Architecture and the Art of Gallery Installation

Every few years, the Architecture II class get the chance to create a large-scale gallery installation in the Dana Hall Art Gallery. In Architecture I, they learned how to create a floor plan, build scale models, and work with 3D CAD programs to create a virtual Dream House. But there is something fundamentally important for budding architects to work with a variety of building materials and other large-scale objects to create an environment that viewers can walk into. 

Often, these projects involve recycled or salvaged materials, to touch on the idea of sustainability in architecture. In 2011, the installation involved a small gazebo; in 2013 and 2017, we used large structures out of recycled cardboard; in 2014, a labyrinth of column-sized cardboard tubes filled the gallery. In 2022, the last season of the old Art Gallery before the Upper School Building renovation, student architects created an immersive environment out of construction foam, Ram Board, and even a salvaged swing and slide. That installation, named ArtFunHouse, was colorfully painted from floor to ceiling by all of the Middle School and Upper School art classes (all of whom were just coming out of the masked days and Zoom classes of the pandemic) and was a memorable final show for the old art gallery just months before the Art Studio was demolished for the building renovation.

The current exhibit in the Art Gallery began in this same tradition. Students in Architecture II (Z. Dakin ’26, M. Glick ’27, I. Cedeno ’27, and J. Jin ’28) were asked to come up with a variety of possible sculptural and architectural installation base on one major salvaged element: hollow-core doors. (These light-weight interior doors, about 3’ x 7’ are often thrown out intact during house renovations and are often posted for free on sites like Craigslist, where contractors offer them instead of tossing them into the landfill.) Sketches were made, scale models were constructed, and students weighed the strengths and visual appeal of each design, until a final design that tied in the best features was chosen.

In addition to the more than 25 salvaged doors, we borrowed step units, 2’x4’ lumber, and platforms from the Performing Arts Department and old classroom carpets from the Shipley Center; Faber Rug Company in Wellesley donated cardboard tubes. Students learned how to use power saws to cut the material to size, and electric drills to fasten the elements together. (Some construction and decoration help was supplied by their teacher.) This kind of teamwork is essential in the field of architecture, and learning the methods of construction gives architects an appreciation for the construction workers and crafts people who build the structures we live and work in.

When the time came to decide on the final color, the theme of gingerbread house was chosen. This was a natural choice, with the upcoming Winter Break just weeks away, and inspired by the annual Ginger Bread House Project that Architecture I students build in December. The result is a fun and festive life-sized gingerbread house, and features two levels, a walkway, a tunnel with a rest area, and even a swing. Middle School Art classes then decorated the walls with paper snowflakes to complete the Winter Wonderland theme. The gallery is opened for visitors in the final week of school before break, just in time for Revels and all of those Instagram holiday pictures. Stop by and you might even get a piece of real gingerbread. But hurry—by January all of the material will be returned or recycled and the gallery will be ready for its next show. 

My students and I would like to thank the local contractors and companies who donated materials, Technical Theatre Director Michelle Wetherbee for the use of the scenery elements, and especially the Building and Grounds crew who help gather the heavy materials up to the Art Gallery. It was a real team effort.