LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE PROGRAM AWARDED LAAB ACCREDITATION

Dean Fritz Steiner received word from the Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board (LAAB) on Tuesday, January 23, 2007, that the Graduate Program in Landscape Architecture has been awarded LAAB accreditation. The LAAB accreditation process evaluates each program to insure they meet the rigorous educational standards of the profession. Since the accreditation has been awarded within a year after our first graduating class, all graduates of the program are now entitled to seek professional licensure in landscape architecture.

Accreditation is a significant milestone in the development of the program, which admitted its first students in May 2003. The program has since graduated 15 students who are currently working in Texas and across the county, with another strong class about to graduate this spring. The program has already in its short lifespan begun to acheive national recognition for the quality of its graduates, who are actively recruited nationally. As a discipline, landscape architecture has brought a new perspective to the intellectual climate of the School. Congratulations to the students and faculty who have put three and one half years of hard work into building the program.

To see the 2005-07 prospectus of the UTSOA Graduate Program in Landscape Architecture, visit: http://soa.utexas.edu/la/info/UTSOA_LA_ Prospectus_05_07.pdf.

Events

LECTURE

Monday, January 29
Jeanne Gang
Studio Gang Architects
Chicago, Illinois
Goldsmith 3.120, 5:00 p.m.

"Idea and Material"

It is commonly acknowledged that materials reinforce ideas, but is it possible for an idea to originate from material itself? The lecture explored this question through the recent work of Studio Gang Architects. Projects include a range of scales from small pavilions for the Lincoln Park Zoo to the large scale 80 story "Aqua" tower for downtown Chicago.

Jeanne Gang leads Studio Gang Architects, a practice that has designed award winning projects since its inception in 1998. Ms. Gang's design in the field of architecture is supported through a mode of working that combines practice, teaching and research. As adjunct professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology she has taught architecture since 1998. She was visiting professor at the Harvard Design School in 2004 and held the Louis I. Kahn visiting professor chair at the Yale College of Architecture in 2005.

LECTURES

Monday, February 12
Georgina Huljich
P-A-T-T-E-R-N-S
Los Angeles, California

and
William O'Brien, Jr.
ACRONYM
Columbus, Ohio

Goldsmith 3.120, 5:00-6:30 p.m.
Reception following lectures.
Sponsored by the McCall Design Group Press

EXHIBIT

January 25 - February 15
2X2: ALTERNATE ANATOMIES
PATTERNS and ACRONYM
Mebane Gallery, Goldsmith Hall
Sponsored by the McCall Design Group Press

EXHIBIT

January 26 through August 24
Visual Resources Collection
Sutton 3.128 (Monday-Friday, 8-5)
Opening Reception: Monday, February 12, 3-5 p.m.

"Frozen Notes: the Photography of Frederick R. Steiner"

This exhibit features a selection of black and white photographs printed from 35mm Scala slides taken by the School of Architecture's Dean Frederick Steiner. Regarding his photographic pursuits, Dean Steiner says, "I seldom think about taking pictures, it is something I just do. Through my camera, I am an observer of the contemporary urban condition. Mostly, I take pictures of buildings and landscapes. I suppose my pictures might be viewed as abbreviated forms of architecture."

Dean Steiner is the Henry M. Rockwell Chair in Architecture, The University of Texas at Austin. During his tenure as a National Endowment for the Arts Prize Fellow in Rome in 1998, his love for photography was rekindled, and he has been photographing ever since.

LECTURE

Monday, February 19
Martin Hogue
Syracuse, New York
Goldsmith 3.120, 5:00 p.m.

EXHIBIT

February 19 through March 9
[FAKE] FAKE Estates
Martin Hogue
Mebane Gallery, Goldsmith Hall

EXHIBIT

Through February 2007
Architecture & Planning Library
Battle Hall

"Landscape Representation and the Education of Landscape Architects"

Selections from the collections of Associate Professor Mirka Benes and the Architecture & Planning Library's Special Collections.

