Portland Architecture

PSU's Portable Classroom On Alberta

Portland State University architecture professor Matthew Bietz is teaching the first phase of an architecture studio that will be designing and fabricating a portable classroom on NE Alberta Street at 15th Avenue, on a vacant property Bietz purchased next door to his home.

The classroom will be not for Bietz’s students, but for fellow PSU professor Harrell Fletcher’s Social Practice students going for their masters of fine arts. The Social Practices program emphasizes community engagement through non-studio creative activities executed in the field. “I heard that Harrell was looking to collaborate with the Architecture department at PSU," Bietz explains, "and that his new Social Practice class has no studio space on campus. Also, [then architecture department head] Rudy Barton has been asking me to teach a design-build class for some time now, because of my experience in Mexico with Steve Badanes and the University of Washington’s design-build program.”

There will be a hands-on construction studio beginning in July, with completion and ‘arrival’ of the project on site as part of PICA’s TBA festival this fall.

The site is a 50x100 empty lot. Once on site, the project will become the base of operations and community outreach center for the Social Practice students. After a 3 to 6 month stay, it will remove itself from the site and travel to a new location in a different neighborhood to repeat the process.

The intent of Bietz’s studio is to explore architecture as a mode of social outreach through community engagement, with specific focus on portability, prefabrication and recycled and re-used materials.  The process began with 15 concepts that were then condensed into five projects. The projects range from panelized systems and tent structures to expanding shipping containers and unfolding spaces on wheels.

Bietz moved to the Alberta neighborhood in 1998 “when houses were still under $100K and an architecture intern could afford to buy a house in Portland.” A decade later, “my house has appreciated to the point that I could afford to refinance and purchase the lot next door to me, for a possible development. But with the current mortgage crisis, and no one willing to lend me 500K for speculative housing, I started looking for other ways to use the property. Put that all together and you have a pretty interesting potential project. One that needs some funding, but will no doubt be built this summer.”

In the images above, the first is the "Sliding Cube and Tent Structure" by Junior Carbajal, Hussien Al-Baiaty and Gulia Gulnara. The second is "Dynawall" by Ralph Loielo and Paul Nordlund. The third is called "Unfolding Shipping Container" by Max Dehne, Craig Moore and Olga Reuven.

PSU Seeks Accreditation...Again, UO Cash For Graduation

This just in from FOPA (friend of Portland Architecture) Matt Janssen: Although the effort has been in the works on and off for years, this coming weekend, Portland State University kick starts the process of becoming only the second accredited architectural program in the state of Oregon. The National Architectural Accrediting Board is sending a team to begin the multi-year long evaluation process whereby PSU could/should have a graduate program in place in the fall of 2009 with full accreditation coming in the summer of 2011.

There will a reception (read: free beverages and food) occurring this upcoming Monday at 6:00pm at the AIA Center For Architecture at 403 NW 11th Avenue. As Matt reminds us, "A strong show of support from the architecture community would go a long way in letting the NAAB team know that you/we believe in the creation of a second venue for architectural education within Oregon."

With a new Portland campus in Old Town, I'll bet the University of Oregon isn't too keen on PSU giving them competition with an accredited school of their own. But even as the Biggest Ducks Fan In the History of Humankind, I'd argue that PSU getting accreditation is a great move.

Although ours is increasingly a city becoming known for its quality design, Portland lacks enough accredited architecture schooling. PSU isn't ever going to be a top American architecture school, most likely, but it'd help the overall case for design here to have more kids able to start and finish their architectural education here in town - without having to spend time in Eugene or elsewhere. I hope PSU gets its accreditation, that UO doesn't fight it, and then they play in football with a 63-2 Ducks victory.

Oh, and speaking of UO, graduating Portland-based architecture students will be holding a variety/talent/cabaret show Friday at 7:00PM at the school's new facility at the White Stag Block in Old Town. For $5 you can see these future architects reveal their hidden performing talents. Why are they putting on the show? Because the school doesn't provide any funds for their graduation ceremony, I'm told. Isn't that just pathetic of my beloved Ducks? With all the UO architecture alumni in town, not to mention 'Uncle Phil' out in Beaverton (yes, Nike is in Beavertron, no matter what they say), you'd think these builders and dreamers of Portland's future wouldn't have to resort to this. Perhaps they could rig a deal to have caps and gowns with a swoosh and faux-diamond plating. But failing that, I can vouch for the fact that one of the students, my friend Adrienne, plays a wicked clarinet.