Project Boards for 2015 AIA Arkansas Design Awards Competition on Display Through July 29

Dero Sandford

The Mid-America Science Museum at the Donald W. Reynolds Center in Hot Springs won both the Members' Choice Award and the People's Choice Award in the 2015 AIA Arkansas Design Awards competition. The design is by Chad Young and Jay Clark of Wittenberg, Delony & Davidson Inc.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — An exhibition of the 32 project boards prepared for the 2015 AIA Arkansas Design Awards competition will be on display Monday, June 13, through July 29 in the Fred and Mary Smith Exhibition Gallery, in Vol Walker Hall, on the University of Arkansas campus in Fayetteville. It is presented by the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design and the Northwest Arkansas section of the AIA.

An opening reception will be held from 4-6 p.m. June 13. Light appetizers will be served.

In order to encourage excellence in architecture, the Arkansas Chapter of the American Institute of Architects holds an annual Design Awards program, in which AIA Arkansas seeks to honor works of distinction by its members and bring public attention to outstanding examples of architecture.

The categories include both built and unbuilt projects, and projects are judged against the jurors' standard of great design, rather than against other projects in the category. There are three levels of AIA awards selected by the jurors: Honor Awards, Merit Awards and the Citation Award. The newest award started in 2015 — the People's Choice Award — which is intended to increase public awareness of the level of design excellence produced by Arkansas architects.

This summer exhibition is an opportunity for the public to view high-caliber, architecturally designed projects of all types from across the state, in addition to the award-winning designs. Each of the 32 project boards measures 3-by-4 feet, and each board was prepared by the individuals or firms that participated in the AIA Arkansas Design Awards program.

Award winners from the 2015 competition, along with details about each project, can be found on the design awards page of the AIA Arkansas website.

Representatives from firms will be on hand at the opening reception to answer questions and give brief descriptions of the award-winning projects.

Admission to the exhibition is free. The exhibition gallery is located on the first floor of Vol Walker Hall, and it is open to the public from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.