SYMPOSIUM

March 2, 2007
Sanctioning Modernism:
A Symposium on Post-WWII Architecture

Keynote Speaker
Dennis Doordan
Professor and Chair, Department of Art,
Art History and Design
Professor, School of Architecture
University of Notre Dame

The history of modernism in architecture has been told many times over. While reductive partisan histories have been subjected to rigorous critique, a fuller picture has emerged only to result in a multiplication of modernisms--canonical, alternative, regional, and otherwise. The very conception of modernism as a historical phenomenon remains unclear. Ever present, however, is the issue of identity.

It is our conviction that the interrelation between modernism and identity--including the production, development, and interpretation of each--is in need of focused and systematic study. The years following the Second World War constitute a distinctively rich period for such study.

The symposium will address three specific settings of sanctioning modernism:

• political appropriation of modernism in official institutional architecture
• religious appropriation of modernism in ecclesiastical architecture in light of liturgical reform and theological modernism
• consumer appropriation of modernism in middle class residential architecture and furnishings

The symposium will be free and open to the public. For more information, visit: http://soa.utexas.edu/sanctioningmodernism or contact Timothy Parker at tkparker@mail.utexas.edu.

CENTER FORUMS

The Center for American Architecture and Design hosts a Friday Forum Series from 12:00 to 1:30 in the Center's Battle Hall Conference Room (room 101).

Throughout the fall and spring semesters, faculty, visitors, and graduate students at the School of Architecture offer their latest work up for freewheeling discussion and debate, with subjects varying from architectural practice, design, design theory, to the arts, planning, and the politics and economics of development.

The idea is for faculty and students to meet in an informal atmosphere to debate and freely discuss topics "hot" on the minds of the speakers. Forum topics/titles are confirmed a week prior to each forum date. Visit the Center website (http://www.utexas.edu/architecture/center/lunch_forums) for updates. The spring 2007 schedule includes:

• February 9, Kevin Harrington
• February 23, Francesco Passanti
• March 9, Chris Long
• March 30, Lynn Osgood
• April 13, Mirka Beneš
• April 27, Dennis Doxtater
• May 4, Smilja Milovanovic

The Friday Forum is also webcast live (visit the Center's web address above), and you are invited to call in live with questions or comments during the discussion at 512-471-9890.

CITY FORUMS

City Forum is an urban issues speaker series hosted by the School's Community and Regional Planning Program. The bi-monthly program features discussions of contemporary urban issues with national and local perspectives. During spring of 2007, the program will be held on selected Fridays from 12:00 noon until 1:30 p.m. in the Texas Union Board of Governors Room, 3.116 (on Guadalupe Street between 22nd and 24th Streets).

• February 2, Cid Galindo, Planning Commissioner, the City of Austin, and Director, the Downtown Austin Alliance, "Austin Sustainable City Initiative"

Rapid population growth in Austin and Travis County will continue to create major planning challenges including traffic congestion, affordable housing, and environmental preservation. What are some feasible long term strategies to better manage rapid growth and preserve the quality of life in the city and county? Can we develop a new comprehensive planning framework that has the public and political support to shape future growth?

The City Forum schedule is available at: http://www.utcityforum.org. For more information on the City Forum Speaker Series or to be added to the email list, contact Sungmin Lee at sungminlee@mail.utexas.edu.

Buy-A-Watt for the Solar Decathlon Team!

With the new semester underway, the 2007 Solar Decathlon team is eagerly preparing for the start of construction on the BLOOMhouse, with the competition slated for October in Washington, D.C.!

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

ALL UTSOA friends and family can contribute to the team's success!

HOW?
BUY-A-WATT by Valentine's Day (February 14)!

This is an easy way to sponsor/send your love to the team at whatever level works for you. The BUY-A-WATT form can be downloaded from the UTsolarD web page. Go to http://www.utsolard.org, then click "We need your Help." Wattage is available from $5/watt (the approx. going rate of solar technology these days) up to $1000 (200 watts!).

You can: - print, then mail the form with your contribution - or email/call in a pledge to the team via Sam Randall (contact info. below) - or donate online! https://utdirect.utexas.edu/nlogon/vip/ogif.WBX (be sure to put UTSOA SOLAR DECATHLON TEAM in the info box!).

You can also help the team by sharing the BUY-A-WATT program with your business or friends—helping to identify others that might like to sponsor the team.

