Rural Studio Info Outline

Rural Studio Slide Info
Group 12

ž What is Rural Studio?
› design-build architecture studio run by Auburn University
– aims to teach students about the social responsibilities of the profession of architecture while also providing safe, well-constructed and inspirational homes and buildings
ž Where?
› poor communities in rural west Alabama
– Hale, Perry and Marengo Counties
– Many of its well-known projects are in the tiny community of Mason's Bend, on the banks of the Black Warrior River.
› Based out of Newbern, Alabama
ž History
› founded in 1993 by two Auburn University architecture professors
– Dennis K. Ruth
– Samuel "Sambo" Mockbee
› the project has built more than 80 houses and civic projects in those three counties of Alabama
ž Explanation of the Project
› The program was established for two reasons
– To give architecture students hands-on experience
– These designs are the created strictly by the students
– To improve the living conditions in rural Alabam
– One of the poorest areas in the U.S.
ž How?
› Students
– Leave the Auburn campus and move to Hale county
– Here they live first hand with the people they will be designing for
ž Studio calls this “Context-Based Living”
– This is so that the students can understand and experience the particular needs of their clients first-hand
ž The Projects
› What they design?
– Private homes and Community Spaces
› 3 different Programs
– Second Year Program
– 15-20 students that move to hale county for 1 semester and build a charity home
– The Thesis Program
– Move to Hale county for their entire fifth year
– Usually 12 students split into 2 teams that plan, design and build community projects
– The Outreach Program
– Made up of non-Auburn University graduates from all over the world
– Work alongside the Thesis students on a joint project of their own

Some of their Projects

Hale County animal shelter:

Hale County was legally obligated to provide its community with an animal shelter but had no resources to undertake the building. In 2005, the county approached the rural studio to design and build them a structure. a small group of thesis students took on the large scale project. They first figured out the legal obligations of the county and determined the resources and program that were necessary. Their plan was to create a structural system called a ‘lamella’ which allowed them to build a long span structure with readily available short-length lumber. The wood was bolted together and covered in corrugated galvanized aluminum. Inside, the shelter houses 16 kennels that are wedged in between two enclosed office spaces. The whole building is naturally ventilated and illuminated, saving energy and allowing the dogs to sleep in darkness. The kennels also have in-floor heating for the winter.

Mason's Bend Community Center/Glass Chapel:

On a central site in Mason’s Bend, students built a Community Center that includes: a transportation stop for a number of county-funded mobile projects such as a "Book-mobile" and a traveling health center, an outdoor area for community gathering, and a small chapel for the local prayer group. During the summer children also receive their free school meal at the Chapel. The walls of the structure are made of rammed earth containing local clay, cement, and a small amount of water. The walls are capped by a rusting metal drip edge that compliments the color of the earth. The roof is a combination of aluminum sheets and 1980s GMC sedan car windows salvaged from a Chicago scrap yard. Both aluminum and glass are bolted to a light weight metal frame. Mr. Harris, owner of the Butterfly House, donated the land for the center and before his recent death tended to its beautiful garden.

Newbern Fire Station:

The Newbern Volunteer Fire Department and Town Hall is the first new public building in Newbern for 110 years. It houses 3 fire trucks and satisfies the town's needs for a place to house elections, council meetings, volunteer firefighter classes, fund-raising and community gatherings. The building is supported by a wood and metal truss structure, which is enclosed by translucent polycarbonate panels, protected from the sun by cedar slats and topped-off with a galvanized aluminum roof. Inside there is a mezzanine level for firefighting classes and at the ground floor a bathroom and kitchen.

Yancey Chapel:

Entered through the romantic remains of an old dairy farm, the privately owned Yancey Chapel is set into the side of a bluff which overlooks a beautiful landscape. Concerned both with being environmentally friendly and cost-efficient, students decided to build the walls of the chapel out of recycled tires. The tires were filled with dirt which had been excavated from the site, packed down, and then stuccoes over. A nearby tire dealer had been charged with disposing of his used tire collection, so he donated the tires to the project. The roof of the structure is covered with tin, with the roof beams salvaged from an old house. Rock, which constitutes the floor of the chapel, was taken from a nearby riverbed.

Perry Lakes Park project:

Over the span of four thesis classes and 5 years, the rural studio completed 4 related building projects in Perry County’s recreational park. The first structure was a pavilion which is used as an outdoor classroom and gathering space. Cedar was used to construct the pavilion because the park is prone to flooding, while the roof is clad in sheets of aluminum on the top and undersides. After the success of the pavilion, the park’s board asked the rural studio back to conceive of a bathroom facility. The students designed 3 different ‘toilet experiences’ using similar materials to the pavilion. One toilet is a fifty foot ‘tall toilet’, the second is a ‘long toilet which frames a tree at one end and the third is a ‘mound toilet'. A walking bridge was the third rural studio project in the park. The bridge crosses a small creek that impeded access the east side of the park. The covered bridge has a pitched roof covered in salvaged tin and supports the walkway, which makes it look like its floating. The final project in the Perry county recreation park was a bird watching tower. After the bridge opened up pedestrian access to the park’s east side, the pre-existing decommissioned firepower could put to use. The tower was taken apart, re-galvanized and re-assembled. New stairs and handrails were added to complete the 100 ft. tower.