Student NickHersom produced the winning Arts & Humanities entry at the Oct. 24, 2008 Climate Change Conference and netted a $500 prize.
Students in architecture go on many field trip during the course of a semester. These experiences bring to awareness principles of design learned in the studio.
All architecture students study some form of computer assisted drafting. CAD is an academic requirement, but many students learn "Sketch-Up" a free rendering software program. This is the work done by a 3rd year student of his project of a community center.
Student architects get involved with the community by participating in UMA special events. This one is called the "Mile of Art" and it's an annual production in which art and architecture students and community residents set up tables and display programs offered at the school or their own art or craft work. It happens every summer and it is a mile long of displays through the woods behind the UMA campus on one of the many nature trails available.
Field trips are an essential part of the education of the architect. These trips can be to other cities to visit significant buildings to explore their architectural content or more locally to see how some structural systems are fabricated. Students, here are touring a truss manufacturer and getting a lecture of how forces are distributed within the webs and struts of a truss, and how the efficiency of a truss is important to an understanding of structural design.
A field trip to a residence under construction teaches the principles of conventional carpentry, and how the other building systems such as plumbing and electrical wiring have to integrate with the skeletal framework of a building. An analysis of carpentry offers good and simple lessons in the resolution of physical forces in a building including, tension, compression, and torsion, the major structural forces that impact a building's stability.
Architecture is much more than just doing buildings. it is the practice, understanding, and evolution of developing a personal design theory and style which can be applied to almost any creative endeavor. Our students are encouraged to enter competitions for the experience of working creatively with deadlines, and exploring other aspects of the design process. One of our students entered a national door design competition, and was awarded the grand prize. Her door design will now become a part of their global product line. Her design can be seen in the lower right corner.