Sponsorship by February 14 will help the most as we start construction!

Interested in sponsoring the team for a greater amount? Contact Assistant Dean for Development Julie Hooper at jhooper@austin.utexas.edu or 512-471-6114.

A big thank you to our latest sponsors:

NEW GOLD + PLATINUM SPONSORS ($10,000 and above):
Catellus Development: Airport Hangar donation (thanks also to City of Austin!)
Beck Construction (thanks to Kathy Zarsky, ongoing team partner!)

NEW SILVER SPONSORS ($5000 - $10,000):
Austin Commercial (thanks to Will Shepherd + Jack Archer!)
Urban Edge Developers (thanks to Diane Cheatham!)
Meridian Solar (thanks to Andrew McCalla, ongoing team partner!)

NEW GREEN SPONSORS ($1000 - $5000):
Lake/Flato Architects!
USGBC - Central Texas Balcones Chapter (again, thanks Kathy Zarsky!)

Please take the time to consider how you can support the team. Again, sponsorship by February 14 will help the most as we start construction! This is one of the 5 major initiatives of the School of Architecture and an incredible project—over 40 students from 8 different disciplines have been working hard on the high performance home that will show the world what's possible with Energy from the Sun.

For more information or sponsorships, contact: Sam Randall, faculty team lead, at samrandall@mail.utexas.edu or 512-466-9298, or Julie Hooper, Assistant Dean for Development, at jhooper@austin.utexas.edu or 512-471-6114.

The BLOOMhouse is UTSolarD’s entry for the 2007 Solar Decathlon. It is built on five design principles found in LIFE: harvest, adaptation, community, endurance, delight. BLOOMhouse embodies our playful personality with true Texas spirit. Louvers reminiscent of old Texan dance halls provide a simple solution for regulating heat and air circulation, and the east end of the home opens up to the outdoors, allowing for natural flow of light, breezes, and movement. Exterior sheathing performs like a layer of clothing, responding and adapting to its surroundings. The house also boasts radiant floors, an evaporative cooling water trough, and thruwall fiber-optic and LED lighting.

The University of Texas at Austin Solar Decathlon Team is a collaborative interdisciplinary research group that provides leadership in the renewable energy revolution for a more livable, sustainable future through innovations in energy-efficient building design and environmental stewardship and competes in the biennial Solar Decathlons sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy. Learn more at http://www.utsolard.org and http://www.solardecathlon.org.

FACULTY SCHOLARSHIP

Community and Regional Planning Assistant Professor Elizabeth Mueller and doctoral student Rosie Tighe co-authored "Making the Case for Affordable Housing: Connecting Housing with Health and Education Outcomes." The article reviews existing studies to discern what we know about the health and education benefits of access to stable, decent affordable housing for residents and for the larger community. It finds evidence of a connection in both cases but recommends that more focused research, comparing low income families with different housing situations, be conducted to expand our understanding of the specific conditions under which housing policies or programs might yield other social benefits. The article has been accepted for publication in the May 2007 issue of Journal of Planning Literature.

Professor Nancy Kwallek's article, "Color in Office Environments," has been published in the January edition of Implications, the monthly newsletter of InformeDesign, an online clearinghouse for design and human behavior research operated by the American Society of Interior Designers and the University of Minnesota. The article is available on the InformeDesign web site at: http://www.informedesign.umn.edu/_news/jan_v05r-p.pdf.

The American Institute of Architects has selected four individuals and six groups as recipients of the 2007 Institute Honors for Collaborative Achievement, including Thomas S. Hines, Ruth Carter Stevenson Chair at UTSOA for 2003-04. A writer and architecture critic, Hines "has produced some of America's most illuminating studies of the lives and works of architects—Daniel Burnham, Irving Gill, and Richard Neutra—in relation to their cultural worlds," writes John Morris Dixon, FAIA, in his letter of nomination. A native of Oxford, Mississippi, he also is writer and photographer for William Faulkner and the Tangible Past: The Architecture of Yoknapatawpha, which examines the architecture of Oxford (Faulkner's model for his fictional county) and Faulkner's use of architecture in his writing. In addition to his books, Hines' writings have appeared in Architectural Record, Architecture, Architectural Digest, Progressive Architecture, and many other publications. After serving as a professor of architecture history for the University of California Los Angeles' History Department and Department of Architecture and Urban Design for 30 years, Hines retired last year and now serves as professor emeritus.

