ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS EXHIBIT AT UT SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

Third, fourth, and fifth grade students from various Austin and Round Rock elementary schools were given the opportunity to work with local architects through an outreach program designed and organized by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Austin chapter. The children were introduced to several aspects of architecture they are in contact with every day including houses, the relationship and function of buildings in their neighborhoods, city planning, and sustainable green building concepts. As a new addition to this program, AIA Austin prepared a showcase event that was held at UTSOA's Goldsmith Hall on November 21, where the students displayed their visions from what they learned. This year's outreach taught over 315 students, many of whom are repeat participants from previous years.

"[The students] enjoyed every minute of the presentations from learning about different building styles to creating their own 3-D neighborhoods. Now, they cannot wait to go to the University of Texas to see their work presented in a college for others to see," said Sarah Atwaters, fourth grade teacher at Barton Hills Elementary School.

The AIA Austin chapter has brought this award-winning architecture program to Austin and Round Rock elementary schools for the past four years. In addition to the exhibit, the AIA's Austin Foundation for Architecture provided funding for the students to attend the exhibit and prearranged a tour of the School of Architecture by the UT-AIAS architecture students.

Architect and UTSOA alum Joshua Lee [M.Arch. '05] participated in this year's program and reported, "Despite having recently taught a studio at Clemson University, the thought of teaching a room full of 4th graders was simultaneously enticing and intimidating. The students' persistent enthusiasm, however, made preparing for each weekly lesson and activity a real joy. I was amazed how quickly they were able to assimilate planning theory and sustainability into a collectively idealized neighborhood. In just a few hours, they were able to arrange and assemble a compelling, complex, and livable neighborhood model. Hope has been a constant talking point this political season. The 4th graders at Barton Hills Elementary delivered. I look forward to working with them again. And, I would like to thank SHW Group for allowing several of our staff to freely participate in the program."

For more information on this and other AIA Austin outreach programs, contact AIA Austin Executive Director Sally Fly at 512.452.4332 or sally@aiaaustin.org.

FALL 2008 STUDIO FINAL REVIEWS

Final studio reviews were held during the first two weeks of December for architecture, interior design, and landscape architecture classes. The following distinguished guest critics participated in the reviews.

• Elizabeth Alford, Pollen Architecture and Design in Austin, Austin, Texas
• Jody Beck, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, New Jersey
• Lucy Begg, KRDB, Austin, Texas
• Kelly Cone, The Beck Group, Dallas, Texas
• Tom Cox, architect, Austin, Texas
• Rick del Monte, The Beck Group, Dallas, Texas
• Billie Faircloth, KieranTimberlake Associates, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Sarah Gamble, Specht Harpman, Austin, Texas
• Carmen M. Garufo, CMG Architects Inc., Charlestown, Massachusetts
• Carl Gromatzky, Barnes Gromatzky Kosarek Architects, Austin, Texas
• Maria-Paz Gutierrez, UC-Berkeley, Berkeley, California
• Sandy Isenstadt, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
• Chris Krager, KRDB, Austin, Texas
• Maija Kreishman, Michael Hsu Design Office, Austin, Texas
• Dan Leary, UTSOA emeritus professor, Austin, Texas
• Murray Legge, LZT Architects, Austin, Texas
• Jane Garland Lucas, RISD, Providence, Rhode Island
• Jennifer Marsh, Designhouse, Austin, Texas
• Robert McCarter, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri
• Guido Porto, Metrohouse, Austin, Texas
• Paul Robinson, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
• Lori Ryker, Ryker/Nave Design, Livingston, Montana
• Jack Sanders, Design Build Adventure, Austin, Texas
• Tom Simister, Rick Black Architect, Austin, Texas
• Michael Stouse, Kemp Properties, Austin, Texas
• Richard Swallow, UTSOA emeritus professor, Austin, Texas
• Wendy Dunham Tita, Dunnam + Dodson, Austin, Texas
• Claire Zimmerman, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan

FALL 2008 COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS

On Saturday, December 6, Associate Dean Nichole Wiedemann presented the following address at the school's fall 2008 commencement celebration to the assembled group of graduates, family, friends, faculty, and staff.

You are graduating in a time unlike any other.

The world is changing around us at an astonishing rate. As our population grows our world is becoming increasingly urban. As you can imagine, rapid urbanization has changed, and will continue to change, the landscape in which we live. We face concerns about energy, resources, transportation, climate and, now, economy.

