Gather Light: ARC 201
Students in CAPLA’s ARC 201 studio, guided by faculty including Christopher Domin and others, completed the "Gather Light" project focused on understanding and designing in harmony with the Sonoran Desert environment. Through observation, drawing, and modeling, students explored how light, nature, and architecture interact. Key activities involved studying desert plants, translating their forms into design systems, and developing canopies that filter light and enhance outdoor spaces. The project emphasized hands-on learning, teamwork, and iterative design using 2D and 3D representations to create thoughtful architectural interventions that respect and respond to the desert landscape.
Lecturer Christopher Tucker wins AIA Design Pedagogy Award for innovative Abiotic Studio
Christopher Tucker, a lecturer in architecture at CAPLA, received the American Institute of Architects’ Design Pedagogy Award for his Abiotic Studio, a fourth-year course that challenges students to engage with ecological realities and reimagine post-industrial landscapes through more-than-human perspectives.
MS Urban Planning Student Envisions Resilient Energy Prioritization Tool for Post-Hurricane Puerto Rico
First-year MS Urban Planning student Chrissy Scarpitti has been awarded first place in the 2021 Planning Excellence Competition sponsored by the Friends of Planning for her project Resilient Energy: Community-Scale Solar Microgrid Siting on the Island of Puerto Rico.
Architecture Professor of Practice Teresa Rosano Wins Inaugural Anne Graham Rockfellow Memorial Award
Teresa Rosano has been named the inaugural Anne Graham Rockfellow Memorial Award winner by the University of Arizona chapter of WIAS. Rockfellow, who taught at UArizona from 1897 to 1900, paved the way for other women pursuing architecture as an academic degree and profession.
The Future of Building: Rachael Varin '21 B.Arch
B.Arch student Rachael Varin, who was born and raised in Tucson, has used her CAPLA studio and design/build experience, as well as her internships in Arizona and California, to build upon her passion for construction.
Architectural History Professor Lisa D. Schrenk Publishes Critically Acclaimed Book on the Oak Park Studio of Frank Lloyd Wright
The Oak Park Studio of Frank Lloyd Wright by Lisa D. Schrenk offers the first comprehensive look at the early independent office and career of one of the world’s most influential architects.
Planning Professor Philip Stoker on How an Infrastructure Bill Can Help Rural Communities in the West
In an article by Deseret News examining possible impacts of an infrastructure bill in the rural West, Philip Stoker speaks to elements contained in President Biden's proposed infrastructure bill, including “soft infrastructure” such as housing.
UArizona Architecture Student Receives 2021 COTE Top Ten for Students Award for Sustainable Design Excellence
Fourth-year B.Arch student Ana Astiazaran has been awarded the top student sustainable design excellence award from the American Institute of Architects and Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture.
Designing for the Human Factor: Dyron Murphy ’88 B.Arch
Dyron Murphy, who is from Window Rock on the Navajo Nation, learned many things as a Bachelor of Architecture student—time management, design skills, flexibility—but what he didn’t anticipate was how close his cohort would become and has since remained.
A Passion for Sustainable Gardening: Christian Aguilar Murrieta ’23 MLA
Master of Landscape Architecture student Christian Aguilar Murrieta is from Ciudad Constitucion, Baja California Sur, Mexico, a small city surrounded by agricultural fields and chirinolas. She moved to Tucson in 2013 after earning her undergraduate degree in sustainable tourism at the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California Sur.
CAPLA Students and Faculty Partner with Local First Arizona to Help Organizations Develop Sustainability Plans
Assistant Professor of Architecture Altaf Engineer and Lecturer in Architecture Sandra Bernal-Cordova helped build the SCALE UP curriculum and train its facilitators, and are now preparing to engage CAPLA students and recent graduates in the award-winning, community-oriented program.