Rana Abudayyeh
Associate Professor, Robin Klehr Avia Professor of Interior Architecture
School of Interior Architecture
Rana Abudayyeh is an Assistant Professor, and the Robin Klehr Avia Professor of Interior Architecture at the University of Tennessee’s College of Architecture and Design. Abudayyeh’s pedagogical interests focus on advancing new modes of architectural production employing computational design, digital fabrication, and novel material logics. She seeks to define innovative design trajectories rooted in a site-based approach that responds to various contextual layers. Understanding context constitutes the foundational premise of the design intent and its consequent manifestations.
Abudayyeh joined the faculty at UT, Knoxville in 2015 after teaching at the University of New Mexico School of Architecture and Planning from 2004-2012 where she coordinated third and fourth-year architecture studios. Previously, she worked at Antoine Predock Architect on numerous design competitions, federal, public, and private projects, the most recent of which is the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg. She is a licensed architect in her native country, Jordan, where she is currently researching the ongoing refugee crisis in the Middle East while examining current models of interior spatial constructs in refugee camps.
Education
- Bachelor of Arts in Architecture, The University of New Mexico. Albuquerque, NM (2000)
- Master of Architecture with Distinction, The University of New Mexico. Albuquerque, NM (2003)
Professional Associations & Certifications
- Registered with the Jordan Engineers Association (JEA) Amman, Jordan
- Rank: Professional Architect (PA) in the jurisdiction of Architectural Design
Practice
Abudayyeh’s professional trajectory consists of working on a spectrum of built and conceptual projects from high-profile buildings to interior renovations. The commonality of all her professional projects lies in a belief in the critical impact of architecture socially and experientially with a commitment to innovative design. Her experience began at the studio of Antoine Predock Architect, working on notable projects like the OSU Recreation Facility and a Federal Courthouse. Following this, she was an associate for Hybrid Environments working on renovation projects and theoretical investigations. Recently, she began the firm Studio 900, working on a variety of renovation projects.
Courses Taught
- ARCH 171 + 172 – Design Fundamentals I & II
- IARC 371 – Intermediate Interior Architecture Studio
- IARC 372 – Design Development and Construction Detailing Documentation for Interior Architecture
- IARC 471 – Advanced Interior Architecture Studio
- INDS 321 – Digital Representation and Fabrication for Industrial Design
Expertise & Interests
- Digital technologies and fabrication relevant to spatial thinking and making.
- Material systems and their application to novel interior topographies.
- Hybrid modes of representation, communication graphics and visual logic.
Honors & Awards
- 2017 H. Patrick Lawson Teacher Award
- Robin Klehr Avia Professor of Interior Architecture
Practice
Title: SENSORIAL VARIANCES: the versioning of an interruptive interiority
Description: This research project focuses on the study of advanced material systems and their evolution into respective spatial strategies. It employs a series of differentiated material distributions along a continuous surface. Through sequences of scale translations and formal variances, these studies will inform an inhabitable surface embedded with the capability of creating complex textural mappings and novel interior strategies.
Title: Dynamic Landscapes | Emerging Territories
Description: The relationship between place, technology, and occupancies formulates a complex structure with fluctuating levels of activity and impact. Dynamic Landscapes, as such, have definitions in multi-locations simultaneously, requiring new methods of assessment. The research introduces an interactive workflow diagram that devises a documentation and dissemination matrix that archives data, its use, and interpretation in various forms and different allocations.
Title: A Soniferous Landscape: a new understanding of the sublime
Description: The installation is an artificial sublime landscape suggesting that what we build as a species has begun to replace, in part, that which was revered as nature. It uses 7 suspended “clouds,” each containing audio drivers and motion sensors. Movement through the zones triggers a single audio loop. When all the sensors are triggered, a “symphony” of sound becomes audible.
Title: Towards an Architectural Humanity: acts in sociological insurrection
Description: Towards an Architectural Humanity is an investigation of the sociological impact of architecture and design. The research was presented through a series of documents that progress in a nonlinear fashion and are composed of multiple written and graphic layers. It presents various interventions within the city’s urban fabric, some of which are the street asylum and sidewalk exhibit space.
