De Noble to Lead UA Architecture Department

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Architect and associate professor Tim de Noble has been appointed department head of the University of Arkansas Department of Architecture, which will celebrate its 60th birthday next year. His leadership will be grounded in a hands-on familiarity with every aspect of the architecture program.

“Tim de Noble has taught virtually all of the studios and technology courses in the department since coming on board in 1997. He has also led students on trips to Nova Scotia and Peru and has taught in the School of Architecture’s international study programs in Rome and Mexico City,” said Jeff Shannon, dean of the School of Architecture. “I know that Tim will be outstanding in this new role. Fortunately for our students, Tim will continue to have a teaching presence in the department, especially in design studios.”

“I have been a utility player,” de Noble said with a smile, referring to athletes who can play anywhere in the field.

De Noble looks forward to developing unique aspects of the architecture program, which fostered talents such as the late Fay Jones.

 “The department of architecture has strengths rooted in a long-held appreciation of architectural production and craft. I’d like to build on those strengths and follow an agenda that is distinct from most schools of architecture,” de Noble said. The tangible aspects of architecture such as materials and detailing are overlooked in many programs, he noted.

“Architectural space is paramount at any scale, yet some schools never get past merely delimiting it. We want to continue to investigate all of the qualities that create place, including materiality, detailing, light, and of course use, its social construct,” he added.

 “Tim is an outstanding teacher and designer and, moreover, is familiar with all aspects of our program,” said Marlon Blackwell, an associate professor of architecture who has taught multiple design studios with de Noble.

Laura Terry, an associate professor of architecture, added: "Tim recognizes the diversity of the faculty and as department head, he will celebrate the unique qualities we all bring to the school."

Born and raised in Little Rock, de Noble earned a Bachelor of Science in architecture from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1986 and a Master of Architecture from Syracuse University in 1992. He subsequently taught at Syracuse University and designed projects in Ecuador, upstate New York and Arkansas. He taught for two years in Florence before returning to his native Arkansas to join the faculty at the University of Arkansas and open his firm, denoblearchitecture, P.A.

De Noble’s design practice largely centers on residential projects that fuse modernist space with vernacular building precedents. A current project, the Bakhita Ridge House in Washington County, exemplifies his approach. The 2000-square-foot home has a simple shed form and rustic materials — Galvalume and cast concrete walls and steel sunscreens with cypress planking — that complement the vintage cedar barn on site. De Noble is also known for sensitive renovations of historic homes such as Chris and Lynn Parker’s residence, which was published in At Home in Arkansas. De Noble spent his childhood in the Parker’s home, located in the Pulaski Heights neighborhood in Little Rock.

“I grew up in that home. It’s a beautiful, Craftsman-style residence that very much awakened my interest in architecture,” de Noble said. De Noble received an Citation Design Award from the American Institute of Architects for his design of the Garner/Herring House in 2002, and a number of his renovation projects have been published in regional magazines.

In addition to teaching design studios and technology courses, and participating in international study programs, de Noble has led seminars on small town morphology, using Arkansas towns such as Decatur, Sulphur Springs and Monte Ne as examples of how towns change over time. He has delivered papers on diverse topics at international, national and regional conferences and in 2001 organized an exhibition of models completed by UA architecture students at the national headquarters of the American Institute of Architects in Washington, D.C.

De Noble is active in the profession and in the community. He served as chair of the northwest Arkansas section of the AIA in 2004 and last spring helped coordinate the “Birds in Paradise” birdhouse design competition and auction in support of the Elizabeth Richardson Center in Springdale. He is a past board member of Habitat for Humanity and has been a member of the Fayetteville Rotary Club since 1999. He and his wife Anne de Noble have three sons.