Between the 11th and 18th of January, 2015 Sylvia Karres lectured at the University of Virginia’s School of Architecture in Charlottesville VA. As the fourth Jaquelin T. Robertson Visiting Professor she has led the all-school workshop and competition Vortex 04 2015, titled: IVY CORRIDOR – COMMON SPACES FOR AN UNCOMMON ACADEMICAL VILLAGE. The workshop challenged 300 students of four different disciplines to imagine a new configuration of residential buildings and spaces along the Ivy Road. A configuration worthy of the University’s historic academical village founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, with its mix of uses and scales, choreographed interaction of students and faculty, and its rich spatial mosaic of buildings and landscapes.

Sylvia Karres acted as an all-school critic during the week long workshop, advising the 30 teams on their designs and agendas. She presented the work of Karres en Brands related to transformation in a lecture at Campbell Hall and another lecture related to campus design. On the final day all 30 teams presented their proposals in a public presentation. Awards were given to those projects that made a particular contribution to our understanding of new modes of extending and enriching student residential living and the public realm that connects the university to the city and the county.

For more information: 
– The Vortex website
– An interview with A-School Visiting Professor of Architectural History, Gennie Keller
– A #Vortex2015 preview article from Charlottesville Tomorrow
– Local NBC affiliate Channel 29 coverage of the launch of #Vortex2015
– A review of the #Vortex2015 kickoff presentation at the Culbreth Theater at U.Va.