The Rural Studio is a design-build architecture studio run by Auburn University. It aims to teach students about the social responsibilities of the profession of architecture while also providing safe, well-constructed and inspirational homes and buildings for poor communities in rural west

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

, part of the so-called " Black Belt". The studio was founded in 1993 by architects

Samuel Mockbee Samuel "Sambo" Mockbee (December 23, 1944 – December 30, 2001) was an American architect and a co-founder of the Auburn University Rural Studio program in Hale County, Alabama. After establishing a regular architectural practice in his native ...

and D. K. Ruth. It is led by UK-born architect Andrew Freear. Each year the program builds several projects - a house by the third-year students and two to three thesis projects by groups of 3-5 fifth-year students. The Rural Studio has built more than 80 houses and civic projects in Hale,

Perry Perry, also known as pear cider, is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally the perry pear. It has been common for centuries in England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land ...

and Marengo counties. The Rural Studio is based in Newbern, a small town in Hale County. Many of its best-known projects are in the tiny community of Mason's Bend, on the banks of the

Black Warrior River The Black Warrior River is a waterway in west-central Alabama in the southeastern United States. The river rises in the extreme southern edges of the Appalachian Highlands and flows 178 miles (286 km) to the Tombigbee River, of which the ...

. The studio has been criticized for the way its projects take advantage of the power relations inherent in gift-giving and for mistaking elitist architectural and middle-class values, rather than the process of political emancipation and self-determination, as a way to improve the lives of the poor.

$20K House

Th
$20K House
is an ongoing research project at the Rural Studio that seeks to address the pressing need for decent and affordable housing in

Hale County, Alabama Hale County is a county located in the west central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,785. Its county seat is Greensboro. It is named in honor of Confederate officer Stephen Fowler Hale. Hale ...

. Nearly 30% of individuals in Hale County live in poverty. Due to the lack of conventional credit for people with this level of income, and insufficient knowledge about alternative sources of funding, mobile homes offer the only chance for home ownership for many. Unlike a house, which is an asset for its owner, trailers deteriorate very quickly and

depreciate In accountancy, depreciation is a term that refers to two aspects of the same concept: first, the actual decrease of fair value of an asset, such as the decrease in value of factory equipment each year as it is used and wear, and second, the ...

over time. Mobile homes are also linked with higher cancer rates due to the use of formaldehyde in their construction. The $20k House project intends to produce a model home that could be reproduced on a large scale, and thereby become a viable alternative to the mobile home in this area. The challenge is to build a house for $20,000, ten to twelve thousand of which will go towards materials and the remainder to contracted labor. Once a truly successful model has been designed, the aim is to sell the houses in conjunction with the "

502 Direct Loan Section 502 loans are a rural housing loan program, administered by the Rural Housing Service (RHS), authorized under Section 502 of the Housing Act of 1949 The American Housing Act of 1949 () was a landmark, sweeping expansion of the federal r ...

" provided by the

Rural Housing Service The Rural Housing Service (RHS) is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Located within the Department's Rural Development mission area. RHS operates a broad range of programs to provide moderate- low- and very-low-incom ...

. The project began in 2005, and there have been 16 iterations of the house so far.

Projects

By year. Some designers are listed.

2010–2011

*Lion's Park - Phase VI (hub),

Greensboro Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte and Raleigh, the 69th-most populous city in th ...

2009–2010

*Lion's Park - Phase V (playscape),

2008–2009

*Lion's Park - Phase IV (skateplay),

2007–2008

*20K - Bridge

*20K - Loft

*20K - Pattern Book

*20K - Roundwood

*St. Luke's Church Renovation, Cahawba, Alabama

2006–2007

*Lion's Park - Phase II (toilets),

*Lion's Park - Phase III (surfacing),

*Akron Boys & Girls Club - II *

$20K House The Rural Studio is a design-build architecture studio run by Auburn University. It aims to teach students about the social responsibilities of the profession of architecture while also providing safe, well-constructed and inspirational homes a ...

