15 architects, designers, and educators are chosen as Exhibit Columbus' 2022–23 University Design Research Fellows

Exhibit Columbus returns with another year of events and exhibitions to highlight Columbus, Indiana's architecture, art, design, and community. The organization is excited to announce the 2022–23 University Design Research Fellows (UDRF). Now in its fourth cycle, this year's theme, Public by Design, "builds on the legacy of Columbus, Indiana to explore how collaborations between communities and designers can revitalize and reimagine historic downtowns as equitable, beautiful, healthy, and joyful places." 

Consisting of architects, artists, landscape architects, and academics, this group was selected from a July 2022 open-call competition for full-time university professors to apply. The Exhibit Columbus team asked applicants "to respond to recommendations from the 2021 downtown activation study developed by James Lima Planning and Development (JLP+D) that looked at ways to activate the historic core of downtown Columbus. JLP+D's work is supported by the City of Columbus and a National Endowment for the Arts 'Our Town Grant.'"  

Richard McCoy, Executive Director of Landmark Columbus Foundation, shared with Archinect and Bustler, "Since the beginning of Exhibit Columbus, we’ve been expanding an international platform for university professors to showcase the work they are doing within academia and how that connects to current issues in our society and the modern legacy of Columbus." 

"With this year's competition, we had an inspiring amount of interest and applications come in from coast to coast. The seven UDRF winners represent some of the most innovative practices in the U.S. right now, he added. "They are makers, educators, researchers, and what we love is they all have experience working with communities. It’s really going to be amazing to have all of these practices in our Symposium next month, which will in turn make a rare opportunity for students of all levels to learn from them." 

The selected design research fellows hail from eight universities with specialties in architecture, landscape architecture, technology, urban planning, public art, and digital fabrication, to name a few. 

As the official media sponsor for Exhibit Columbus, Archinect and Bustler are delighted to highlight this year's University Design Research Fellows.

Joseph Altshuler and Zack Morrison
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign School of Architecture

"Joseph Altshuler is an Assistant Professor of Architecture at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Atlshuler along with Zack Morrison are Co-Founders of Could Be Architecture, a Chicago- and Urbana-based design practice that designs seriously playful spaces that build solidarity among multiple communities." Read more here.

Esteban Garcia Bravo and Maria Clara Morales
Purdue University Department of Computer Graphics Technology

"Esteban Garcia Bravo is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Graphics Technology at Purdue University, where he teaches digital imaging, fabrication, and computational aesthetics. He is a Colombian-American artist and scholar exploring computational arts that earned his MFA from Purdue University in 2008 and a Ph.D. in Technology, also from Purdue, in 2013. His research on computer art heritage and digital media art practices has been featured in the annual meetings of international organizations [...] Maria Clara Morales is a Research Scholar at Purdue University, where she is focusing on developing physical and digital components of interactive art installations under the mentorship of Esteban and Davin Huston." Read more here.

Jessica Colangelo and Charles Sharpless
University of Arkansas Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design

"Jessica Colangelo and Charles Sharpless are Assistant professors at the University of Arkansas Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design. They are the co-founders of the architecture practice Somewhere Studio. Together they work on commissioned projects, including public space design, residential and commercial projects. The studio has worked in close collaboration with many arts and community-building organizations across the country." Read more here.

Deborah Garcia
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Department of Architecture

"Deborah Garcia is the Belluschi Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Department of Architecture and a designer, writer, and curator. She was a recipient of the Princeton University Butler Travelling Fellowship, which allowed her to be a resident at ARTFarm Nebraska, and was an invited participant for the 2019 Arctic Circle Expedition in the international territory of Svalbard, Norway." Read more here.

Katie MacDonald and Kyle Schumann
University of Virginia School of Architecture

"Katie MacDonald and Kyle Schumann are Assistant Professors of Architecture at the University of Virginia School of Architecture, where they are Directors of the Before Building Laboratory, Co-Directors of the Hemp Co-Lab, and Co-Curators of the Biomaterial Building Exposition." Read more here.

Molly Hunker and Greg Corso
Syracuse University School of Architecture

"Molly Hunker and Greg Corso are Assistant Professors at Syracuse University School of Architecture. They are the Co-Captains of the practice, SPORTS. Much of their work has been public interventions that leverage the possibility for straightforward and high-economy design gestures to have significant urban and community impacts." Read more here.

Halina Steiner, Temeka Baba, Forbes Lipschitz, and Shelby Doyle
The Ohio State University Austin E. Knowlton School of Architecture and Iowa State University School of Design

"Halina Steiner, Temeka Baba, and Forbes Lipschitz are Assistant Professors of Landscape Architecture at the Austin E. Knowlton School at The Ohio State University. Steiner's research, Forensic Hydrology, focuses on overlaps between professional practice, hydrology, and infrastructure with an emphasis on scale and systems. Baba's research tracks the transition of urban vacancy, specifically those created by the retail industry. Lipschitz's research investigates the potential of design to reframe and reshape conventional working landscapes. Shelby Doyle is Associate Professor of Architecture and Stan G. Thurston Professor of Design Build at the Iowa State University College of Design (ISU). She is also Co-Founder of the ISU Computation & Construction Lab, and Director of the ISU Architectural Robotics Lab." Read more here.

This year's chosen applicants were shortlisted by Exhibit Columbus' Curatioral Partners: Paola Aguirre (Urban Designer, BORDERLESS), Chris Merritt (Landscape Architect, Merritt Chase), Lauren M. Pacheco (Civic and Cultural Artist, Steel Studio Foundation), Bryony Roberts (Designer, Writer, Educator, Bryony Roberts Studio), Raymund Ryan (Curator at Large, The Heinz Architectural Center at Carnegie Museum of Art), and Holly Warren (Assistant Director for the Arts, Economic and Sustainable Development Department, City of Bloomington). 

Based on the Request for Qualifications process, the final selection of UDRFellows was made by this year's 2022–23 UDRF Community Jurors: Esther Afolayan, Anuja Chandra, Jackie Combest, Mary Ferdon, Mary Harmon, Erin Hawkins, Anakarina Hurtado, Grace Kestler, Andres Nieto, Jasmine O’Conner, Catie Rix, Shanda Sasse, and Kim Wadholm. 

Learn more about Exhibit Columbus' upcoming October Symposium (October 21–22), the 2023 Design Presentations (February 24–25), and the 2023 Exhibition in August on the organization's website.

Stay tuned for ongoing coverage from Archinect and Bustler's editorial team.