UT SOLAR D REPORTS FROM WASHINGTON, D.C.

The Solar Decathletes have taken Washington by storm. With the 2007 Solar Decathlon competition drawing to a close on October 19, the UT SolarD team has been reporting its day-to-day progress during the past 2 weeks and uploading some fantastic photos of the BLOOMhouse on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on the SolarD blog.

The Solar Decathlon brings together 20 college and university teams in a competition to design, build, and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar-powered house. Through October 20, more than 100,000 people are expected to visit the houses that students from the U.S., Canada, Germany, and Spain have designed, constructed, transported, and rebuilt for the competition. The teams were selected by experts from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and its National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Follow all the competition highlights, scoring, daily journals, and learn more about energy efficiency on the DOE's Solar Decathlon website.

The School of Architecture and the entire UT SolarD team give a big TEXAS thank you to all our sponsors:

PLATINUM ($25K+)
Applied materials
BP Solar
ProLogis/Catellus Development Corp.
Struct-All
University Coop

GOLD ($10K – 25K)
Alno Kitchens
Austin Energy
Interstate Powercare
Marvin Windows & Doors/BMC West
Plam Harbor Homes
Polygal/Laird Plastics
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
UT-Austin School of Architecture

SILVER ($5K – 10K)
Austin Commercial, Inc.
College House Cooperatives
DutchTub, U.S.
Southern Cypress Manufacturer’s Association (SCMA)
Urban Edge Developers, Ltd.
U.S. Department of Energy
Viega
Warmboard Inc. Radiant Subfloor

GREEN ($1K – 5K)
Architectural Engineers Collaborative
Center for Sustainable Development
Fry Reglet
Gensler
Håfale
Interface Carpet
Kohler
Lake/Flato Architects
Liebherr Rerigeration
Lower Colorado River Authority
R.E.P.M.T., L.L.C.
Southwest Research Institute
U.S. Green Building Council
UT Friends of Architecture
University of Texas InterCooperative Council
Venmar Ventilation, Inc.
Y Lighting

Events

For the latest updates, check out the online UTSOA Calendar.

EXHIBIT

September 24 - October 19
Mebane Gallery
Goldsmith Hall
Sponsored by Hellmuth Obata Kassabaum

"2 x 2: An Exhibition of Work by
Specht Harpman and designsubset"

Specht Harpman works at multiple scales, always engaging and educating their clients in the process of making architecture. This installation highlights three residential projects, including the award-winning zeroHouse(tm). The show also features several full-size wall assemblies and two urban design proposals from Specht Harpman Leisure Industries.

designsubset is the design practice and partnership of Assistant Professor Billie Faircloth and Jim Faircloth. Its goal is to develop inventive relationships among material, environment, and fabrication. designsubset's show is titled "BOX OF 500."

LECTURE

Thursday, November 1
Goldsmith Hall 3.120, 5:00 p.m.

Reed Kroloff
Cranbrook Academy of Art
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

SYMPOSIUM + EXHIBIT

Mebane Gallery
Goldsmith Hall

"counterMEASURES"

The University of Texas at Austin will be hosting the counterMEASURES symposium on November 1-2, 2007. Additionally, design proposals for New Orleans will be on view in the Mebane Gallery November 1-30.

The counterMEASURES symposium + exhibition will examine New Orleans as a case study for what strategies and tactics landscapes, urbanism, and architecture may adopt to achieve resilience in the face of extreme circumstances. Participants include:

Symposium:
Michelle Addington, Yale University
Eelco Hooftman, GrOSS.MAX
Kristina Hill, University of Virginia
Reed Kroloff, Cranbrook Academy of Art
Nina-Marie Lister, Ryerson University
Anuradha Mathur, University of Pennsylvania
Miho Mazereeuw, Wheelwright Fellow
Albert Pope, Rice University
Fritz Steiner, The University of Texas at Austin
Charles Waldheim, University of Toronto

Design Invitation:
Emery McClure Architects
Miho Mazereeuw
designsubset
Chris Hight and Natalia Beard
North Design Office
SWiMcau

We are very appreciative of the support of our donors. Special thanks to:

Exhibition Underwriter
The Howard E. Rachofsky Foundation

Symposium Underwriters
Edward W. Rose III Family Fund of the Dallas Foundation; McCall Design Group; Andersson.Wise Architects; Urban Edge Developers, Ltd.; Texas Gas Service; Boone Powell, FAIA; Gay Kokernot Ratliff; Dick Clark Architecture; Charles E. Lawrence; Laura Toups; Helen Thompson; Elizabeth Chu Richter, FAIA

LECTURE

Wednesday, November 14
Goldsmith Hall 3.120, 5:00 p.m.

