Thorncrown Chapel is an amazing building. It is located in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. It was designed in 1978-79, and was first open to the public in 1980. In 1981, the building received the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Design of the Year award, and more recently, Thorncrown Chapel was placed fourth on AIA’s list of top buildings of the twentieth century (thorncrown.com).

Even when you are inside the Chapel, it almost appears like you are still outside because of all the glass windows. The building looks great with the beams crossing above, even if they are for structural support. Overall, the building is arguably the best and most popular build by E. Fay Jones. Thorncrown Chapel even influenced Jones’ future builds, such as the Mildred B. Cooper Memorial Chapel.

E. Fay Jones did not only build pavilions, but he also built houses. According to Jan Cottingham of arktimes.com, “Jones preferred to keep his projects within 50 miles or so of Fayetteville so he could properly oversee them” (Arkansas’ Resident Genius). One of his non-pavilion projects is the Pine Knoll house located in Little Rock, Arkansas.

The house was built in 1964. As reported by Angela E. Thomas, “the 5,200-square-foot home is made of sandstone; limestone; glass; oak; cedar; and, his requisite element, love” (www.aymag.com). The floors and design of the house is made in a way to blend the inside with the outside. One thing that Jones tried to do with his builds is work with nature. Instead of flattening out a piece of land, he wanted to build with the ground. Although this makes building quite a challenge, Fay Jones’ work shows that the end product is worth it.

As shown, the floor to ceiling glass windows and the tall columns that cover two stories really help blend everything together. It is hard to imagine Pine Knoll was built in the 1960’s because it has a more modern look to it that is not seen every day. The house is very beautiful due in part to the modern look, but also because Jones kept nature in mind while building it by working with nature and blending the building in with it.

E Fay Jones once said, “So I’ve mainly followed in a generalized way — there’s the term organic — that there should be a strong bond or building relationship so it looks like man and nature planned everything together and then each benefited immeasurably from the other” (Jan Cottingham, arktimes.com). One can see through E. Fay Jones’ build of the Pinecote Pavilion at the Crosby Arboretum that he very much followed this approach of blending his creation into the surroundings.

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“Architecturally, the Pavilion is a symmetrical shed, resting on a base of earth-toned brick, surrounded by earth, water, and trees. . . There is complete exposure of every construction element, all visible from within and without. Every framing member, every beam, brace, and connection is absolutely necessary to achieve structural stability” (About the Pavilion, crosbyarboretum.msstate.edu).

From inside the Pavilion, you can see it is a pretty big space with a lot of natural light coming in, especially from the small openings in the middle of the roof. The beams not only provide structural support, they also look appealing.

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According to crosbyarboretum.msstate.edu, “Nothing has been added to the structure as mere decoration. Ornamentation or decorative enrichment will come from the ever-changing patterns of light and shadows that play on the closely-spaced structural elements as the sun and moon move across the sky” (About the Pavilion). Jones not only built a Pavilion that mixes well with the environment, he made every part structurally significant, yet still pleasing to see.

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The Garvan Garden Pavilion is located in Hot Springs, Arkansas. According to garvangardens.org, the Garden is named “in honor of the Gardens’ benefactress, Verna Cook Garvan,” and the Pavilion is in place as the centerpiece for the 210-acre garden.

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The Garden was developed by Mrs. Garvan. “The site was purchased in the 1920’s after a timber clear-cut in about 1915. Mrs. Garvan loved this beautiful place so much that she never allowed it to be cut again” (History of Garvan Woodland Gardens, garvangardens.org). Mrs. Garvan planned out all the paths and chose each plant, laying out what became the Garvan Gardens. The Pavilion was designed by E. Fay Jones and stands as a naturalistic-looking pavilion in the center of a wonderful garden.

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“The stunning open-air redwood and sandstone structure features a one-of-a-kind, faceted steel and glass ceiling centered around a classical oculus. This traditional ‘window in the ceiling’ serves as the focal point of a flower-like composition unfolding overhead” (Garden Pavilion, garvangardens.org). The center of the roof of the pavilion, as shown above, not only lets natural light into the space, but it also creates an appealing view. One could imagine looking through the center of the Pavilion’s roof at night and viewing all the stars, while in a garden surrounded by beautiful plants, would create a great atmosphere. The Pavilion itself has a nice feel to it, and it blends/fits into its surroundings very well.

I attended Duncan High School from the 2008-09 school year until graduating in the 2011-2012 school year. I was born in Duncan, Oklahoma and lived there until graduating and coming to OU. At Duncan High School, I had the opportunity to play many sports, including football, cross country, wrestling, and golf. Along with sports, I had friends that I grew up with and knew all my life. Duncan High School gave me a great experience with my friends, and some of the most fun I have had was playing sports with those same friends I had known for so long. The buildings themselves were nothing to brag about, mainly because they were in desperate need of a renovation; but, since my graduating class of 2012, the school has passed a bond and improved the school quite a bit. (Above is the new front entrance of the school, along with the layout of the school grounds). I wish I could say that the school did a good job overall in preparing its students for college, but I quickly learned that college is an entirely different monster. However, I did have some great teachers along the way in high school that did their best to help students get ready for college, and those few teachers were very helpful. If it weren’t for those few teachers, then I would have come to the University of Oklahoma clueless. It is no secret that there is a big leap going from high school to college, and I thank all those teachers at Duncan High School that took the extra time and care to try and prepare their students (me) for that big change. I may have had a rough start to college, but I was eventually able to adjust and adapt to the college life because of what my teachers taught me.

I have always been a Sooner. Growing up, I remember going to the OU football games with my brothers, parents, nana and papa, and aunt and uncle. Every Saturday during football season was spent with my family either at the football game or watching the game if it was away. As a little kid, the Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium was one of my most favorite architectural buildings. Not only is the stadium visually appealing, the fans and the atmosphere of an Oklahoma football game are unlike any other. I always looked forward to Saturdays when I was younger because I was able to watch one of my favorite sports played by a great football team while spending the day with my family. Even today my family has season tickets and attends every game. Going to OU football games is an experience in itself, but for me, it is also an experience shared with my family.

Dale Hall is one of the least appealing buildings to me on OU’s campus, but a class I took inside Dale Hall helped me finally figure out the right major to pursue. During my second semester in college I happened to take a Psychology class in Dale Hall. The professor, Dr. Carvallo, made the class enjoyable and it was the first class I actually wanted to attend. At the time I was on to my second major, Accounting, and did not think about pursuing Psychology as an option to major in. It wasn’t until about the first semester of my fourth year of college that I realized I wasn’t going to find anything more interesting or enjoyable to study than Psychology. Since then, I have had a few more Psychology classes in Dale Hall, and I have enjoyed them just as much (if not more) as the first Psychology class I took. As for the architectural appeal of Dale Hall, I do not see much, if any (maybe that is why there are trees blocking the view). However, I do enjoy going in to Dale Hall and learning about Psychology.