Douglas E. Noble

Last updated
Douglas E. Noble
DNoble2sm.jpg
Douglas E. Noble, Ph.D., FAIA
Born
Miami, Florida, U.S.
Known forArchitectural Computing, Building Science, Architecture Education, Design Theories and Methods
TitleArchitect
Academic work
DisciplineArchitecture, Building Science
InstitutionsUniversity of California at Berkeley, University of Southern California, Facade Tectonics Institute, CLIPPER Lab

Douglas E. Noble is an American architect and tenured professor at the USC School of Architecture. He is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects. [1] He is known for his work in four overlapping arenas: Architectural Computing, Building Science, Architecture Education, and Design Theories and Methods. He received the ACSA/AIAS New Faculty Teaching Award in 1995, [2] the ACSA Creative Achievement Award in 2013, [3] and the ACSA Practice and Leadership Award in 2023. [4] He was named among the "10 most admired educators" nationally in architecture in 2010 [5] and was twice more selected as a "most admired educator" in 2015 and 2018. [6] He is the recipient of the 2017 American Institute of Architects Los Angeles Chapter Presidential Honor as educator of the year, [7] and the 2014 AIA California Chapter Educator Award. [8]

Contents

Early career

Noble completed a Bachelor of Science in Architecture and a Bachelor of Architecture at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and both a Master of Architecture and Ph.D. at the University of California at Berkeley. His doctoral dissertation built on the work of Horst Rittel by creating a computer supported Issue-based information system. Noble taught for a few years at UC Berkeley and then joined the faculty of the USC School of Architecture in 1991. Noble has taught at USC since 1991, focusing on architectural computing, building science, and design theories and methods. He has written more than 100 articles, and collaborated with noted architects and educators, including Pierre Koenig, Horst Rittel, Karen M. Kensek, Marc Eugene Schiler, and Ralph Lewis Knowles.

Later career

Noble has served two terms as Associate Dean of the USC School of Architecture (2007–2009 and 2019–2022). He founded the PhD program in Architecture and served as Director of the Graduate Building Science program for many years. [9]

Architectural computing

With Karen M. Kensek, he founded the CLIPPER Lab at USC in 1991 in support of research and education in architectural computing. With Karen Kensek, he conducted early architecture design studio experiments including a "supercomputing studio" in 1988 (among the first design studio to use a Cray Supercomputer in support of a design studio) and one of the first fully "paperless studios" in 1993. After serving as Editor of the ACADIA Quarterly for four years, he was elected president of the ACADIA (Association for Computer Aided Design In Architecture) in 1998.

Building science and facade tectonics

With Kensek and Mic Patterson, he founded the Facade Tectonics Institute in 2007 as a university-based research and education organization. The Facade Tectonics Institute has hosted dozens of conferences and published hundreds of research papers focusing on research in building facade technology. [10] He received a Graham Foundation Grant in 2011 for research related to the Samuel Freeman House, a residence designed in 1924 by Frank Lloyd Wright. [11]

Architecture education

Together, Noble and Kensek have received several awards for their innovative "NotLY: Not Licensed Yet" support system for individuals preparing for the Architect Registration Examination. [12] In addition to completing several buildings as an architect, Noble is a widely recognized leader in championing and mentoring emerging architecture professionals. Noble founded the Ph.D. program at USC Architecture, and he has published articles and organized symposia on doctoral education in architecture.

Design theories and methods

Noble completed a Ph.D. in the Design Theories and Methods (DTM) group at UC Berkeley. His dissertation focused on implementing an early computer-supported issue-based information system (IBIS), and he was a co-author on a research paper on IBIS with his dissertation chair Horst Rittel.

Design–build: the Carapace Pavilion

Funded by a grant from the PCI Foundation and Clark Pacific, and in partnership with students at the USC School of Architecture, Noble and the team designed, fabricated, and installed the Carapace Pavilion in Joshua Tree National Park. [13] The project has received multiple awards, including from the American Institute of Architects [14] and the Precast / Prestressed Concrete Institute. [15]

Published works

Books:

Edited Journals and Conference Proceedings:

Catalog:

Video:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul R. Williams</span> American architect (1894–1980)

Paul Revere Williams, FAIA was an American architect based in Los Angeles, California. He practiced mostly in Southern California and designed the homes of numerous celebrities, including Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, Lon Chaney, Barbara Stanwyck and Charles Correll. He also designed many public and private buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pierre Koenig</span> American architect and educator

Pierre Francis Koenig was an American architect and a Professor of Architecture at the University of Southern California. He taught at the USC School of Architecture from 1964 until his death in 2004. He was the director of the undergraduate building science program from 1980 to 2004. He lectured widely at other universities, and received more than 20 awards for his work. The architecture of Pierre Koenig was the subject of the book "Pierre Koenig" written by James Steele in 1998. Also in 1998, Koenig was elevated to "Distinguished Professor" after 35 years on the USC faculty. He received the USC Distinguished Alumni Award and the Gold Medal from the Los Angeles chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Buff, Straub and Hensman is an architectural firm. The office has won more than 30 awards for house designs from the American Institute of Architects. The firm was known as Buff and Hensman when Cal Straub moved to Arizona and later Buff, Smith and Hensman when Dennis Smith bought the practice after Don Hensman's retirement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raphael Soriano</span> Greek-born American architect and educator (1904 - 1988)

Raphael S. Soriano, FAIA, was an architect and educator, who helped define a period of 20th-century architecture that came to be known as Mid-century modern. He pioneered the use of modular prefabricated steel and aluminum structures in residential and commercial design and construction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Dworsky</span> American architect (1927–2022)

Daniel Leonard Dworsky was an American architect who was a longstanding member of the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows. Among other works, Dworsky designed Crisler Arena, the basketball arena at the University of Michigan named for Dworsky's former football coach, Fritz Crisler. Other professional highlights include designing Drake Stadium at UCLA, the Federal Reserve Bank in Los Angeles and the Block M seating arrangement at Michigan Stadium. He is also known for a controversy with Frank Gehry over the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar Umbrella house</span> Private residence in Venice, Los Angeles

The Solar Umbrella House is a private residence in Venice, Los Angeles, California, remodeled using active and passive solar design strategies to enable the house to function independent of the electrical grid. The design was inspired by Paul Rudolph’s 1953 Umbrella House for Philip Hanson Hiss III's Lido Shores, Sarasota, development. Originally a small 650-square-foot (60 m2) bungalow, the owners added 1,150 sq ft (107 m2) in 2005, remodeling it in such a way that the house is almost 100% energy neutral.

The USC School of Architecture is the architecture school at the University of Southern California. Located in Los Angeles, California, it is one of the university's twenty-two professional schools, offering both undergraduate and graduate degrees in the fields of architecture, building science, landscape architecture and heritage conservation.

Brenda A. Levin is a Los Angeles-based architect and advocate for historic preservation. A Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), her major projects include the restoration of iconic L.A. landmarks like the Bradbury Building, the Griffith Observatory, the Wiltern Theatre, City Hall, Grand Central Market, and Dodger Stadium.

Hodgetts + Fung, also known as HplusF, is an interdisciplinary design studio based in Culver City, California specializing in architectural design, advanced material fabrication, historical restorations, and exhibition design and is led by principals Craig Hodgetts and Hsinming Fung.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederick Fisher (architect)</span> American architect

Frederick B. Fisher, AIA, FAAR, is an American architect whose professional practice is headquartered in Southern California. Frederick Fisher started his architecture firm in 1980 which partnered architects Joseph Coriaty and David Ross in 1995. Fisher is most noted for building seminal academic institutions, museums, and contemporary residential projects throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. His approach to architecture comes from a broad cultural and social perspective.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elena Manferdini</span> Italian architect

Elena Manferdini is an Italian architect based in Venice, California, where she is the principal and owner of Atelier Manferdini. She is the Graduate Programs Chair at the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc). She has over fifteen years of professional experience that span across architecture, art, design, and education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ralph Lewis Knowles</span>

Ralph Lewis Knowles is an American professor emeritus of architecture and a leading theorist of solar access design. He created the concept of the "solar envelope" and championed solar access planning. The solar envelope has influenced many city design and planning documents. He is a fellow of the American Solar Energy Society and an ACSA Distinguished Professor. He received the prestigious AIA Medal for research in 1974.

Annie Chu, FAIA, is a Chinese-American architect, interior designer, and academic based in Los Angeles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karen M. Kensek</span>

Karen M. Kensek is on the faculty of the USC School of Architecture at the University of Southern California. She is a leading figure in architectural computing, focusing on analytical building information modeling and building science.

Alvin Huang is a Chinese-American architect, educator, and designer based in Los Angeles, California. He is the founder of Synthesis Design + Architecture and an associate professor at the USC School of Architecture. In 2020, he was appointed the Director of Graduate & Post-professional Architecture at the USC School of Architecture.

Marcelo Spina is an Argentinean-American architect (AIA) and educator. He is a partner in PATTERNS, which is a Los Angeles-based architecture firm. He founded PATTERNS in 2002. Since 2001, he has been a Design and Applied Studies Faculty at the Southern California Institute of Architecture, SCI-Arc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victor A. Regnier</span> American architect, professor, and researcher

Victor A. RegnierFAIA is an American architect, professor, and researcher. His research and publications have explored the creation and evaluation of residential settings for the physically and cognitively frail with special attention to northern European precedents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doris Sung</span> Korean-American architect and educator

Doris Kim Sung is a Korean American architect and educator. Sung serves as the Director of the Undergraduate Programs at the USC School of Architecture starting in 2020.

Georgina Huljich is an Argentinean-American architect and educator. She is a partner in PATTERNS, a Los Angeles-based architecture firm. She has been teaching at the Department of Architecture and Urban Design at UCLA as an associate professor since 2006.

Robert S. Harris, FAIA, is an Architect, an American professor of architecture, a former Dean, and a civic leader and urbanist. His academic leadership at the University of Southern California and the University of Oregon involved 10-year stints as the Dean of both architecture programs, as well as Chair of the Architecture and Landscape Architecture Departments Programs.

References