School of Architecture + Art announces 2026-2027 lecture series “Discerning Design: Vermont and Beyond”

What makes a design decision the right one? What belongs in a place — and what doesn’t? How do architecture and art shape community, spirit of place, environmental responsibility, beauty, and our collective imagination?

This year, Norwich University’s School of Architecture + Art (SoA+A) invites the public to explore those questions through its 2026–2027 Architecture + Art Lecture Series, "Discerning Design: Vermont and Beyond."

The series brings architects, artists, educators, designers, students, and other creative thinkers to campus to consider what it means to make thoughtful, informed choices about design — and why those choices matter.

Made possible in part by a generous grant from the Jack and Dorothy Byrne Foundation, the series offers an engaging mix of lectures, film, student presentations, conversations, workshops, career connections, and hands-on making.

Events are free and open to the public. Unless otherwise noted, lectures take place at 1 p.m. in the Chaplin Hall Gallery and are available to attend virtually.

Sept. 18 | Prickly Mountain and My Design/Build Life

Begins at 1 p.m. — Mack Hall Auditorium.

We’re kicking things off with a film — and a very Vermont story.

Director Allie Rood brings her film "Prickly Mountain and My Design/Build Life", a personal exploration of the countercultural architecture movement that helped shape her Vermont hometown.

The film premiered at the Architecture & Design Film Festival in New York, Los Angeles, Vancouver, Toronto, and Mumbai. Following the screening, Rood will join the audience for a conversation about the film, architecture, community, and the wonderfully unconventional world of Prickly Mountain.

Rood is a filmmaker and creative director who studied studio art at Whitman College.

Sept. 25 | CityLAB: Berlin Exchange

Begins at 1 p.m. — Student Presentations and Discussion.

Take a trip to Berlin, Germany, without leaving Vermont. Join Norwich students and faculty for a celebration of the work created during Spring 2026 CityLAB: Berlin. Guided by Professors Mareike Yin-Yee Lee and Christian M. Dengler, Norwich’s satellite campus in Germany uses Berlin itself as a living laboratory for learning. Students will present projects from their time abroad and share their experiences of Berlin and their excursion to Italy. Faculty members and current study-abroad students will also join virtually for conversation and Q&A.

CityLAB: Berlin faculty:

Mareike Yin-Yee Lee brings a multidisciplinary practice spanning drawing, video, sculpture, printmaking, artist books, installation, performance, and more. Her work explores the spaces between, across, and beyond as she considers how we approach, perceive, and respond to space and visual phenomena.

Christian M. Dengler is an architect, educator, and urbanist whose work examines architecture as a spatial and material manifestation of social, political, economic, and ecological processes.

Oct.9, Andres Gutierrez

Begins at 1 p.m.

Architectural designer Andres Gutierrez of Freeman French Freeman and president of the AIA Vermont Board of Directors brings more than 15 years of experience as a project manager and designer.

As current president of AIA Vermont and director of its Emerging Professionals Network, Gutierrez offers a global perspective on architecture and a passion for social change and innovation through the built environment.

Oct. 16, Norwich University Homecoming

Begins at 1 p.m.

Homecoming gets an Architecture + Art twist with an afternoon celebrating the many directions a Norwich education can take.

The program includes:

• Board of Fellows Panel: What You Can Do with Your Norwich Degree
• Wall of Fame inductions and recognition
• Student Summer Research presentations
• Undergraduate researcher Nora Dunigan '27 is presenting her continued exploration of “The Relationship of Natural Spaces and Religious Architecture.”
• Undergraduate researcher Josh Kelly '27 will present "Hybrid Formwork: Concrete 3D Printing on Robotically Formed Sand Surfaces."

Nov. 6, John Cays

Begins at 1 p.m.

We are pleased to welcome John Cays, professor of practice at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, a recognized sustainable design professional who lectures internationally on Life Cycle Assessment in Architecture. Cays is the author of "An Environmental Life Cycle Approach to Design: LCA for Designers and the Design Market," which explores how designers can incorporate environmentally responsive strategies for their clients while achieving meaningful ecological benefits.

Jan. 22, Lisa Haber-Thomson

Begins at 1 p.m.

Architecture meets history — and law.

Lisa Haber-Thomson, assistant professor of architectural history at Mount Holyoke College, is currently working on a book manuscript examining carceral architectures across England and its expanding empire.

A trained architect and architectural historian, Haber-Thomson researches the historical entanglements between architecture and law, offering a fascinating look at the ways-built environments relate to systems of power.

Feb.12, MASARY Studios

Begins at 1 p.m.

What happens when sound, light, technology, architecture, and place collide?

MASARY Studios is an award-winning interdisciplinary art and design studio creating immersive public artworks that reveal the hidden systems shaping our world.

Ryan Edwards, co-founder and principal, works at the intersection of sound, light, technology, and place. He collaborates with communities, scientists, historians, and civic leaders to transform complex ecological, cultural, and infrastructural stories into shared public experiences. Edwards holds degrees in percussion performance and Africana studies from Berklee College of Music.

Caleb Hawkins, design director, is an architectural designer, fabricator, and artist originally from Concord, New Hampshire. A graduate of the Wentworth Institute of Technology, Hawkins leads the synthesis of multimedia artworks and anchors the conceptual vision behind large-scale interactive public art installations.

Learn more by visiting www.norwich.edu/academics/colleges-and-schools/college-professional-schools/school-architecture-and-art.

This series is made possible in part by a generous grant from the Jack and Dorothy Byrne Foundation, a philanthropic organization supporting cancer research, education, volunteerism, and other charitable endeavors. For more than 10 years, the Byrne Foundation and Norwich University have partnered to bring eminent national and international architects, designers, artists, and writers to campus.