DesignIntelligence. For more information visit fayjones.uark.edu.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs.