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As we approach the final weeks of the Spring quarter, the work of our 2019 Barry Onouye Endowed Studio is coming into its final stage.

As with previous Onouye studios, our work highlights the intersection of architecture and structural design.  With a central theme of PERFORMANCE, this year’s studio (offered with Endowed Chair Sigrid Adriaenssens from Princeton University), has focused on tension-based structures, ranging from hanging nets to tensioned membranes.  With a generous donation of nets and ropes from Diamond Nets in Bellingham, our studio has the unique opportunity to design and install at full-scale.

 

This studio has addressed not only the structural behavior of tension systems, but also the active engagement of public space through dance.  Tension structures are highly adaptable, responding to weight and force through changes in form. Previously concealed reactions are revealed in dramatic ways.  With dance partners from both the UW and Princeton (Rebecca Lazier), we are in the process of designing a large-scale installation as our final project with a culminating, professional dance performance.  

 

Our final performance is scheduled for June 11, beginning at 1pm in the Gould Hall atrium.  Please come by!   You can also visit Sigrid’s blog to find out more about the project and the research behind it.

 

The Interior Designers of Idaho (IDI) have been hosting a furniture competition in Boise for 27 years.  The Furniture Studio in the UW Architecture department has a long history of participating and bringing home awards from this event. This year we showcased seven new pieces from the 2018 Spring and 2019 Winter undergraduate classes, as well as one in the Professional category.   Once again, we a had very strong showing and brought home 5 new awards in 2019.

On the morning of April 26th, Roark Congdon and Steven Withycombe hit the road for Boise with a fully loaded box truck. Before long, mechanical issues forced them to turn around and get a new vehicle. After a few extra hours of reloading, they were off again… this time for real, and it was smooth sailing and excellent weather all the way to Idaho.

Saturday evening was the IDI Chair Affair gala, hosted just outside downtown Boise.  Sonny Han, a current UW senior and new alumnus of the Furniture Studio, joined Roark and Steve for the festivities.  There was a great turnout, a delicious buffet, and some very creative pieces of furniture on display.

When it came time to present the awards, our showing was undeniably impressive:

• Two Honorable Mention awards went to Ganesh Shrestha‘s Walnut Work Table, 2019, and Veronica Restrepo’s Walnut Lounge Chair, 2018.
• Most Functional Design was won by Ingrid Pelletier, 2019 for her Round Steel table, with removable storage underneath.
• Josiah Wu, 2019, brought home the trophy for Best Craftsmanship for his steel and leather lounge chair.
• Best Undergraduate Piece went to Sonny Han, 2019, for  his Danish/Asian-inspired walnut dining table.
• Best Professional Piece was awarded to Steven Withycombe, for his Rolling Liquor Bar.

It was a great trip, and we are very proud of our students and the hard work they put into their designs. Congratulations to the student/faculty team!

Nearly a month ago we hosted our second biennial Alumni Awards, celebrating the accomplishments of our Graduates of the Last Decade and our Distinguished Alumnus. Here’s a look back at the event!

Each year, the Husky 100 recognizes 100 UW undergraduate and graduate students from Bothell, Seattle and Tacoma in all areas of study who are making the most of their time at the UW.  The Husky 100 actively connect what happens inside and outside of the classroom and apply what they learn to make a difference on campus, in their communities and for the future. Through their passion, leadership and commitment, these students inspire all of us to shape our own Husky Experience.

In honor of their many contributions to the University of Washington, each member of the Husky 100 is eligible to receive exciting benefits, and to participate in a range of activities and opportunities offered by the UW’s on- and off-campus partners.

This year’s students represent a range of disciplines within the College of Built Environments.  We are delighted to share the news that David Cox has been selected for a 2019 Husky 100 award!  David is an undergraduate student in our department, and utilizes his experience as a Green Beret to strive for excellence and create meaningful architecture.

The other Husky 100 students selected from CBE are Yishan Guan, an international undergraduate student studying Construction Management and working to advance women and minorities in the field, as well as Catarina Ratajczak, an undergraduate student in the Community, Environment, and Planning program who strives to connect her background with agriculture in creating useful green spaces in urban settings.

Congratulations to all the students selected for the 2019 Husky 100 award! To learn more about their experiences, please visit the Husky 100 page. 

 

In a graduate materials and construction course taught by Senior Lecturer Jim Nicholls, students are challenged to rethink the relationship between the study of tectonics and the object itself. In a recent exercise, students have been exploring the potential of the concrete masonry unit (CMU). What are the potential applications of a cast object within a fixed dimension? Students have pursued this question through iterations of conceptual research, model explorations and finally, 1:1 construction prototypes. For a more complete explanation of the work, please see Masonry Design Magazine‘s recent story!

http://www.masonrydesignmagazine.com/building-a-better-block-at-uw-department-of-architecture/

UW Alumni Designs Lab for Space Research

The University of Washington Department of Architecture has a long list of notable alumni working on exciting projects that push the limits of the built environment. UW alumni  Masayuki Sono, founding partner of Clouds Architecture Office in New York City, continues this tradition by designing architecture for outer space. After winning a 2015 NASA sponsored competition to design habitats for Mars colonization, Clouds A.O. was asked to take this concept and apply it to the space research facility for the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). 

The resulting design is the futuristic Avatar X Lab suspended 18 meters above a man-made crater meant to be an exaggerated representation of the moon. High tech materials help to keep the structure light weight while a bridge connects the building to the edge of the crater symbolizing the crossing of thresholds that space exploration represents. The Avatar X Lab will be part of a greater research campus located in Oita Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan focusing on innovation and application of technology in space. More information about this project can be found here.