Lori Ryker
Author, Off the Grid
Livingston, Montana

LECTURE

Monday, November 19
Goldsmith Hall 3.120, 5:00 p.m.

Rebecca Aarons-Sydnor
Sustainable Design Consulting
Richmond, Virginia
Sponsored by the UTSOA Materials Lab and
the Gene Edward Mikeska Endowed Professorship for Interior Design

EXHIBIT

September 10, 2007, through January 4, 2008
Visual Resources Collection
Sutton Hall 3.128 (Monday-Friday, 8-5)

"Images of India: Photography by Sarah Hill"

Traveling throughout India for six weeks in summer 2006 with the Advanced Travel India Studio led by Lecturers Pankaj Gupta and Christine Mueller, Sarah Hill was provided with many opportunities to document the visually rich environment. The selection of images in this exhibit represents a small sampling of over 3700 digital images that are now part of the School of Architecture's Visual Resources Image Collection; the images will be available shortly for use by the University community for study, teaching, and research.

Sarah Hill graduated from the School of Architecture in May 2007 with a Master of Architecture degree. This project was supported in great part by a ~FAST Tex Grant from the University's Division of Instructional Innovation and Assessment.

EXHIBIT

Through October 2007
Architecture & Planning Library
Battle Hall

"Information, Technology, and the Public Library"

On display are drawings and models prepared by Professor Louise Harpman's advanced design studio (spring 2006) for the new Blanco Library in Blanco, Texas.

As part of the studio, the students presented their proposals in the typical school of architecture jury format at school, but also in a large "town hall" style meeting in Blanco. Local residents, planning officials, and journalists from Blanco, Johnson City, and San Antonio attended the session. The student projects were on display throughout the summer of 2006 at the Blanco Library and were also featured in the Blanco County News.

CENTER LUNCH FORUM SERIES

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

The aim of the series is for faculty and students to meet in an informal atmosphere to debate topics and to share ideas about history, practice, theory, and new directions for architecture. Forum topics/titles are confirmed a week prior to each forum date. Visit the Center web site for updates. The remaining fall 2007 schedule includes:

• October 19, Victoria Kaplan, "Structural Inequality"
• November 9, Simon Atkinson
• November 16, Michael Benedikt and Wilfried Wang
• November 30, Chris Long, Books & Buildings

The Friday Forum is also webcast live (visit the Center's web site), and you are invited to call in live with questions or comments during the discussion at 512.471.9890.

FACULTY SCHOLARSHIP

Professor Sinclair Black is featured as a "Critics Pic" in the current Best of Austin 2007 edition of the Austin Chronicle. Black was voted "Best Urban Elder" in the "Architecture" category.

In their words, "For decades now, architect Sinclair Black has been our critic, gadfly, and conscience, demanding better urban design from the city of Austin and developers. In his younger years, Black was seen as irritatingly abrasive, if visionary. Now that he's acquired the patina of age, Black is credited with wisdom and even greatness. As well he should be. Austin owes Black a deep bow of thanks for its Great Streets Program, his advocacy for good civic design, and his current work on environmental issues like Greenprinting. As a UT professor and design firm principal, Black also has inspired a younger generation."

PH.D. STUDENT RECEIVES GRAHAM FOUNDATION AWARD

Vladimir Kulic, doctoral student in the Architectural History Program was selected to receive a Trustees Merit Citation from the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts for his dissertation project, "Land of the In-Between: Modern Architecture and Politics in Socialist Yugoslavia, 1945-1965." This honor is acknowledged by a financial award of $10,000.

Kulic is the Program's second student to win a Graham in the last two years. Timothy Parker received the 2006 Carter Manny Award from the Graham Foundation.

ALUMNI NEWS

TSA ALUMNI RECEPTION

Thursday, October 18
The Austin Center for Architecture
801 W. 12th Street
6:30 p.m.

The annual Texas Society of Architects convention is currently underway in Austin. Even if you are not attending the TSA convention, all alumni of the School of Architecture are invited to attend a reception at the Austin Center for Architecture on Thursday, October 18, beginning at 6:30 p.m. We hope you will plan to join your fellow alumni and Dean Steiner at this event, sponsored by John Nyfeler, FAIA, and Sally Fly, Honorary AIA. Please contact Stephanie Palmer at 512.471.0617 or stephanie.palmer@mail.utexas.edu with questions.

ALUMNI UPDATES

Oscar Martínez Garza [B.Arch. '74] recently completed an exhibition center for the Universal Forum of Cultures now held in Monterrey, Mexico. Martínez was the main architect on the project, a $25 million dollar restoration and redesign of a 1950's frame. The project is Martínez's third museum or exhibition space in the city, together with the Metropolitan Museum and Vitro's Corporation Glass Museum. His firm, Oscar Martínez Garza, Arquitectos, specializes in historic preservation and re-adaptation of antique buildings and structures, along with emblematic design for commercial and corporative work.

Mark Gonzalez, RA, NCARB [B. Arch '95], recently earned an M.S. in Real Estate Development degree from the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University. He has accepted the position of Assistant Director of Development at YL Equities in Manhattan. The firm specializes in the acquisition and conversion of residential rental product into condominiums in the Manhattan market. He is a member of the Urban Land Institute and Young Real Estate Professionals of New York.

Kristine Stiphany [M.Arch. '06] has been awarded a Fulbright U.S. Student scholarship in Architecture. Stiphany is one of over 1,300 U.S. citizens who will travel abroad for the 2007-2008 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. The Fulbright Program, America's flagship international educational exchange program, is sponsored by the United States Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Since its establishment in 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided approximately 279,500 people with the opportunity to observe each others' political, economic, educational, and cultural institutions, to exchange ideas and to embark on joint ventures of importance to the general welfare of the world's inhabitants. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. Stiphany's recommenders at the School of Architecture were Dr. Steven Moore, Dr. Danilo Udovicki Selb, Visiting Associate Professor Barbara Hoidn, and Associate Professor Vince Snyder. Beginning in March 2008, she will spend a year researching the material composition and building methods of self-built housing settlements in São Paulo, Brazil.

ALUMNI CONNECTIONS

The School of Architecture is continuing its effort to find (and maintain) the most accurate contact information for all of our alumni. From young alumni receptions to 50-year reunions, and everything in between, we hope you will stay in touch. Would you like to mentor a student? Do you need to hire a fellow Longhorn? Looking for networking or continuing education opportunities? We can help, but we need to know how to reach you!

Alumni may update their records, contact preferences, and search for fellow graduates by logging on to the University's online alumni directory. Or, you may always contact Stephanie Palmer, Alumni Relations Director at stephanie.palmer@mail.utexas.edu or 512-471-0617.

Thanks for helping us improve our relationship with you. We look forward to hearing from you!

SUPPORT UTSOA

Private support for the School of Architecture is a crucial component of our ability to recruit and retain the highest caliber faculty and students. To find out how you can make a difference, we invite you to read about our annual giving program, Friends of Architecture, and our various other fundraising initiatives. Please visit our secure online giving page.

FRIENDS OF ARCHITECTURE

On November 2-3, Friends of Architecture will present "At Home in Austin," a tour of Austin's hottest residential architecture. Austin has always been known for its natural urban setting and free-spirited eye for design. Combining this original architecture with abundant natural beauty, Austin has emerged as a hotbed for contemporary design and become known as "THE" place to live. With the guidance of Associate Professor Juan Miró, Friends of Architecture will open the doors to private residential designs, including the work of Gluckman Mayner Architects, Miró Rivera, John Watson, and Urban Jobe Design.

The tour includes Friday evening cocktails and Saturday breakfast and lunch. Tickets are $215. Dean's Circle and Corporate members, $195. Membership is required.

For more information or to make a reservation, contact Friends of Architecture Director Stephanie Palmer at stephanie.palmer@mail.utexas.edu or 512.471.0617.

FRANCISCO ARUMÍ-NOÉ MEMORIAL FELLOWSHIP IN SUSTAINABLE DESIGN

In September 2005, the School of Architecture lost a treasured colleague and dear friend. Francisco Arumí-Noé, or "Paco" as he was well-known, passed away unexpectedly surrounded by good friends and colleagues.

Professor Arumí joined the School of Architecture in 1971, where he taught and conducted research in modeling the energy performance of buildings. Paco's particular interests in daylighting and solar geometry were well ahead of their time.

