Road-Trip Course Brings Home a Lesson for Design Students

As architectural classes go, the University of Cincinnati's  “Architectures and Spaces of the Southwest” is no dry run for the students enrolled in the unusual course offering.  Rather, the course -- led by David Saile, professor of architecture in UC's College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning -- seeks to actively immerse students in the rich historical, cultural, social and natural mileau of the American Southwest by actively exploring the entire region over a ten-week period.

Encompassing city and canyon, the course includes visits to the studios of working architects; workshops with archaeology, ecology, building technology, and community-development professionals; study of development trends focusing on retirement, recreation and casinos; and visits to traditional Native American settlements. 

Students in the course are occasionally sending back e-mails and images detailing their activities and experiences.  Below is the latest from architecture student Eric Stear.

May 16-22, 2005

The past two weeks in Taos, N.M., have influenced everybody on this trip in some way.  A week full of site visits introduced us to the rich presence of sustainable and alternative architecture in the surrounding area. Many of the projects that we saw were completely "off the grid," meaning they did not have any utility lines supplying the property with power, water or gas. Power to these structures was generated with solar panels, and rain water was collected from roofs and stored in large cisterns for later use. Other projects that we saw are constructed with alternative building materials such as old tires, aluminum cans and rammed earth to create structures that are completely independent of city utility infrastructures.

May 23-29, 2005
In our second week in Taos we visited Taos Pueblo, which has been inhabited since at least the 13th century, and several mission churches that were constructed in the 18th and 19th centuries. These site visits served as a foundation for discussions about the relationships between the Native Pueblo people, Hispanics, and Anglo-Americans that have coexisted in Taos for the last several hundred years.

Our experience in Taos was enriched by the hostel that we stayed at during both weeks. We shared stories of our travels with people that we met from many different parts of the world and learned about the places and events that they have seen and experienced. As a result of our time spent in Taos, many students--myself included--have questioned our preconceived notions about what architecture is and what it should be. I cannot help but ask the question: if a modest house in Taos can collect all of the water it needs to sustain itself in a climate that receives 12 inches of precipitation per year, why does virtually every house in Cincinnati shed its 42 inches of annual precipitation and rely on city water supplies?

The final two weeks of our Southwest Trip are going to be spent based out of dormitories at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. We have several day trips planned, but the majority of our time will be spent utilizing the resources of the university to finish up our final projects and independent studies.

To read prior e-mails from Eric, go to

http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.asp?id=2644
http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.asp?id=2698
http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.asp?id=2787