
The University of New Mexico
NEWS RELEASE
Contact: Carolyn Gonzales 277-5920
cgonzal@unm.edu
Oct. 18, 2007
University of New Mexico architecture student Arturo Nuñez, was selected by a distinguished jury to receive the form·Z Joint Study Program Award of Distinction for Fabrication.
Also, the UNM team of Nuñez, Alberto Rodriquez and Jake Semler won Honorable Mention in fabrication, allowing UNM a sweep of the category. All three graduated this spring with bachelor’s degrees in architecture.
The form·Z Joint Study Program makes form·Z and its related products available to educational institutions, one year at a time, at the cost of processing and materials.
The goals of the Joint Study Program are to promote education in 3D modeling and computer-enhanced design, and to contribute to the evolution of computer driven design tools.
Nuñez’s project is titled, “ Modulation+Mutations II.”
“This project was a study into an area of architecture that I am interested in. It deals with the way we interface with surfaces. My interest begins to examine a way we can begin to rethink surfaces and make them more than conventional. This design looks at the idea of a wall becoming more than a wall – or the ground surface becoming more than a walking surface. By allowing other interactions with these surfaces, spatial dynamics can be more tectonic, fluid and complex,” he said.
Nuñez’s walls are “a living element” that can be used for many purposes. See his designs on the form·Z website:
http://www.formz.com/jointstudy/JS2006/awards20062007.html
Tim Castillo, assistant professor in the School of Architecture and Planning, defines Nuñez’s project as “urban furniture.” He notes that their work will be published in the Joint Study Annual Report in 2008.
“This sweep is a great honor for our school and program,” Castillo said.
The Joint Study Program requires a regular member of the faculty, in this case Castillo, to serve as principal investigator, who administers the program and submits a report and samples of student work at the end of the academic year.
Awards are selected annually by a jury of distinguished experts. The winners of the Awards of Distinction receive a free copy of form·Z, and their schools receive a free one-year subscription to the JS Program.
Nuñez, a Mexican immigrant who has lived in New Mexico for 20 years, created this design as a fourth-year architecture student at UNM. He now works for Jon Anderson Architect.
Architecture has allowed Nuñez to critically evaluate the world around him and the way he experiences it. “I have found an unfortunate misunderstanding of the essential role an architect can play, a role that has been undermined by the misguiding principles of American capitalism. In this environment driven by the bottom dollar, architecture is forced to confront challenges in new and innovative ways to advance the field.”
Nuñez received his award at the ACADIA Conference earlier this month in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
www.unm.edu