The Building Institute emphasizes more than construction- it focuses on a particular approach to design- an approach that embraces learning by doing. Traditional studios operate in a theoretical setting where the focus is on knowledge and rigor in design development.

The Building Institute’s goal is to create a setting outside of, yet built upon the traditional studio setting. In this way, a student’s design approach can be expanded. In fact, the setting of the Building Institute and the new design process it endeavors to teach, is an extension and transformation of the traditional studio. Design cannot be relegated to only one locale; it is fluid, continuous and morphs to its setting. It may begin in the mind of one person, jump to a group of minds, and spill onto paper or onto lines in the dirt. Ultimately, the Building Institute aims to teach students that design can transform, gain and lose elements, be enriched through craft, be physically experienced in the ritual of its making and finally in its occupation.

The need for construction experience is one of the biggest dilemmas facing architectural programs. This call for “building” experience comes not only from architects in practice but contractors performing the work. Ultimately, it is the public: both individuals and communities who benefit from an architect’s building experience. The Building Institute provides the link between knowledge and understanding. The “building experience” not only teaches the “craft” of how materials are assembled but also team collaboration, conflict resolution, financial management and client communication. These skills are as important in the workplace as theoretical and technical knowledge. The classroom or studio setting, however, is not always the best environment to teach these skills. People learn by doing.

Out of the 128 or so architecture schools in the United States, roughly 10 or so have construction studios or design/build programs. There are several noteworthy examples: the Cranbrook Academy, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin and Paolo Soleri’s Arcosanti (not an accredited degree program.) Recently, the late Samuel Mockbee received an international humanitarian award for his Rural Studio program at Auburn University in where students live and build in a local community. The public and university support for these types of programs is growing- the benefits are clearly growing as well. The UL Lafayette Building Institute is an important and integral part of our teaching mission.