In Texas, we have the fastest growing population, and consequently one of the fastest growing regions, in the country. (We should note that as the country lost jobs, Texas has made significant gains.) Because of these realities, we are confronted, every day, to develop ways to make the world around us more sustainable.

The world is changing around us. There's no doubt about that. And, certainly, in many ways it's become more challenging.

But, I believe that you, the graduates represented in this room in the Architecture, Interior Design, Community and Regional Planning, and Historic Preservation Programs are prepared for the challenges that we face.

Our school is a small community--about 700 students, almost evenly split between undergraduate and graduate programs--within the larger institution of the University of Texas at Austin.

Each degree option has a relatively small number of participants and has a strong identity of its own. Our students enjoy small class sizes in comparison to other areas across campus and close contact with their faculty. Together, we produce an interdisciplinary whole that benefits significantly from the diversity of its parts.

Our school, in particular, is proud of its balance between ideas and implementation. From the Alley Flats Initiative in Austin, to the Dallas Urban Lab, to the Beijing Studio, to the Solar Decathlon, our faculty and students learn by doing in collaborative settings. In addition, our students gain professional experience with programs like the Professional Residency Program, Interior Design Summer Internship, and the Planning Internship. Our CRP students engage and support local and global communities. Overall, the students and faculty strive to marry theory with application and experience the opportunity to translate their knowledge into hands-on experience.

The moment that theories (or invention) are put into practice is INNOVATION. It is this pursuit--the pursuit of innovation in design (I use the word, design, in the broadest and most inclusive sense)--that unites the school. Design is a space for communication and exchange between history, environment, site, culture, economy, politics, materials, resources, etc. It is a complex problem-solving process that leads to innovative solutions.

Whether architects, interior designers, planners, or historic preservationists, we are faced with solving complex problems, today's challenges, at varying scales, through design. Design has the ability to improve our lives from a chair to a building to a neighborhood to a city to a region. We--meaning you--can TRANSFORM lives of individuals and, in doing so, our society. This is a big responsibility for us as educators, students and, ultimately, you--as our alumni.

Ours is a school that prepares our students not only for success in the professional environment but, more importantly, one that prepares them to question how we may do things better. In the School of Architecture, we accept the challenges of today. And we INVENT the change. We hope you, as graduates of our school, will accept these opportunities that arise from these challenges and transform our world for the better.

Now, I would like to acknowledge each degree candidate.

Kristina M. Harrod, Bachelor of Science of Interior Design
Beth E. Taylor, Bachelor of Science of Interior Design
Ashley Nachelle Leath, Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies
Daniel S. Hernandez, Bachelor of Architecture
Allison Hu, Bachelor of Architecture
Robert David Klodginski, Bachelor of Architecture
Lindsey Ann Moyer, Bachelor of Architecture
Michael Wayne Ratliff, Bachelor of Architecture
Aaron Albright, Master of Architecture
Christine De Witte, Master of Architecture
Ezra Sword, Master of Architecture
Patrick Taylor Winn, Master of Architecture
Shonda Mace, Master of Science in Historic Preservation
Jennifer Lauren Bennett, Master of Science in Community and Regional Planning
Jeong Il Park, Master of Science in Community and Regional Planning

You are now part of one of the largest alumni networks in the world. As an acknowledgement of your hard work, each of you will receive a gift of one-year Texas Exes membership from the UT School of Architecture. Since 1885 (really), the Texas Exes have strived "To unite, inform and involve alumni and friends for the purpose of promoting, protecting, and preserving The University of Texas."

Each year, the Texas Exes take great pride in recognizing a professor from each college with the Texas Exes Teaching Award. The recipient from the School of Architecture is Assistant Professor Bjorn Sletto.

Recipients for these awards are chosen solely by the students. These are unique awards based largely on the teacher-student relationship.

Leaving the Forty Acres doesn't mean you have to leave UT behind. I hope you will enjoy your membership over the next year and get involved with a Texas Exes group wherever you are in the world.

And, be sure to stop by the Alumni Center tomorrow between 11-5 p.m. with your family for the Great Texas EXit and a complimentary champagne toast.

Having recognized the efforts of our students and faculty, I should recognize our staff, especially those that have guided you through each semester and each registration.

Without their support, none of us would be here!

Lastly, I would like to thank you, the family and friends who have encouraged and supported your students (our students) through their years at the University of Texas School of Architecture.

I would like to ask you to stand and be acknowledged. Without your efforts, your sons and daughters--our students and, now, our graduates--the school would not be the exceptional place that it is. Thank you!

Now, it is time to celebrate!! CONGRATULATIONS!

SUPPORT UTSOA

OVERLAND PARTNERS ENDOWED PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLARSHIP

Overland Partners in San Antonio have long supported the School of Architecture with gifts of their time, expertise, and financial resources, including the creation of the Overland Partners Endowed Scholarship in 2004. Recently, the firms principals, Rick Archer, FAIA [B. Arch. '79]; Tim Blonkvist, FAIA [B.Arch. '81]; Becky Rathburn; Robert Schmidt [B.S. Eng. '79]; Bob Shemwell [M.Arch. '87]; and Madison Smith [B.Arch. '80], made a generous pledge of an additional $25,000 to take their scholarship to the Endowed Presidential Scholarship level. Presidential scholarships carry great prestige and are the highest academic scholarship awarded to the best undergraduate students. The School of Architecture extends our thanks and appreciation to Rick, Tim, Becky, Robert, Bob, Madison, and all of Overland for this gift and their ongoing support of our students.

FRIENDS OF ARCHITECTURE TOURS SAN ANTONO!

Join us in San Antonio!

As a friend of the School of Architecture, you and a guest are cordially invited to join our next tour, "San Antonio...Old Meets New," on February 21-22, 2009. San Antonio offers a unique combination of old and new in many areas of the city. We will be touring exclusive modern homes, beautifully preserved historic locations, and some of San Antonio's most exciting public spaces.

Professor Kevin Alter will lead Friends of Architecture's "San Antonio...Old Meets New" tour, taking you inside revived old residences alongside newly built homes in some of San Antonio's grand old neighborhoods, such as King William and Alamo Heights. Also included will be a look at public places such as the Pearl Brewery project and the new wing of the McNay Art Museum.

Visit Friends of Architecture's web site for details on FOA membership and to secure your spot on the tour. Tour cost includes exclusive tours by local architects, museum admission, local charter bus transportation, and meals at some of San Antonio's unique restaurants such as the historic Guenther House and a restaurant on the brewery site that features local/Texas foods.

We expect this tour to sell out, so register early!

For more information or to make a reservation, visit soa.utexas.edu/foa, or contact Barbara Terrell at 512.471.8187 or bdt@mail.utexas.edu.

Friends of Architecture would like to thank our Corporate Silver members and supporters Curtis & Windham Architects and Lucifer Lighting Company.

RAQUEL ELIZONDO STAFF EXCELLENCE FUND

It takes a tremendous amount of collective knowledge to keep our school running smoothly. From balancing our budget to managing resources like the IT and Materials Labs, our administrative staff plays an instrumental role in our continued success, and it's important that we recognize the significant contributions made by this dedicated team of professionals.

During her tenure at the School of Architecture, Assistant Dean for Administration Raquel Elizondo advocated for the creation of an endowed fund to facilitate growth and improvement through professional development opportunities for administrative staff. In recognition of Raquel's impact on the school, we have initiated a campaign to create the Raquel Elizondo Staff Excellence Fund. To date, we have raised over $21,000 in seed money, but we need your help to reach our ultimate goal of $25,000! Please consider making a gift today to help us reinforce the foundation on which the School of Architecture builds its success.

Questions? Contact Development Associate Amy Martin at amartin@austin.utexas.edu or 512.471.6029.

FACULTY SCHOLARSHIP AND AWARDS

Professor Larry Speck's essay on the "state of the academy" is featured in the Education Issue: New School edition of Architect magazine, November 2008. In his article, "A Higher Education," Speck observes, "I am critical of the rapid 'changing of the gods' that has occurred over the past decades in architectural education. Ours is a very broad field, in which it is easy to get sucked into one or a few aspects and lose sight of the big picture."

He continues, "I sincerely believe, however, that architectural education today is headed in a more durable direction--one more beneficial for students and more productive for our discipline as a whole. There seems to be a constantly increasing number of schools that view architecture as an inherently complex, multifaceted field, and believe architectural education should reflect just that."

View Speck's entire article at Architect Online.

Associate Professor Werner Lang and architect Thomas Herzog have won the first prize in the "International Building Skin-tech Awards 2008." The award was presented at the Technical University of Munich on December 3.

The competition for the IBS award was organized for the first time by Nürnberg Messe-fensterbau/frontale and the magazine XIA Intelligente Architectur/XIA international. It was open to projects from Europe (excluding Germany), eastern Europe/Russia, China, the United States, and the Middle East.

Amongst the submitting companies, which were selected by a nomination jury, were Gerkan, Marg & Partner, Hamburg; Hascher+Jehle, Berlin; Morphosis, Los Angeles; Kengo Kuma and Associates, Tokyo; and SOM, London.

The members of the prize jury were Anne Grete Hestnes, Norway; Toshiko Mori, Harvard University; Volker Hartkopf; Carnegie Mellon University; Ulrich Knaack, Delft University of Technology; and Merritt Buchholz, University of Limerick, Ireland.

Professor Werner Lang was recently interviewed by the Austin Business Journal. An article titled "Sustainable Design Becomes the Center Point of Education," based on the interview appears in the journal's November 21-22 edition.

The article states, "The UT School of Architecture has long been among schools in the lead in green practices, with professors working in solar design in the 1970s, and members of the school's faculty having worked on a certification process that is today a standard in the identification of sustainable building design and implementation."

Lang says, "We are responsible for energy consumption in our buildings. If we don't integrate it into the building aspects, it won't happen.[...] I would like to see sustainability as an integral part of all classes."

Dean Fritz Steiner's article on the legacy of Ian McHarg appears in the fall 2008 issue of Log magazine. Log 13/14 is a special double issue devoted to 1968 forty years later.

In his article, "The Ghost of Ian McHarg," Steiner noted, "Perhaps one of McHarg's most intriguing theoretical influences has been on the emerging field of landscape urbanism, which arrived in the 1990s after the so-called 'death of the master plan.'"

Log is a journal of writing about contemporary architecture, cities, and the built environment, published by the Anyone Corporation. A forum for observations, speculations, and ideas about all things current, Log examines the present with an architectural bent, an historical perspective, and a critical eye.

*****
Steiner's reflective article and book review, "Reading Landscapes," appears in the latest edition of Places: Forum of Design for the Public Realm, which focuses on the 2008 EDRA/Places Awards, held this year with Metropolis magazine.

The abundance of outstanding entries this year prompted the editors of Places to acknowledge a few of the books that did not receive awards. Steiner comments on the breadth of high quality entries in the book category and singles out several of particular note including The Concrete Dragon by Thomas J. Campanella, Deccan Traverse by Anuradha Mathur and Dilip da Cunha, and E40° by Jack Williams.

Emergent Urbanism: Evolution in Urban Form, Texas, edited by Fritz Steiner and Professor Sinclair Black, is reviewed in the November 2008 edition of Planning magazine. The book was published by the UT Austin School of Architecture, Placemaking Studio, and Black + Vernooy, with the support of the Congress for the New Urbanism.

In January of this year, Senior Lecturer Stephen Ross founded Design Build Alliance (DBA), a nonprofit which gets students involved in the turnkey process of developing, designing, and building low income housing in Austin. DBA's co-founders are filmmaker Richard Linklater and UTSOA alums Jack Sanders [M.Arch. '05] and Chris Krager [M.Arch. '99]. The group's third project, Austin Musicians Cottages, was featured on the front page of the Austin American-Statesman on December 3 .

DBA took on the Musicians' Cottages project a few months ago when Ross was contacted by local musicians Jess Klein and Charlie Faye. He met with them at their current residence, The Wilson Street Cottages, a collection of small ex-military houses moved to south Austin in the early ‘70s and now scheduled for demolition. The Wilson Street Cottages has since been the home to many of Austin's most well-known musicians, including Lucinda Williams, former Faces bassist Ronnie Lane, Carolyn Wonderland, Amy Boone of the Damnations, Will Sexton, Roger Wallace, and members of the Gourds. Current residents also include Scrappy Jud Newcomb and Walter Tragert. Through negotiations with the owner, Faye has been donated six of the dwellings and costs to cover relocation. DBA is working with Faye and Klein to develop a permanent community dedicated to local musicians by relocating the six cottages, adding more residences; as well as additional amenities, such as a musicians' health clinic.

The Statesman article is also highlighted on the American Planning Association's webpage.

The Southeastern Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians (SESAH) recently announced the 2008 SESAH Publication Award Winners, including three with UTSOA ties--two faculty members and one alumna. The awards were made at the 26th SESAH Annual Meeting, held in Greensboro, North Carolina.

The 2008 Best Article Award was presented to Professor Richard Cleary, Ph.D., for "Texas Gothic, French Accent: The Architecture of the Roman Catholic Church in Antebellum Texas" in Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians (Vol. 66, No. 1, March 2007). Clearly investigates a distinctive strain of Gothic Revival architecture nurtured in the American South. The revolution and formation of the Republic of Texas (1836-1845) made it impossible for the Roman Catholic Church to govern its Texan affairs from Mexico. This article describes the church's reliance on French missionaries to reassert its presence.

The 2008 Best Book Award goes to Kathryn E. Holliday [Ph.D., Architectural History, '03] for Leopold Eidlitz: Architecture and Idealism in the Gilded Age (W.W. Norton, 2008, hardback). The first critical examination of the work of New York architect Leopold Eidlitz (1823-1908), America's first Jewish architect, founding member of the American Institute of Architects, and the first American to define a modern organic architecture, this book reveals his formidable influence. Though the organic tradition has long been understood to be a central defining feature of American architecture, associated most strongly with Chicago and Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, Eidlitz in fact began the exploration of the organic ideal a generation earlier in New York. Kathryn Holliday teaches architectural history and theory at the University of Texas at Arlington.

An Honorable Mention for the 2008 Best Book Award was presented to Professor Anthony Alofsin, Ph.D., AIA, for When Buildings Speak: Architecture as Language in the Hapsburg Empire and Its Aftermath, 1867-1933 (University of Chicago Press, 2006; hardcover; 2008, paperback). Alofsin explores the rich yet often overlooked architecture of the late Austro-Hungarian Empire and its successor states. He shows that several different styles emerged in this milieu during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Moreover, he contends that each of these styles communicates to us in a manner resembling language and its particular means of expression.

Chilean architect Smiljan Radic, makes note of his experience at the School of Architecture in the December 2008 issue of Architectural Record. Radic and his colleague Rodrigo Perez de Arce collaborated with O'Neil Ford Chair Wilfried Wang in Wang's fall 2005 studio.

Earlier this year, the school's Center for American Architecture and Design published jointly with Ernst Wasmuth Verlag O'Neil Ford Duograph 1: Chilé edited by Wilfried Wang and Associate Dean Kevin Alter, with additional essays by Pérez de Arce and Radic. The book is part of the center's O'Neil Ford Series and was designed by UTSOA alum Matthew Slusarek [M.Arch. '05].

ALUMNI CONNECTIONS

THANKS FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT, ALUMNI!

Alumni support paves the way for innovative programs and ideas that help transform our environments for the benefit of society.

Programs in energy and sustainability are just a couple of the ways the school impacts the world. We are also preserving our national heritage through historic preservation, enhancing its physical beauty through landscape design, and revitalizing struggling communities through affordable housing projects. Support of the Annual Giving Programs gives our students and faculty the necessary resources to improve the quality of life for us all.

The University of Texas at Austin celebrates its 125th birthday this year, and the School of Architecture is proud to be a part of UT's storied past and bright future as we anticipate our own 100th anniversary in 2010. Please take this opportunity to be a part of this future by making your year-end tax-deductible gift by December 31 here.

ALUMNI UPDATE

Placemaking Studio, a division of Black+Vernooy Architecture, and A. Nelessen Associates were selected as the lead team for the Shreveport, Louisiana, Regional Comprehensive Plan. Placemaking Studio consists of Professor Sinclair Black and alumni Marisa Ballas [MSCRP '07], Ann Tucker [M.Arch. '06], Stephi Motal [B.Arch. '04], as well as Nick Wiley [B.Arch. '06] and Kevin Johnson [B.Arch. '08].

This multi-jurisdictional planning effort will foster sustainable planning and economic growth, guide progress in both education and affordable housing, and enhance the beauty and infrastructure of downtown Shreveport and surrounding neighborhoods. The process will incorporate stakeholder meetings, interactive and visual public workshops, as well as educational and design charrettes where Shreveport citizens, including the area's youth, can identify their needs and desires for the Region. The design team also includes Glatting Jackson Kercher Anglin Lopez Rinehart, Inc. for transportation studies, Economic Research Associates (ERA) for economic implementation and retail studies, Bosse & Turner for landscape planning and design, and the Innovation Network for Communities for education consulting.