In memory of Paco's commitment to this important work and the many lives he and his work have touched, we are seeking to raise $50,000 to establish the Francisco Arumí-Noé Memorial Fellowship in Sustainable Design. This permanent endowment will perpetuate Paco's legacy by providing support to countless future generations of scholars committed to research and scholarship in the area of sustainable design.

If you are interested in supporting the Francisco Arumí-Noé Memorial Fellowship in Sustainable Design or other UTSOA programs, please contact Assistant Dean for Development Julie Hooper at jhooper@austin.utexas.edu or 512.471.6114.

DEAN'S JOURNAL

October has been busy with many, often overlapping, events. On Thursday, October 4, I attended the Nature Conservancy Luncheon where Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center executive director Susan Rieff was recognized with a lifetime achievement award for her contributions to environmental policy. Afterwards, Steven Moore and I participated in the fourth Texas Society of Architects/Texas Deans Roundtable, organized by President Elizabeth Chu Richter [B.Arch. '74]. Professor Moore has collaborated with Texas Tech Dean Andrew Vernooy [M.Arch. '78 & M.S.Arch.Eng. '90] on an ambitious proposal for a system of sustainable design centers at the Texas schools of architecture.

Later that day, we welcomed Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture President Kim Tanzer of the University of Florida. She met with our faculty to discuss ideas and concerns about ACSA. That evening, I attended the AIA Austin Homes Tour Premier Party at a terrace home in the hills of Barton Creek designed by Furman + Keil Architects.

The next morning, I welcomed participants of the ACSA regional "Just Add Water" conference organized by Associate Professor Nichole Wiedemann and Assistant Professors Billie Faircloth and Jason Sowell. As the conference proceeded, I flew to San Francisco for the American Society of Landscape Architects annual meeting. That evening, I attended the Landscape Architecture Foundation's annual benefit dinner on the 52nd floor of the Bank of America Building.

Over the weekend, I participated in various events at the ASLA meeting, including a press conference on Saturday announcing the Sustainable Sites Initiative. The initiative is a partnership among ASLA, the Wildflower Center, the U.S. Botanic Garden, and others to develop a landscape complement to the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED standards.

Highlights of the ASLA conference included presentations at the closing ceremonies by the most important living landscape architect Larry Halprin and former Vice President Al Gore. At the awards dinner on Monday, October 8, I received ASLA's Community Service Award.

On Friday, October 12, the School's Advisory Council met. Led by chair Mike McCall [M.Arch. '80], the council discussed strategies and priorities for the university's capital campaign. At the Advisory Council's lunch, representatives of student organizations made presentations about their activities. After lunch, Associate Professor Mirka Benes presented an overview of the landscape architecture program and Assistant Professor Liz Mueller provided an update on the Center for Sustainable Development. That evening, we held the Advisory Council reception and dinner at the home of Nicole and Bill Kessler. The Kessler home is a 1929 house, designed by Hugo Kuehne, founding dean of the UT-Austin School of Architecture, and recently restored and expanded by Hobson Crow [M.Arch. '80].

We devoted Saturday morning of the Advisory Council meeting to Battle Hall, which will be a focus of our capital campaign. Professor Michael Benedikt and Alexander Architectural Archive Curator Beth Dodd provided background information and led a tour of Battle.

On Sunday, October 14, I welcomed the National Parks Foundation Summit on Partners and Philanthropists at the Alumni Center on behalf of the University. Later, I participated in opening events of the Design Futures Council's Sustainable Design Summit. Its organizers provided six scholarships for our students: Megan Clark (an M.S. in Sustainable Design student), Matthew Macioge (an M.Arch. student), Cory Olson (a B.S. in Interior Design student), Emily Potts (an M.Arch. student), Barbara Brown Wilson (a Ph.D. in Community and Regional Planning candidate), and Bo Wu (a Master of Landscape Architecture student).

The next two days, I rotated between the Sustainable and National Parks summits. At the sustainability summit, I introduced a talk by Professor Larry Speck on "Building Skins: A Key Element in Sustainable Design." At the parks summit, I attended dinner with First Lady Laura Bush and Advisory Council member Deedie Rose where Lady Bird Johnson was honored posthumously.

On Tuesday evening, October 16, family, friends, and colleagues gathered in the Reading Room of Battle Hall to honor Professor Martin Kermacy in a memorial celebration of his life.

—Fritz Steiner