This year twelve students representing all of the Five College institutions present their work, representing an incredibly broad range of approaches to work on and around architecture + design.

The exhibition will open on Thursday, May 9, and be on view through Sunday, May 12. A reception celebrating the exhibition will be held on Wednesday, May 8, from 5 to 7 PM. Join us for food, drink, & design appreciation.

Featuring work by:

Joalis Ayala
Hampshire College
Don’t Be A Puppet
Don’t be a puppet is a journey where exploration meets self-discovery, the pursuit of passion, and the transformative power of embracing the present moment. Viewers are invited to reflect upon their own lives, aspirations, and have confidence to live authentically despite the barriers that restrain them.

Grace Chen
Mount Holyoke College
Composing Space: Notating sonic & spatial experiences
Architecture and music have a long intertwining history– these creative forces have collaborated and transcended their respective identities, but why are these parallels important beyond their aesthetic abstractions? Composing Space explores the use of compositional practice in design, and centers listening as an essential perspective in a visually dominant field.

Trent Everitt
Hampshire College
A Compendium of Architectural Specifics for Fictional Species
This Compendium is created to be used by world builders and game developers who are interested in creating architecturally sound environments where fictional species reside. This is an excerpt offering a focus on three fictional species: Orcs, Merfolk, and Gnomes.

Tu Tu Ho
Hampshire College
Tranzeye: Real-World Translation Glasses
The project’s primary focus would be helping users break through the daily language barrier by developing a pair of smart glasses capable of real-time translation and other features like allergy alerts. The glasses would connect to a supporting app via Bluetooth.

Kiran Jandu
University of Massachusetts MFA
bare wall
A survey of the wall as a framing device for understanding matter, memory, and movement. featuring a site-based study unveiling the invisible narratives within the industrial ruins of Easthampton, MA.

Catherine Kazel
Mount Holyoke College
Designing Sustainable & Accessible Apartment Style Living for MHC
Research of accessibility, sustainability, and community based design culminates with the design of apartment style living that serves Mount Holyoke College’s diverse student population, positively contributes to the climate crisis, and is visually harmonious with the esteemed architectural aesthetic of the campus.

Ben King
Amherst College
Bamboo as a tool in problem-solving: El Niño Resiliency in Esmeraldas, Ecuador
Naturally grown with adaptable characteristics, bamboo can address structural design needs of all types. In this case, bamboo is farmed to build relocation housing as response to flooding in Esmeraldas, Ecuador. Along the way and in our future, bamboo holds place.

Anno Kostava
Mount Holyoke College
Equestrian Complex
For Georgia
Equestrian Complex design for the country of Georgia, to encourage agriculture, sports and tourism development.

Valerie Olivares
Smith College
Aftermath: A brand around body care and wellness
In the personal care and beauty industry there is a toxic understanding that beauty looks a certain way. The mission of this brand is to focus on parts of ourselves that are often overlooked and still be minimalist in product, yet maximalist in life.

Xinyi Qi
Mount Holyoke College
breaking bounds
Rethinking burial: ritual house that shelters the soul

Lynn Sleiman
Mount Holyoke College
Biophilic Design and Fractal Geometry in Architecture
This project investigates the inherent rhythm and characteristics of structures through the lens of fractal geometry, with the goal of developing a practical methodology for integrating fractal principles into architectural designs.

Eliza Williams
Mount Holyoke College
Campus Lawns: Alternative Landscape Proposal for MHC
The Campus Lawns project focuses on ways to make the Mount Holyoke College campus more biodiverse and sustainable through reducing lawns. The main goal is to start a conversation on a new campus landscape design and potential pilot projects as well as grounds and horticulture departmental changes that would need to occur in order to ensure this type of landscaping.