The Rural Studio is a design-build architecture studio run by

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

. It teaches students about the social responsibilities of the profession of architecture and provides good houses and buildings for poor communities in rural west

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, US, part of what is called the " Black Belt".

History

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 M ...

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 to 5 fifth-year students. The Rural Studio has built more than 80 houses and civic projects in Hale,

Perry Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

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 Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage. Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international la ...

, as a way to improve the lives of the poor.

Notable projects

Safe House Black History Museum

The studio renovated, restored, and made an addition to the Safe House Black History Museum in Greensboro, Alabama, in the late 2010s. The redesign was awarded third place in

American Architect This list of American architects includes notable architects and architecture firms with a strong connection to the United States (i.e., born in the United States, located in the United States or known primarily for their work in the United State ...

's Building of the Year competition.

$20K House

The

$20K House The Rural Studio is a design-build architecture studio run by Auburn University. It teaches students about the social responsibilities of the profession of architecture and provides good houses and buildings for poor communities in rural west Al ...

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 Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. I ...

. Nearly 30% of the people in Hale County live in poverty. Due to the lack of conventional credit for people with their level of income, and insufficient knowledge about alternative sources of funding,

mobile home A mobile home (also known as a house trailer, park home, trailer, or trailer home) is a prefabrication, prefabricated structure, built in a factory on a permanently attached chassis before being transported to site (either by being towed or ...

s 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 refers to two aspects of the same concept: first, an actual reduction in the fair value of an asset, such as the decrease in value of factory equipment each year as it is used and wears, and second, the allocation i ...

over time. Mobile homes are also correlated with higher cancer rates due to the use of formaldehyde in their construction. The $20k House project is intended to design a model home that could be reproduced on a large scale, and thereby become a viable alternative to a mobile home. 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" 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 at least 16 iterations of the house.

Projects

By year. Some designers are listed.

2010–2011

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

Greensboro Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina, af ...

* Safe House Black History Museum, Greensboro

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 *

- 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 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, Mason's Bend, Hale County

2003–2004

* Alabama Rural Heritage Center, 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 Perry County may refer to: United States *Perry County, Alabama *Perry County, Arkansas *Perry County, Illinois *Perry County, Indiana *Perry County, Kentucky *Perry County, Mississippi *Perry County, Missouri *Perry County, Ohio * Perry Cou ...

**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 or MARION may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Marion (band), a British alternative rock group * ''Marion'' (miniseries), a 1974 miniseries * ''Marion'' (1920 film), an Italian silent film * ''Marion'' (2024 film), a UK short People a ...

**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, 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, Hale County **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, Hale County *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, Hale County *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, Hale County **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, Hale County

1994–1995

*Yancey Chapel, Sawyerville, Hale County (See pictures a
http://architecture.myninjaplease.com/?p=321
) *Hay Bale House, Mason's Bend, Hale County *Wilson House, Mason's Bend, Hale County *Supershed, Newbern

1993–1994

*Smoke House, Mason's Bend, Hale County *Hay Bale House, Mason's Bend, Hale County

Awards

* 2008

Global Award for Sustainable Architecture The Global Award for Sustainable Architecture is an international architecture founded in 2006 by architect and scholar Jana Revedin. Description Each year, the award honors five architects who "contribute to a more equitable and sustainable d ...

, awarded to Andrew Freear Updated annually.

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