- Phase III - Greensboro, Alabama *St. Luke's Episcopal Church, CahawbaLeon, John Mansour, Candace Rimes, Jamie Sartory, Fuller Sherrod, Walker Stone, Nick Wickersham

2005–2006

*Lion's Park - Phase I,

*Hale County Hospital,

*Hale County Animal Shelter,

- Phase II,

*Michelle's House,

**Anna Marie Bevil, Jason Blankenship, Brittany Creehan, Jacob Fyfe, Brittany Graeber, Jennifer Isenburg, Carrie Laurendine, Jonathan Mayhall, Don Mott, Brandon Rainosek, Haley Robinson, Christopher Terrell, Marcus Buckner-Perry, Justyn Chandler, Michelle Clark, Taylor Clark, Evan Dick, Lori Fine, Robert Hall, Drew Jerdan, Brett Randall Jones, Ben Krauss, Carolyn Norton, John Plaster, Dorothy Sherling, Casey Smith, Kathleen Webb, Terran Wilson

2004–2005

*Perry Lakes Canopy Tower Adrienne Brady, Natalie Butts, Paul Howard, Coley Mulcahy *Perry County Learning Center Dereck Aplin, Sam Currie, Amy Bell, Angela Hughey, Turnley Smith *Christine's House, Mason's Bend,

Hale County Hale County is the name of two counties in the United States: * Hale County, Alabama *Hale County, Texas Hale County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 32,522. The county seat is Plainview ...

Steven Long, Amy Bullington *Re-sourcing David Garner *

- Phase I, Hale County Kellie Stokes, Laura Noguera, Phillip March Jones, Hana Loftus, Min Joo Kim *

Willie Bell House Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scree ...

, Mason's Bend, Hale County

2003–2004

Alabama Rural Heritage Center The Alabama Rural Heritage Center is a regional heritage organization located in Thomaston, Alabama that was established in 1986, but closed permanently as of January, 2022. It was established by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community A ...

, Thomaston

**Abby Barnett Davis, Melissa Harold, Paul Kardous, Nathan Makemeson, Robert White *Newbern Volunteer Fire Department, Newbern **Will Brothers, Elizabeth Ellington, Matthew Finley, Leia Price *Perry Lakes Park Bridge, Perry County **Matthew Edwards, Lynielle Houston, Charlie Jorgensen, Sara Singleton *Sub Rosa Pantheon, Newbern **Carol Mockbee *Patrick House, Newbern *Outside In,

2002–2003

*Perry Lakes Toilets and Boardwalk,

Marion Marion may refer to: People *Marion (given name) * Marion (surname) *Marion Silva Fernandes, Brazilian footballer known simply as "Marion" *Marion (singer), Filipino singer-songwriter and pianist Marion Aunor (born 1992) Places Antarctica * Mari ...

**Sarah Dunn, Matt Foley, Brannen Park, Melissa Sullivan *Rural Heritage Center Gift Shop **Emily McGlohn, Katie B. Johnston, John David Caldwell *Sunshine School, Newbern *Organic Farmer's Stand, Newbern *Ola Mae Porch *Newbern Little League Field, Newbern **Jason A. Hunsucker, Jermaine Washington, Julie Hay, Patrick Nelson *Music Man House,

*dining hall, Newbern **Matt Christopher, Kris Johnson, Albert Ulysses Mitchum II, Clark Todd Gollotte

2001–2002

*Perry Lakes Cedar Pavilion **

Jennifer Bonner Jennifer R. Bonner (born 1979) is an American architect. She is an associate professor and Co-Director of the Master in Architecture II Program at Harvard University Graduate School of Design. Early life and education Bonner was born and raised ...