The award, to be presented in May at the AIA National Convention in San Antonio, recognizes and encourages distinguished achievements of allied professionals, clients, organizations, architect teams, knowledge communities, and others who have had a beneficial influence on or advanced the architecture profession.

ALUMNI NEWS

James Hughes, AIA, AICP, [M.Arch. '79] has been promoted to principal at C.T. Hsu + Associates in Orlando, Florida. Hughes has more than 28 years of experience in the development, master planning, design, and construction of public and private projects. He is the firm's senior project manager for architecture and planning for the $180 million rehabilitation and hurricane restoration of Airsides 1 and 3 at Orlando International Airport. C.T. Hsu + Associates (http://www.cthsu.com) is an architectural planning and design firm named 2006 "Firm of the Year" by the American Institute of Architects - Florida Association. Established in 1984, the firm focuses on a mix of mid- to large-scale projects in the education, government, transportation, and mixed use development sectors.

Alan Feinberg [B.Arch. '68] recently helped form a group called the East of East Street Development Corporation, after returning from New Orleans where he was helping with the rebuilding efforts. The group focuses on the potential of open land in the City of Frederick, Maryland, seeking to put the "community" back in community development. The group's goal is to redirect development into a more cooperative and less contentious process involving residents and to avoid projects that are haphazard and lacking coordination. Feinberg, a Frederick resident of 12 years said, "We've got roads that don't work, schools that are overwhelmed, and we're not dealing with water or sewer that well either. We need something with a good return on investment...and something that brings back soul to the community." Feinberg is a professional planner with his own firm on East Church Street. For more information on the organization, visit their website at: http://www.eastofeaststreet.org/.

The University of California, Berkeley, has selected the San Francisco firms MKThink and Marta Fry Landscape Associates to guide a community planning process for People's Park that will look at the uses and programs that the community and campus would like to enjoy at the park and recommend landscape or facilities improvements to the university. UTSOA graduates Jamie White [MLA '06], Ning Deng [MLA '06], and Martin Wiggins [M.Arch. '06] will be recommending landscape program and design alternatives for the park, which has a rich and complex history.

The mythology surrounding the park is an important part of local culture. Born when a diverse group of residents and students decided in April 1969 to plant sod, flowers, and playground equipment on an unused lot owned by the university, People's Park became a cultural touchstone a month later, when the university decided to take back its land in one of the most infamous domestic clashes of the Vietnam era. Governor Ronald Reagan's eventual order to send in 2,000 National Guard troops with rifles, hoses, and tear gas transformed People's Park into a worldwide symbol of the power of community. But since 1972, People's Park has become the refuge for a cadre of fringe characters and drug dealers, effectively driving away a large segment of the local population, including the 31,000 students at UC Berkeley, only two blocks away.

The park's community advisory board hopes to involve a wide range of community members in the planning process, including neighbors; local businesses and non-profit organizations; UC Berkeley students, faculty and staff; community gardeners; and other park users. "The MFLA and MKThink team", says Marta Fry, "will have a unique and challenging opportunity to explore the sociology of public space and begin to build bridges between the Berkeley community, the University, and People's Park advocates."

FRIENDS OF ARCHITECTURE

This weekend, Friends of Architecture is touring Big "D!" If you're missing out on FOA's sold out Bright Lights, Big "D" tour with Professor Larry Speck, we invite you to join the waiting list for one of our other upcoming tours. Visit http://www.friendsofarchitecture.org to become a member of Friends of Architecture and to secure your spot for our next exciting adventure.

Friends of Architecture's exclusive tours of architecture and design promote the advancement of architectural appreciation and knowledge, while directly supporting excellence at the School of Architecture.

Dean's Journal

After the ice melted and the University reopened, we learned that our Master of Landscape Architecture degree received its initial accreditation from the Landscape Architecture Accreditation Board. This is an important milestone for our young MLA program. This achievement is the result of the leadership by the Landscape Architecture Graduate Studies Committee, as well as School-wide support.

