Citizen Architects

Citizen Architects

While studying over the past two readings my mind continues to jump to the work of Auburn’s Rural Studio and the method in which they create space for the people of Hale County.  The way Samuel Mockbee merged the idea of community built projects and Architect designed projects is at the heart of the theory of architecture for whom.  Mockbee essentially invited his students to become a part of the Hale County community and without using skilled labor created spaces that the community needed.  The absence of skilled labor is the key component that mandates the students to become community members and not just architects.  Everything they built under the Mockbee era was something the community could learn from and duplicate for their own needs, setting the ground work for the non-student community to awaken to the possibility of not relying on professionals to create what they need.  

Unfortunately in 2001 Samuel Mockbee passed away and was succeeded by Andrew Freear who continued on doing bigger and more ambitious work for the people of Hale County.  

Do you think this was an error on Freear’s part to expand the scope of the work instead of expanding the area of work being done?  The foundation was laid for the community to come in and fill their needs with lessons learned from the rural studio while the studio would be free to expand this knowledge to other communities letting it grow.  I feel that Freear was blinded by all the support and praise that was pouring in for their efforts that he unknowingly pushed the studio from citizen architects to just plain architects.  The people of Hale county now rely on the rural studio for their needs instead of joining together to fill them as a community. I am reminded of what it is to love something and that is to love something is not about getting but is about giving.  If the community is only receiving and not giving to their community and spaces then they are not truly being loved.  

Rural Studio's Glass Chapel 2014 Google Street View

Rural Studio's Glass Chapel 2000