ALUMNI EVENTS

We want you to stay involved and connected to the school, so join us for one of our many upcoming alumni events:

• Houston Alumni & Friends Reception at The Grove Restaurant - Wednesday, February 11, 2009
• CRP @ 50 Alumni Gathering - February 27-28, 2009
• Class of 1959 Reunion - April 30 - May 1, 2009
• AIA Alumni Reception in San Francisco - Thursday, April 30, 2009
• School of Architecture 100th Anniversary Celebration - Sunday, October 10, 2010

Being an alum has its benefits! As an alumnus of the School of Architecture, you will have many opportunities for ongoing contact with the school and our alumni community:

• Social and intellectual enrichment at one of our annual socials or mixers
  
• Expanded networks for professional growth and development by attending our series of lectures and exhibits
  
• Connections with UTSOA students, staff, and faculty, and continued involvement in the welfare and future of the school by joining Friends of Architecture

We are continuing our effort to find (and maintain) the most accurate contact information for all of our alumni. Stay in touch with former classmates--update your record and contact preferences by logging on to the university's online alumni directory.

More details will be available on the School of Architecture alumni web page as the events approach. If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact Stacy Manning at smanning@austin.utexas.edu or 512.471.0617.

DOCUMENTING HERBERT MILLER GREENE'S ARCHITECTURAL LEGACY

The architectural legacy of Herbert Miller Greene is now available for scholarship via the web. This site offers the most authoritative resource for information about Dallas architect Herbert Miller Greene (1871-1932) and his work.

Featuring architectural drawings and archival material, this web site grew out of an exhibit that was on view in the Architecture and Planning Library at the University of Texas at Austin in 2005. It provides a virtual version of the exhibit, as well as all source documentation used during research conducted for the exhibit, including full text articles from the Dallas Morning News archive, scans of Greene's archival records, and links to other source documents on the web. This research results in the most comprehensive listing of projects attributed to Greene. The web site is a collaborative effort by the Alexander Architectural Archive, the Architecture and Planning Library, and the School of Architecture's Visual Resources Collection. It focuses on Herbert M. Greene's Dallas architecture, his Masonic commissions, and the University of Texas buildings he designed. 139 images depicting 42 projects are provided.

Herbert Miller Greene built over ninety projects throughout Texas and other U.S. cities, and founded one of the oldest continuously operating architectural firms in Texas. In 1922, Greene received a ten-year contract from the University of Texas at Austin to succeed the esteemed Cass Gilbert as University Architect, where he worked with associates Edwin B. LaRoche and George L. Dahl on designs for over fifteen buildings on campus. The following year, Greene was the first Texas architect to be elected a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects.

The John Greene Taylor Endowment for Collections Enhancement funded the processing and preservation of Herbert M. Greene materials throughout the Alexander Architectural Archive and the curation of the exhibition. The University of Texas Libraries assisted in the preparation of the web site. The endowment, established by Greene's grandson John Greene Taylor, supports the Architecture and Planning Library, the Alexander Architectural Archive, and the School of Architecture's Visual Resources Collection by providing funds for collection cataloging, digitization, and acquisition and outreach, including exhibitions and publications.

The Alexander Architectural Archive and Architecture and Planning Library are units of the University of Texas Libraries located in historic Battle Hall on the University of Texas at Austin campus. The library houses materials related to architecture, landscape architecture, interior design, historic preservation, and community and regional planning. The archive is open, by appointment, for all serious scholarship. Archival collection inventories may be searched through Texas Archival Resources Online. The School of Architecture's Visual Resources Collection in Sutton Hall serves the instructional and research needs of the university's faculty and students.

Events

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

EXHIBIT

November 26, 2008, through January 31, 2009
Architecture and Planning Library Reading Room
Battle Hall

"Designing the Holidays: A Selection of Seasonal Greetings from Collections at the Alexander Architectural Archive"

Architects, as part of their creative spirit, are often inclined to design their own holiday season's greetings. This is reflected throughout the collections at the Alexander Architectural Archive at the Architecture and Planning Library. The selected greeting cards and poetry provide insight into the personalities of the architects represented. The exhibit includes holiday cards designed by Karl Kamrath, Houston architect and 1934 University of Texas graduate, showing all parts of the design phase, from sketches on trace to printed copies on card stock. Holiday cards that O'Neil Ford sent and received document his personal and professional relationships. David Williams designed a holiday card in 1956 that reflects his interest in indigenous architecture. University of Texas School of Architecture faculty member Robert Renfro created a holiday card that illustrates his interest and commitment to the arts. Architect and educator Charles Moore received a wide variety of holiday cards from friends, colleagues, and companies. Goldwin "Goldie" Goldsmith, teacher and administrator of the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture, contributed Christmas poems to Gertrude Goldsmith: Her Book, a volume created in honor of his wife.

