What do you think?
Rate this book
Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee and an Architecture of Decency
For almost ten years, Samuel Mockbee, a recent MacArthur Grant recipient, and his architecture students at Auburn University have been designing and building striking houses and community buildings for impoverished residents of Alabama's Hale County. Using salvaged lumber and bricks, discarded tires, hay and waste cardboard bales, concrete rubble, colored bottles, and old license plates, they create inexpensive buildings that bear the trademark of Mockbee's work, which he describes as "contemporary modernism grounded in Southern culture."In a time of unexampled prosperity, when architectural attention focuses on big, glossy urban projects, the Rural Studio provides an alternative of substance. In addition to being a social welfare venture, the Rural Studio--"Taliesin South" as Mockbee calls it--is also an educational experiment and a prod to the architectural profession to act on its best instincts. In giving students hands-on experience in designing and building something real, it extends their education beyond paper architecture. And in scavenging and reusing a variety of unusual materials, it is a model of sustainable architecture. The work of Rural Studio has struck such a chord-both architecturally and socially--that it has been featured on Oprah, Nightline, and CBS News, as well as in Time and People magazines.The Studio has completed more than a dozen projects, including the Bryant "Hay Bale" House, Harris "Butterfly" House, Yancey Chapel, Akron Chapel, Children's Center, H.E.R.O. Playground, Lewis House, Super Sheds and Pods, Spencer House addition, Farmer's Market, Mason's Bend Community Center, Goat House, and Shannon-Dutley House. These buildings, along with the incredible story of the Rural Studio, the people who live there, and Mockbee and his student architects, are detailed in this colorful book, the first on the subject."I tell my students, it's got to be warm, dry, and noble"--Samuel Mockbee
185 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2002
7 people are currently reading
279 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
August 2, 2007
Occasionally, when I'm hanging out in libraries (i.e.- often), I like to see what books people have left behind in their study carrals or on tables - it gives me a little snapshot of their life or what they're interested in. And sometimes I discover a treasure I would never have found otherwise. Case in point, this book. In ugly navy blue library binding, I opened it up to find it was actually a beautiful book put out by Princeton Architecture Press. I have a crush on this publisher - they put out the best designed books on interesting topics. And this is no exception.
About the work of "Sambo" in Hale's County, Alabama and how he began a program with architecture students where they create buildings for residents of this poorest of areas. They try to use inexpensive materials and innovative design, living in these communities. The text is clear and readable and compelling (unlike most "design" books) and the photos by William Christenberry are unsentimental and true.
This book led me on a day of connections: I've been nosing around architecture a lot lately, due to my Alain de botton book and my obsessive interest in buying a house. So I read this and then leaving the library, stumbled across the Phaidon Book of World Contemporary Architecture, a giant beautiful book that I flipped through (which featured some of Mockbee's work) And then truly on my way out of the library, for real this time, I saw a book of photos by William Christenberry so I had to sit down and read it too. And now I love him too. Those are the best kind of reading days.
About the work of "Sambo" in Hale's County, Alabama and how he began a program with architecture students where they create buildings for residents of this poorest of areas. They try to use inexpensive materials and innovative design, living in these communities. The text is clear and readable and compelling (unlike most "design" books) and the photos by William Christenberry are unsentimental and true.
This book led me on a day of connections: I've been nosing around architecture a lot lately, due to my Alain de botton book and my obsessive interest in buying a house. So I read this and then leaving the library, stumbled across the Phaidon Book of World Contemporary Architecture, a giant beautiful book that I flipped through (which featured some of Mockbee's work) And then truly on my way out of the library, for real this time, I saw a book of photos by William Christenberry so I had to sit down and read it too. And now I love him too. Those are the best kind of reading days.
July 16, 2019
Do you ever feel that while the world is rushing headlong toward destruction, a sizable portion of the people around you seem to be feverishly investing their resources and energy in projects that contribute nothing to the common good - almost as if determined to speed us all on our way? Do you ever wonder why some of that good old "American" ingenuity, that inventive creativity of which we are always hearing, can't be applied to solving some of the social and environmental ills that plague us, rather than serving to line someone's pockets?
I know I have. Every time I pass some glitzy new high-rise going up here in New York City, with ads promising luxury living, I think of how desperately we need affordable housing. And every time I pass a public housing project, complete with row upon row of tiny windows, I am struck by the monotonous uniformity of the structures we inflict upon the poor. At such times, caught between the ugliness of wealth and the ugliness of poverty, I am almost in despair at the sheer stupid waste of it all.
It is at moments such as these that I most need to read about people like Samuel Mockbee, and his wonderful Rural Studio. An educational project begun in 1993, and run under the auspices of Auburn University, Rural Studio puts students to work building innovative and affordable homes for the rural poor of Hale County, Alabama - a locale many readers may know through Walker Evans and James Agee's celebrated book, Let Us Now Praise Famous Men . Here the students learn about social responsibility, and the needs of the poor, while working in a cooperative, learn-as-you-build environment.
I'm not much of a modernist, in architecture or any other field, and my "dream-house" probably looks something like a Tudor, but I found many of the projects profiled in this book quite beautiful. They definitely embody Mockbee's idea of local culture and available materials shaping architectural form. The emphasis on responsiveness, to the needs of the client and the environment, gives this program real transformative potential. I was impressed by the fact that Mockbee and his students don't feel forced to choose between beauty and economy - that they reconcile these two concerns, all while designing structures that are environmentally sound.
I know I have. Every time I pass some glitzy new high-rise going up here in New York City, with ads promising luxury living, I think of how desperately we need affordable housing. And every time I pass a public housing project, complete with row upon row of tiny windows, I am struck by the monotonous uniformity of the structures we inflict upon the poor. At such times, caught between the ugliness of wealth and the ugliness of poverty, I am almost in despair at the sheer stupid waste of it all.
It is at moments such as these that I most need to read about people like Samuel Mockbee, and his wonderful Rural Studio. An educational project begun in 1993, and run under the auspices of Auburn University, Rural Studio puts students to work building innovative and affordable homes for the rural poor of Hale County, Alabama - a locale many readers may know through Walker Evans and James Agee's celebrated book, Let Us Now Praise Famous Men . Here the students learn about social responsibility, and the needs of the poor, while working in a cooperative, learn-as-you-build environment.
I'm not much of a modernist, in architecture or any other field, and my "dream-house" probably looks something like a Tudor, but I found many of the projects profiled in this book quite beautiful. They definitely embody Mockbee's idea of local culture and available materials shaping architectural form. The emphasis on responsiveness, to the needs of the client and the environment, gives this program real transformative potential. I was impressed by the fact that Mockbee and his students don't feel forced to choose between beauty and economy - that they reconcile these two concerns, all while designing structures that are environmentally sound.
May 24, 2008
I learned about Samuel Mockbee in a long feature article, maybe from the wire services or NYT, while he was still alive. He captured my imagination as someone who really made a difference in the world, with the most humble of materials --including garbage. And, not only did he help have-nots to have beautiful places to live and hang out, but he taught another generation to practice socially responsible architecture and build similar housing. When I saw a review of this book, I had to have it. It doesn't disappoint. Long on photos and somewhat sparing of text, it never fails to lift me and motivate me. This reminds me of another (lost) book, one I borrowed from a roommate in the 70s and have never forgotten: Handmade Houses: A Guide to the Woodbutcher's Art, by Art Boericke and Barry Shapiro. That book included houses made with recycled castoffs and just beautifully crafted structures. The same ethos is behind Rural Studio projects, but the results are more public and the beneficiaries uniformly needy.
October 28, 2007
The works in this book were original and very interesting. The book shows a side of architecture that most people don't know about and most students and interns should pay more attention too. The fact that this is actually an educational program is incredible. The only complaint I have is that the book could definitely include more photographs, as well as concept sketches and design drawings. Photographs of details could help too.
May 26, 2024
What a great program. This is my only source but I feel like the book really did it justice. It's so great to finally read a book about architecture that is actually about the people building it, and about people making their homes their own functional spaces as opposed to works of art they live in.
I would love to visit Rural Studio, will definitely be reading more about it. The depth of class-consciousness in the buildings is reflected in Mockbee's art about Alabama history.
I am left with some questions: 1. Why in a book primarily about black poverty in the south is there frequent mention of plantations but no mention of black slavery? One essay does discuss indigenous slavery 2. How does the children's center for state/DCF surveillance of families tie in with the mission of the school. (This is the only project I have doubts about it's value to the community) and 3. Use of prison labor?? At one point it says that one prisoner chose to come back to the project he worked on after he was released to make sure the masonry was done right so like from a human perspective, I guess there was personal buy in but I think it's weird to not be questioning the role of prison labor in a project that's about helping build homes for poor black people. I guess, from my dogmatic perspective it's a bad look but from the perspective of the program they're making the building happen however works.
I would love to visit Rural Studio, will definitely be reading more about it. The depth of class-consciousness in the buildings is reflected in Mockbee's art about Alabama history.
I am left with some questions: 1. Why in a book primarily about black poverty in the south is there frequent mention of plantations but no mention of black slavery? One essay does discuss indigenous slavery 2. How does the children's center for state/DCF surveillance of families tie in with the mission of the school. (This is the only project I have doubts about it's value to the community) and 3. Use of prison labor?? At one point it says that one prisoner chose to come back to the project he worked on after he was released to make sure the masonry was done right so like from a human perspective, I guess there was personal buy in but I think it's weird to not be questioning the role of prison labor in a project that's about helping build homes for poor black people. I guess, from my dogmatic perspective it's a bad look but from the perspective of the program they're making the building happen however works.
May 21, 2024
A really fascinating book about socially minded architecture and construction that really shook up my thinking about home ownership, construction and whether I’d want to build anything myself, although that’s not what the author intended.
Tl;dr: I want to build a house with a car windshield sky light and learn how to do it myself.
Tl;dr: I want to build a house with a car windshield sky light and learn how to do it myself.
March 1, 2024
WHAT A GREAT ENTERPRISE!
January 28, 2015
In his 1952 novel East of Eden, John Steinbeck took on an argument for the inherent struggle of man to do good over evil. One of my top three favorite quotes from the book sums this all up quite neatly:
East of Eden takes place in the rural areas of the United States, around the turn of the century or just thereafter, as boys are going off to war, and the car is still a novel idea waiting to catch on.
Where East of Eden is a philosophical, fictional look at good versus evil, I find parallels to the work of Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee and an Architecture of Decency, for it is within these pages, that we find acts or architecture performed in tune with finding simple and honest acts of good, where there seems to be only evil. In a place where materials are scarce, and money is even scarcer, the late Samuel Mockbee revolutionized the idea of giving back.
What inspired me about what Mockbee did with Auburn University's Rural Studio was to take places that would be considered 'foreign lands' to the majority of people in the middle class, and humanize them in a humble way through architecture. Rural Studio began as an idea on how the architecture students of Auburn could give back to society in meaningful way while developing a collaborative, realistic classroom experience for students in their second or fifth years.
Whether coming out to help or joining for their Thesis, students who were selected each year to participate would join Samuel Mockbee and live near their chosen site for the entire semester, literally living and breathing the project. Each project starts by interviewing individuals who needed new housing, and then selecting the client they felt most deserving (or in most dire need) of a new home. They frequently talked about how this was not an easy choice, and I could empathize. Interestingly, some of the eventual clients were adamant about denying the help offered, feeling that they didn’t need charity, showing the students their pride in their homes, no matter the stigma attached.
The book is broken up very simply by project, with short briefs on the program, the client and the process that went into putting the final building together. These short write-ups are succinct and crafted with precision so as to give the reader the amount of information needed, while letting Hursley’s stunning photography do the rest of the talking. Never once did I find myself distracted by the Dean’s writing. Its honesty and integrity complemented the projects extremely well.
The only possible criticism of this wonderful book is that some of the students seemed to speak about their clients in a way that condoned the standardized image of poverty. That is, it seemed like they believed they were 'saving' these people from their unfortunate and unhappy lives, when this was not necessarily the case. For example, the Newbern Baseball Field Project (2001) was definitely in need of repair originally, but the conditions did not seem to inform a sense of unhappiness in its users. While its community members would arguably be happier by a new design that could give them a sense of pride in the place where they lived, these people seemed to find joy in community first and foremost, not necessarily the condition of the built world around them. They lived modestly, and while economically speaking they were not overflowing with 'stuff', they were happy on their land with the lives they had carved out for themselves.
This is less a critique on the book itself, than perhaps on human nature. Even within this context, it is a small one because at the end of the day, good was being done. While there certainly are questions of the lasting effects on individuals, and the philosophical debates about status that could (and probably have been) waged over this topic, the only aspect that ultimately matters is that the projects in Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee and an Architecture of Decency were motivated by a genuine sense of morality and sought to change people’s lives for the better through the built environment. Something far too rare in this day and age—highlighting the importance of this book despite being over a decade old.
John Steinbeck has another beautiful line from the dedication of East of Eden that will stay with me forever—like the works showcased in Rural Studio. It is a reminder of why we designers do what we do and what seemed to me to be an underlying current in the Mockbee's wonderful initiative:
I believe that there is one story in the world, and only one. . . . Humans are caught—in their lives, in their thoughts, in their hungers and ambitions, in their avarice and cruelty, and in their kindness and generosity too—in a net of good and evil. . . . There is no other story. A man, after he has brushed off the dust and chips of his life, will have left only the hard, clean questions: Was it good or was it evil? Have I done well—or ill?
East of Eden takes place in the rural areas of the United States, around the turn of the century or just thereafter, as boys are going off to war, and the car is still a novel idea waiting to catch on.
Where East of Eden is a philosophical, fictional look at good versus evil, I find parallels to the work of Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee and an Architecture of Decency, for it is within these pages, that we find acts or architecture performed in tune with finding simple and honest acts of good, where there seems to be only evil. In a place where materials are scarce, and money is even scarcer, the late Samuel Mockbee revolutionized the idea of giving back.
What inspired me about what Mockbee did with Auburn University's Rural Studio was to take places that would be considered 'foreign lands' to the majority of people in the middle class, and humanize them in a humble way through architecture. Rural Studio began as an idea on how the architecture students of Auburn could give back to society in meaningful way while developing a collaborative, realistic classroom experience for students in their second or fifth years.
Whether coming out to help or joining for their Thesis, students who were selected each year to participate would join Samuel Mockbee and live near their chosen site for the entire semester, literally living and breathing the project. Each project starts by interviewing individuals who needed new housing, and then selecting the client they felt most deserving (or in most dire need) of a new home. They frequently talked about how this was not an easy choice, and I could empathize. Interestingly, some of the eventual clients were adamant about denying the help offered, feeling that they didn’t need charity, showing the students their pride in their homes, no matter the stigma attached.
The book is broken up very simply by project, with short briefs on the program, the client and the process that went into putting the final building together. These short write-ups are succinct and crafted with precision so as to give the reader the amount of information needed, while letting Hursley’s stunning photography do the rest of the talking. Never once did I find myself distracted by the Dean’s writing. Its honesty and integrity complemented the projects extremely well.
The only possible criticism of this wonderful book is that some of the students seemed to speak about their clients in a way that condoned the standardized image of poverty. That is, it seemed like they believed they were 'saving' these people from their unfortunate and unhappy lives, when this was not necessarily the case. For example, the Newbern Baseball Field Project (2001) was definitely in need of repair originally, but the conditions did not seem to inform a sense of unhappiness in its users. While its community members would arguably be happier by a new design that could give them a sense of pride in the place where they lived, these people seemed to find joy in community first and foremost, not necessarily the condition of the built world around them. They lived modestly, and while economically speaking they were not overflowing with 'stuff', they were happy on their land with the lives they had carved out for themselves.
This is less a critique on the book itself, than perhaps on human nature. Even within this context, it is a small one because at the end of the day, good was being done. While there certainly are questions of the lasting effects on individuals, and the philosophical debates about status that could (and probably have been) waged over this topic, the only aspect that ultimately matters is that the projects in Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee and an Architecture of Decency were motivated by a genuine sense of morality and sought to change people’s lives for the better through the built environment. Something far too rare in this day and age—highlighting the importance of this book despite being over a decade old.
John Steinbeck has another beautiful line from the dedication of East of Eden that will stay with me forever—like the works showcased in Rural Studio. It is a reminder of why we designers do what we do and what seemed to me to be an underlying current in the Mockbee's wonderful initiative:
...the pleasure of design and some despair and the indescribable joy of creation.
January 8, 2016
This is such a great counterpoint to most glossy design books. The text, the photos, the ideas are all inspiring. I wish the book included floor plans and drawings because I really want to know how they packed so much functionality in such small sf.
I particularly like the sensitive way that the homes are photographed, especially the "then and now" pictures that show how the owners and home adapted to one another.
I sew with recycled textiles and my home has bits of recycling potential squirreled away in many corners. These homes exhibit ingenuity in the way the architecture students built with recycled materials and the way the home owners furnish their homes with very little cash.
I particularly like the sensitive way that the homes are photographed, especially the "then and now" pictures that show how the owners and home adapted to one another.
I sew with recycled textiles and my home has bits of recycling potential squirreled away in many corners. These homes exhibit ingenuity in the way the architecture students built with recycled materials and the way the home owners furnish their homes with very little cash.
May 15, 2012
samuel mockbees work is amazing.
started the whole sustainable craze. bless him for his work with underpriviledged americans :) love this philanthropy architecture :)
really was a huge leap from earthships of the 70s, to creating beautiful low cost architecture. the building of a community and non-ev architecture is so rewarding to read about i can't even imagine what it would be like to do the work! :)
amazing man, amazing vision :)
started the whole sustainable craze. bless him for his work with underpriviledged americans :) love this philanthropy architecture :)
really was a huge leap from earthships of the 70s, to creating beautiful low cost architecture. the building of a community and non-ev architecture is so rewarding to read about i can't even imagine what it would be like to do the work! :)
amazing man, amazing vision :)
March 24, 2007
This book shows the beauty and compassion of the early works of Mockbee's Rural Studio -- it is compelling to read and peruse, but after visiting the projects and seeing them in their surroundings, I was disappointed to see the context "cleaned away" for the book. It's important to know what's around these works, and how they're really used; the book glosses over them.
May 15, 2017
What design should be - not a way to benefit the rich; but a way to re-exam if the way we have always done things is really the best considering how rapidly we gain new knowledge and working creatively with the resources you have and using them to their fullest potential versus a poor version of something else.
February 4, 2008
The title says it all: architecture of decency. Mockbee was an architect concerned more with the potential of architecture to lift the human spirit, not about how loudly it celebrates its maker. By using recycled materials, like old road signs, bottles, tires, etc, Mockbee created contemporary structures in rural southern towns that fit beautifully into the landscape for which it was made.
September 11, 2023
This book profiles student-designed homes in an otherwise overlooked community. Many of the materials are either unusual or used in unorthodox ways. The students' attempts to be unique and different isn't necessarily beneficial to the occupants. There are, however, still some successful proposals that creatively solve economical and climate challenges.
August 28, 2007
Incredible. If only more people in the world had his attitude. And why do people like Mockbee die so young and people like Bush and Cheney live so long????
Books like this help to bring back the notion of GOOD being more important than GREAT.
Books like this help to bring back the notion of GOOD being more important than GREAT.
June 7, 2009
To do something that helps people, is responsible with materials, and is artistically excellent--that is an exciting idea. Here is one way to have a creative career that meets human needs and is others-focused.
January 19, 2009
Rural Studio, founded by Samuel Mockbee, is based on the principle that everyone - regardless of income level - should have access to good, quality architecture. This book is also full of creative ideas for the re-use of reclaimed materials within the architectural context.
April 24, 2012
Architecture meets poverty meets humanity meets service all being introduced to one another through Sambo Mockbee. Some great examples of design and even more profound thoughts on how architecture should contribute to society.
August 20, 2018
One of my favorite architects and schools of architecture. Had I encountered this work as a younger person, I think I may have attempted to follow this path. A must for anyone considering architecture in a practical and social context, imo.
July 31, 2007
an architecture of humanity.
August 20, 2007
this book is my inspiration, ever!
May 7, 2008
I read this because Mockbee was an inspiring architect and I'm going to Alabama at the end of May with a group to see some of the houses and other structures that his students built. Very cool stuff.
May 22, 2008
Love what Sam Mockbee did with architecture in the poorest county of Alabama.
July 18, 2008
Even if you're not an architecture nerd like me it's worth seeing what a little money and a lot of heart can do for people who really need it.
Want to read
December 29, 2008Emily, this sounds fascinating, and something that you might like to read, too. I read a review on goodreads by "Abigail A." which sparked my interest.
September 3, 2010
Poverty, civil rights, rustic materials, rough craftsmanship and Architecture!
January 7, 2012
Terrific book and photography! Great write up on architecture in poverty and rural settings with renewable or recycled material. Stunning work really.
February 19, 2014
images of low-cost structures built for families in the rural south. some interesting ideas for building materials.
September 22, 2014
He is an utter genius. Very inspiring book about vernacular architecture and Mockbee's vision for an egalitarian, up cycled architecture for ALL people.
February 20, 2008
clever and giving hearts design impressive spaces in rural america
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews