Interior design field trips in Metroplex
Written by Shambhu Sharan, The Shorthorn staff
Thursday, 18 February 2010 09:44 PM
Interior design junior Timothy Ballard measures the doorway Thursday at the Magnolia Lounge in Fair Park. The History of Interior Design and Interior Materials classes take measurements as part of the weekly hands-on study with 15 different buildings throughout the metroplex. (The Shorthorn: Rasy Ran)
Interior design students are stepping out of the traditional classroom environment for a different take on hands-on learning.
In the history of interior design and interior materials classes, one architecture and two interior design professors take students on a field trip to historical buildings. The class spends the first half of the week in a lecture and reading, and the second half is devoted to a field trip to a building in the Metroplex.
Architecture assistant professor Douglas Klahr, interior design interim director Rebecca Boles and interior design assistant professor Susan Appleton teach the combined classes this semester. Students look at historical residences, courthouses, churches and museums to learn about local history and interior design.
Interior design junior Julie Berkes said she enjoys the class because it’s unlike any other class she has taken at the university.
“Slide shows and books are great ways of learning, but being able to actually go and see the building styles we are studying really makes it sink in,” she said. “And because I grew up in the area, it is nice to learn more about the buildings I have seen all my life.”
The Magnolia Lounge in Fair Park was designed by Swiss-American architect William Lescaze in 1936. The dates of the 15 buildings the two classes are studying range from 1899 to 2009. (The Shorthorn: Rasy Ran)
The class visits buildings built from 1899 to 2009 to learn about technologies that were available during different time periods. During the field trips, students spend three hours documenting what they see and drawing sections of the buildings they explore each week.
“The different building styles I have studied are interesting, but I have also gotten a lot of drawing experience,” Berkes said. “It’s good to be able to draw something just by being inside the space.”
On Thursday, the class studied Fair Park’s Magnolia Lounge, built by the Swiss-born American architect William Lescaze in 1936.
The class divided into five groups, measured walls and studied characteristics of the international-style building.
Interior design junior Timothy Ballard studied the stylish material of doors and windows and documented it through photos and drawings.
“Being here gives clear understanding of the design,” Ballard said. “This building looks different than pictures, so I am getting a practical experience. No class offers this many field trips.”
The professors collaborate by teaching different aspects of interior design. Klahr teaches styles around the world, Appleton about Metroplex buildings and Boles about building materials.
Interior design junior Stephen Norsworth maps out part of the Magnolia Lounge on Thursday in Fair Park. Norsworth sketched out the interior and exterior front of the building as part of his group’s assigned section. (The Shorthorn: Rasy Ran)
“I think the more students travel and see, the better they understand places,” Boles said. “They absorb more information and know how to describe it after looking at buildings.”
The professors decided to teach differently because students complained that the history of interior design class was boring when taught solely in a classroom.
“The field trips help students to understand the city in a new way,” Klahr said.
Boles said students can become better designers and get more visual vocabulary by seeing the buildings first hand.
“The class is different because we actually get to see and touch what we are learning about,” Berkes said.