Thirteen teams of Mississippi State students in the College of Architecture, Art and Design’s innovative Collaborative Studio have been working this semester on a hypothetical master plan for a cultural campus including the design of a freestanding museum for the campus, which would hold the university’s collections currently housed at the Cobb Institute Museum, Dunn-Seiler Museum and Department of Art galleries. Located adjacent to The Mill Conference Center, the cultural campus would also include the new Grant Library.
Each team was comprised of one or two building construction science students serving as construction managers and architecture majors serving as project manager, project architect (two students) and project designer. Students were led by Associate Professor of Architecture and studio coordinator Alexis Gregory, Building Construction Science Instructor Briar Jones, Architecture Studio Assistant Ryan Ashford and Graduate Assistant Jacob Lindley.
The studio is funded by the PCI Foundation with projects focused on the use of precast concrete for structure and cladding for museum designs.
“This is the fourth year the Collaborative Studio has been supported by the PCI Foundation, and each year both the students and the faculty learn more about precast concrete and the importance of collaboration between architects, constructors and other industry professionals for a successful project,” said Gregory. “The students truly receive a valuable experience as they see the impact of design on the creation of precast concrete and how those design decisions affect the construction process to successfully achieve a design idea.”
Students recently presented their work before professors and hypothetical clients Derek Anderson with the Cobb Institute Museum, Amy Moe-Hoffman with the Dunn-Seiler Museum, Dixie Boswell with the Department of Art, and Cindy Gardner and Megan Bankston with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History. Also attending the presentations were precast industry partners Dan Eckenrode of PCI Gulf South; Matt DeVoss of Jackson Precast; and Tom Moore, Andy Westfall and Jake Weaver of Tindall Precast.
Four teams were recognized with honors by the reviewers and faculty:
Ashford, Jones – Top Project: Team 07:
Ashford, Jones – Honorable Mention: Team 01:
Gregory, Jones – Top Project: Team 05:
Gregory, Jones – Honorable Mention: Team 12:
