Old rock houses, libraries help rebuild communities

Interior+design+seniors+Meghan+Hoiness+and+Mallory+Fair+document+the+existing+conditions+of+the+site+to+understand+the+scope+of+the+project+design+uses+for+basalt+rock+houses%2C+this+semester.

Interior design seniors Meghan Hoiness and Mallory Fair document the existing conditions of the site to understand the scope of the project design uses for basalt rock houses, this semester.

Interior design students put their skills to the test this semester, participating in two separate projects to enhance communities across Washington and the Palouse.

“The Rural Community Design Initiative allows interior design students to work with communities on difficult design projects,” said Kathleen Ryan, WSU assistant professor of interior design.

Students worked on two different projects, the Lacrosse Rock Houses Project and the Little Free Libraries Project, each with six different sub-projects.

“In Lacrosse, Washington, they have these cool little houses made out of basalt,” Ryan said.

The buildings were abandoned long ago, so they have been empty rock houses on Main Street, serving little purpose, she said.

“The community came up with six different ideas for the rock houses,” Ryan said. “A bed and breakfast, microbrewery, art center, youth and senior center, agricultural education center, and a visitor center.”

Each fourth year interior design student was assigned to a team that was then assigned to a project, she said.

Abi Regan, a second year masters in interior design, worked on the art center design.

“We got to go to Lacrosse and look at the rock houses,” Regan said. “Being able to see the town we were working in really helped give us inspiration.”

Uris Giron, a senior in interior design, worked with the bed and breakfast design.

“The town didn’t have many places for visitors to stay,” Giron said. “So the community wanted to provide a historical place for people to stay.”

The second project students worked on was the Little Free Libraries, a nationwide project, Ryan said.

“The libraries vary in size, usually about the size of a big box,” she said. “They provide free books and art to the community.”

Students were assigned to six different towns, where they had to design a little library to fit with the town’s history and needs.

“I designed the little free library in Colfax,” Giron said. “The community didn’t know exactly what they wanted the library to be, but they did know what they needed it to be.”

Many of the communities have libraries, but due to location and hours, they were not accessible to everyone in the community, he said.

“Not only is the location accessible, but the design of the library itself makes it useable by all people,” Giron said.

Giron’s focus is the design of children’s play-scapes. To capture this interest, he included a screen that could be moved to show different historical scenes of the area.

“I wanted to show the community and kids the creation of the landscape they live in, as well as the natural animals and the early people who used to live in the area.”

The students worked with the community to try to make the little free libraries a treasured local site.

“I wanted the little free libraries to be more than a box that holds books,” Giron said.

The goal of the projects was to allow students to work directly with communities and get hands-on experience, Ryan said.

“We got to work with the community directly, which is a great way to learn how to work with people,” Regan said. “The projects are ‘co-designed’ – we designed with the community, not for the community.”

The projects gave students the unique experience of working on a real design that will actually be created, instead of the hypothetical projects students usually deal with, Regan said.

An exhibit taking place from 4 – 6 p.m. Wednesday in Carpenter Hall will showcase the models and design plans that the students created. The exhibit will also serve as a review for the designs and is open to anyone.