Halloween is a big deal around Newbern! We throw a lot of good things into our cauldron: consultant project reviews (of course), workshopping, pumpkin carving, and costume contests, to name a few. The resulting brew is a fun-steeped learning experience that pushes students’ creativity and critical thinking.

With too much good fun to fit into one day, we held our pumpkin carving on Tuesday. Students and locals took their knives to the pumpkins, and the results were delightful. The Newbern Library put the jack-o’-lanterns on display for the community to enjoy.

On Thursday the 30th, our visiting consultants critiqued student work. These included our friends from David Baker Architects in Birmingham and professors from Auburn’s main campus, including Jennifer Pindyck, Alex Krumdieck, Gorham Bird, Ernesto Bilbao and members of the Front Porch team (Rusty Smith, Mackenzie Stagg, Betsy Garcia, Tim Tamulonis, Christian Ayala, and Laurel Holloway). In Rural Studio tradition, students, faculty, and consultants dressed in team-coordinated costumes, only revealing their costume themes on the day of the Review. (More about that fun below!)

We started with the critique of Mark’s Home, a 3rd-year project; it’s a one-bedroom, one-bathroom prototype house that enhances energy efficiency, durability, and climate resilience for disaster-prone regions like ours. Mark’s Home prioritizes occupant safety and long-term stability.

After a lovely lunch by chefs Amanda and Ann, we critiqued the two new 5th-year projects. Our expert consultants provided feedback on the nascent plans for a congregational space at the historical First Congregational Church in Marion and on the emerging plans for Jessica’s Home, a two- to three-bedroom house for Jessica and her three children, whose earlier home was struck by a tornado in February.

To inform their design decisions, the 5th-year teams are working together, testing how to use wood fiber panels as continuous insulation on the outside of a structure. They are applying their ideas to the Timber Insulated Pods—two pods that will serve as dorms for 3rd-year students. One pod will use glu-lam structural bents paired with tongue and groove decking , which is the preliminary plan for the church social hall. The other will focus on CLT (cross laminated timber) as a structural system to test the preliminary plans for Jessica’s Home.

After critiques, the Board of Directors of the Newbern Library hosted our extended Studio crew and the Newbern community. The Board not only provided the space but also served as judges for both the jack-o’-lanterns and the costumes and awarded prizes to the winners.

Sarah Recht, one of our “leftover” students (remaining after graduation to wrap up projects), won the carving contest.

The Children’s Parade had its best participation ever(!), drawing children in a wide range of costumes. We saw the whimsical (a pair of M&Ms), the classic (superheroes), and the scary (a creepy clown), who won the kids’ prize.

Several Rural Studio faculty and staff dressed as members of a circus. Director Andrew Freear was, fittingly, a ringleader! And given that we had a monkey, too, no one here can say, “Not my circus, not my monkeys.”

The team from David Baker Architects dressed as slices of pie, all different flavors. When they sat with their wedges together in the library courtyard, you could picture them under glass at an old-time diner, as if the cook or wait staff put together the remaining lemon meringue, cherry, and other slices at the end of a long shift to save space!

Just like in our program, our student Halloween Review costumes are design-build. They are an exercise in vision, creativity, and execution.

Our 3rd-years always face the challenge of coming up with a theme to accommodate their large group. This year’s 16 students chose the Disney show Phineas and Ferb. On the show, the boys’ older sister Candice always tries to “bust” them by revealing the contraptions they built to their mom, but whatever they build mysteriously disappears before Mom can see it. Not Mark’s Home, though: it’ll be a lasting legacy for this class!

The 5th-year students came up with costumes that worked for their groups of four. The church hall team dressed as little green aliens, complete with their silver flying saucer. They flew around the courtyard, but they were in full control: one of them had a steering wheel. The Jessica’s Home crew went as KIT KAT bars, each dressed as their own chocolate-covered wafer, but all gathered in the same package. They just ask for one thing this review: Give ’em a break!

Our “leftover” students got in on the fun, too. The Smith Park and Dining House teams chose the Freaky Friday theme and transformed into one another. The CLT Core House team dressed as OSHA inspectors, handing out notices to those in attendance. They popped into the Newbern Library briefly and had us in stitches when they came out: still in their high-vis safety vests, they exited the library with valuables, parodying the recent heist at the Louvre.

All of the costumes were clever and well made. Our contest judges had some tough decisions to make, but in the end, only one team could take the prize. The student winners were—drum roll, please—the alien visitors from outer space!

Consultants from David Baker Architects stuck around to wrap up our Halloween Review week. Amanda Loper and Cameron Acheson joined us on Friday, too, workshopping with our 5th-year students. Amanda and Cameron also gave a lecture over lunch.

We set high standards at Rural Studio. We work hard, and we play hard, too. Our Halloween Reviews blend work and play, the serious and the light-hearted. We hope you enjoyed a peek at our working fun!