On Monday, January 22, I participated in the University Leadership Retreat. New Provost Steve Leslie discussed how school and college goals will be aligned with tuition policy and the next capital campaign. Vice President for Diversity Greg Vincent described his efforts to promote student, faculty, and staff diversity. He also noted the challenge to retain faculty, with one in three UT-Austin faculty being recruited by other universities. New Dean of Undergraduate Studies Paul Woodruff discussed his efforts to put in place new curriculum requirements such as "signature courses" and expanded freshmen seminars.

President Bill Powers explained the four key issues for the current state legislative session that include possible changes to the Top 10% rule, general revenue funding, tuition, and tuition revenue bonds, which pay for building construction. President Powers noted that general revenue had only increased by 1.8% annually over the past decade. As a result, state funding has not kept pace with costs. Increased tuition has offset some of this gap. Meanwhile, President Powers noted the economic benefits that universities generate for Texas. For example, universities produce $5 for every dollar invested by the state. The two leading research universities (Texas A&M and The University of Texas at Austin) generate $15 for each dollar spent by the state of Texas.

Our new Assistant Dean for Development, Julie Hooper, and I met with senior staff of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center on January 23 about cooperative fund raising opportunities. In particular, the Sustainable Sites Initiative and related green-building undertakings hold considerable potential. Julie and I also went to Dallas on Monday, January 29, to meet with friends, supporters, and alumni. We updated everyone on the progress of our Dallas Urban Lab, which is coordinating three studios in the metropolitan region this spring. We are also arranging prospects for summer internships.

On Friday, January 26, I participated in the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Advisory Council. We discussed progress that has been made to implement the merger of the Wildflower Center with the University. Wildflower Center director Susan Rieff reported on progress on the design of a new children's garden, which is the first phase of the Center's landscape plan.

On Saturday, January 27, I participated in a roundtable between the Texas Society of Architects executive committee and the Texas architecture deans. We met at Morris Architects in Houston. Led by Elizabeth Chu Richter [B.Arch '74] and Andrew Vernooy [M.Arch. '78 & M.S.Arch.Eng. '90], we discussed challenges facing the academy and practice in Texas. We identified several short-term and longer-term opportunities for partnerships between practitioners and academics.

On Tuesday, January 30, I stopped by the new Austin Center for Architecture open house. The new center is located at 801 West 12 Street and serves as the headquarters for AIA Austin. The center includes exhibition space that AIA Austin plans to use to include work of our faculty and students. The building was formerly a Gulf service station rehabilitated five years ago by Jackson Galloway Architects. AIA Austin Executive Director Sally Fly and her team have created a wonderful new center to raise the visibility of architecture in Austin.

—Fritz Steiner

Contacts

UT-Austin School of Architecture
soa.utexas.edu

Dean's Office
512-471-1922, fax 512-471-0716

Center for American Architecture and Design
512-471-9890, christinewong@mail.utexas.edu

Center for Sustainable Development
512-475-8013, utcsd@mail.utexas.edu

Assistant Dean for Development
Julie Hooper, 512-471-6114, jhooper@austin.utexas.edu

Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Programs
Jeanne Crawford, 512-471-0109, jcraw@mail.utexas.edu

Graduate Program Coordinator
Rosemin Gopaul, 512-471-0134, gopaul@mail.utexas.edu

Publications Editor
Pamela Peters, 512-471-0154, p.peters@mail.utexas.edu

Friends of Architecture Director and Alumni Coordinator
Stephanie Palmer, 512-471-0617, stephanie.palmer@mail.utexas.edu

Career Placement Director
Carrie O'Malley, 512-471-1333, carrie.omalley@austin.utexas.edu

Materials Lab
http://soa.utexas.edu/matlab, 512-232-5969

Architecture and Planning Library
www.lib.utexas.edu/apl/, 512-495-4620

Director of Photography
Charlotte Pickett, c.pickett@mail.utexas.edu

Webmaster
Christopher Rankin, crankin@mail.utexas.edu, 512-495-4620

UTSOA Mailing Address
The University of Texas at Austin
School of Architecture
1 University Station B7500
Austin, TX 78712-0222