Katie Pierce and Laura Bedford selected materials and prepared digitized copies for exhibit, with the generous guidance of Donna Coates, Technical Services and Collections Manager. Katie Pierce is an architectural history student writing a master's thesis on Houston architect Karl Kamrath. Laura Bedford is a book and paper conservation student in the Kilgarlin Center for Preservation of the Cultural Record, part of the UT Austin School of Information.

LUMINATIONS WINTER FESTIVAL

Saturday and Sunday, December 13 and 14
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
4801 La Crosse Avenue, Austin, Texas

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center's tower will be bright with lights for Luminations, the center's winter festival. From 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, December 13 and 14, the gardens at 4801 La Crosse Avenue will be aglow with thousands of luminarias, torches, and twinkling lights.

Enjoy music by bands and choirs, refreshments, community Christmas trees, and crafts for the kids. Admission is free. We invite our university family to celebrate the holidays with us and help others by bringing two canned goods for the Capital Area Food Bank or an unwrapped gift for Blue Santa. Information at 512.232.0200 or wildflower.org.

EXHIBIT

Through January 16, 2009
Visual Resources Collection
Sutton Hall 3.128 (Monday-Friday, 8-5)

"Architecture in Mongolia Through the Ages"

In 2006, recent graduate Michael Bricker [M.Arch. '08] received a School of Architecture Mebane Endowed Traveling Scholarship to visit Mongolia to design an energy-efficient home for a family in the community of Yeroo. Michael invited fellow student Ami Mehta [M.Arch. '08] to assist with the research and design of the proposed home. Together, Michael and Ami decided to expand the scope of the project to include two independent study courses to research Mongolian architectural history--specifically the ger, Chinese Buddhist temples, and Soviet civic buildings--and to investigate the architectural consequences of a newly democratic, modern Mongolia. During their stay in Mongolia, Michael, Ami, and Peace Corps colleague Jacob Knight documented the built environment. They have contributed almost four hundred digital images, along with descriptive metadata, to the SOA Visual Resources Collection.

The images in this exhibit represent a small sampling of images selected from the group that are available for use by the university community as part of the VRC's online Image Collection.

CONTACTS

In this fast-paced world, there's a lot of news to keep up with. We know you are doing great things, and we rely on you not only to share your stories, but also to keep us up-to-date on your contact information so that we can share our stories with you. Alumni, please send your news and contact updates to Associate Director of Constituent and Alumni Relations Stacy Manning at smanning@austin.utexas.edu. Students, faculty, and staff may send updates to eNews editor Pamela Peters at p.peters@mail.utexas.edu.

UT-Austin School of Architecture
soa.utexas.edu

Dean's Office
512.471.1922, fax 512.471.0716

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

Center for Sustainable Development
teresacarr@mail.utexas.edu, 512.475.7995

Assistant Dean for Development
Julie Hooper, jhooper@austin.utexas.edu, 512.471.6114

Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Programs
Jeanne Crawford, jcraw@mail.utexas.edu, 512.471.0109

Graduate Program Coordinator
Rosemin Gopaul, gopaul@austin.utexas.edu, 512.471.0134

Associate Director of Constituent and Alumni Relations
Stacy Manning, smanning@austin.utexas.edu, 512.471.0617

Director, Career Services Center
Carrie O'Malley, carrie.omalley@austin.utexas.edu, 512.471.1333

Publications Editor
Pamela Peters, p.peters@mail.utexas.edu, 512.471.0154

Events Coordinator
Barbara Terrell, bdt@mail.utexas.edu, 512.471.8187

Materials Lab
http://soa.utexas.edu/matlab, 512.232.5969

Visual Resources Collection
http://soa.utexas.edu/vrc/, 512.471.0143

Architecture and Planning Library
www.lib.utexas.edu/apl/, 512.495.4620

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