Close To Home

A Homage to Lowensein

The Close To Home exhibit was designed and built by third year Interior Architecture students. The exhibit was meant to celebrate the works of Edward Lowenstein, and the history he has brought to North Carolina and surrounding areas. By utilizing the lighting effects in the Maud F. Gatewood studio arts building, the students were successful at highlighting important areas. Because they also included digital walkthroughs, shining onto the walls of the exhibit, the lack of a lot of light was very important. Although the walkthrough showed off a brilliant work of architecture, it was a little bit too fast for the viewer to watch the whole thing once and understand the whole space. However, these walkthroughs helped relay information about Lowenstein and his various projects, as well as documents pinned up along the walls. As I started my journey through this exhibit, I first learned about the man himself, later coming to why he was important to architecture, why he was important to North Carolina, and lastly, the steps this group of students took to design this space dedicated to him. There were also spaces in between where viewers could take a seat, and take the whole experience in, which seemed to be important areas. I believe that these students worked very hard and deserve recognition for their careful attention to detail, and to Lowenstein’s impact on architecture. This exhibit was not meant to be looked at, but rather experienced. The artifact itself shaped the space and the path that the viewer was to follow in order to fully digest its meaning. Using his own design ideas, and mimicking his style of architecture, the third year Interior Architecture students at the University of North Carolina have created a wonderful, interactive homage to Edward Lowenstein.