, Mary Beth Maness, Nathan Orrison, Anthony Tindill *Antioch Baptist Church **Jared Fulton, Gabe Michaud, William Nauck, Marion McElroy *HERO Knowledge Cafe,

**Andrea Ray, John McCabe, Daniel Sweeney, Matt Wilson *Great Hall at Morrisette, Newbern *Akron Senior Center **Matthew Barrett, Jonathan Graves, Breanna Hinderliter, Joseph Yeager *Shiles House *Lucy House, Mason's Bend,

**Keith Zawistowski, Marie Zawistowski, James Tate, Ben Cannard, Kerry Larkin, Floris Keverling Buisman *Architectural Ambulance

2000–2001

*Newbern Baseball Club, Newbern *Corrugated Cardboard Pod, Newbern *Chantilly House, Newbern *Bodark Amphitheatre, Newbern *Akron Boys & Girls Club *Sanders/Dudley House,

*Newbern Playground, Newbern

1999–2000

*Glass Chapel, Mason's Bend,

*Thomaston Farmer's Market *Pods at Morrisette, Newbern *Spencer House, Newbern *Sanders/Dudley House,

*Mason's Bend Basketball Court

1998–1999

*Seed House *HERO Children's Center,

*Lewis House *Supershed & Bathhouse, Newbern *Spencer House, Newbern *Sanders/Dudley House,

1997–1998

*Butterfly House, Mason's Bend,

*HERO Children's Center,

*Lewis House *Supershed & Bathhouse, Newbern *Spencer House, Newbern

1996–1997

*Goat House, Josh Cooper and Iain Stewart *Butterfly House, Mason's Bend,

**William Austin, Clifford Brooks, Kristen Kepner Coleman, Joshua Daniel, Adam Gerndt, Jo Beth Gleason, Jeremy Moffet, Justin Patwin, Hunter Simmons, Elizabeth Stallworth, Samuel Watkins, William Whittaker Jr., Heather Wootten, Jeff Marteski, Timothy Sliger, Robert Sproull, Tommy Replogle, Jon Schumann, John Ritchie, Charlie Hughes, Jimmy Turner, Jeff Johnston, *Akron Pavilion *H.E.R.O. Playscape, Joe Alcock and Melissa Teng

1995–1996

*Wilson House, Mason's Bend,

1994–1995

*Yancey Chapel, Sawyerville,

(See pictures a
http://architecture.myninjaplease.com/?p=321
) *Hay Bale House, Mason's Bend,

*Wilson House, Mason's Bend,

*Supershed, Newbern

1993–1994

*Smoke House, Mason's Bend,

*Hay Bale House, Mason's Bend,

Awards

* 2008

Global Award for Sustainable Architecture The Global Award for Sustainable Architecture was founded in 2006 by architect and scholar Jana Revedin. The Global Award Community, which in 2022 consists of the 75 contemporary architects or architect collectives from around the globe who have ...

, handed out to Andrew Freear

References

*Andrea Oppenheimer Dean and Timothy Hursley, (2005) "Proceed and Be Bold: Rural Studio After Samuel Mockbee". Princeton Architectural Press. * Samuel Mockbee, David Moos and Gail Trechsel. (2003) ''Samuel Mockbee and the Rural Studio''. Birmingham Museum of Art. * Andrea Oppenheimer Dean, photographer, Timothy Hursley. (2002) ''Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee and an Architecture of Decency''. Princeton Architectural Press.

External links

official Rural Studio Website

Rural Studio film
— ''Rural Studio documentary website.''
NPR Speaking of Faith: "An Architecture of Decency"
— ''public radio program about project: includes dynamic map of selected projects and audio slideshows.''
Citizen Architect - Rural Studio film
— ''documentary about Samuel Mockbee, made by former students Jack Sanders and Sam Douglas (2010)''.
Hortus (design + architecture magazine) — "L'architettura della decenza"
— ''by Federico De Matteis (in Italian)''. {{Coord, 32.58877, N, 87.53378, W, source:placeopedia, display=title Auburn University Architecture schools in the United States Education in Hale County, Alabama Architecture in Alabama 1993 establishments in Alabama