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| November 16, 2006 Sustainability is Goal of Design Workshop Students from the University of Illinois at Chicago, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and several colleges in Toronto will gather for a special design workshop Nov. 19 to help plan for sustainable spaces serving youth in Chicago. The workshop, focused on enhancing the Garfield Park neighborhood, will be based on principles of sustainability founded by Toronto designer Bruce Mau, whose exhibition "Massive Change: The Future of Global Design" is on view at the Museum of Contemporary Art. UIC's City Design Center organized the workshop at the suggestion of the Chicago and Toronto Sister Cities committees. Brent Ryan, center co-director, said Mau's sustainability principles could be applied in projects as disparate as a park that children could help design for themselves, housing for families with special needs, or retail spaces that would employ youth. "Sustainability is a holistic goal and 'Massive Change' is a holistic approach," Ryan said. "We're glad to take on this project because it's in keeping with our Green Neighborhood Design Studio, in which two UIC colleges, one UIUC college, and four city departments are exploring sustainable design in Garfield Park." Twelve students -- including architecture and urban planning graduate students from UIC and Toronto and landscape architecture students from UIUC -- will work in pairs to help design areas of improvement. Each team will produce four presentation boards depicting any kind of space that would serve the needs of youth. Prior to the workshop, the group will take part in a fact-finding tour to Garfield Park on Friday, Nov. 17. On Saturday, Nov. 18, the group will attend the "Massive Change" exhibition, to be followed by a symposium. The Sunday workshop will draw on the tour and symposium, featuring design sessions and discussions led by Mau, Ryan, and Ian Chodikoff, editor of Canadian Architect magazine. A reception at the Chicago Cultural Center on Monday, Nov. 20 will show off the students' designs, which will be exhibited afterward. The designs will be judged by a panel including Gordon Gill of the Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill architecture firm; Astrid Haryati, Mayor Richard M. Daley's assistant for green initiatives; Edward Lifson, arts and architecture editor, Chicago Public Radio; John Ronan of John Ronan Architects; and Nicole Shockness of Toronto Housing. UIC ranks among the
nation's top 50 universities in federal research funding and is Chicago's
largest university with 25,000 students, 12,000 faculty and staff, 15
colleges and the state's major public - UIC - |