UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA SOCIETY OF ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIANS, UVASAH
WHY HISTORY IN THE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE?
Because Architectural history is at a nexus of design, art history, anthropology, planning, American Studies, cultural studies, and many other disciplines, UVASAH is positioned to be an active and significant student organization within the UVA School of Architecture. Architectural historians play an important role in aspects of spatial justice in our built environment and advocate for academic contextualization, spatial theory, and practical decision-making that affect our world’s development. It is our job to be a connector between fields, as well as within these spaces at large—to advocate for education and inclusion of spatial histories at the forefront of discussion within academic institutions, cultural spaces, cities, and in the field.
As a student organization that understands the importance of architectural history, we must be active collaborators with other disciplines and examine the built environment with a critical eye—one that recognizes its complexity and investigates for whom, how, and why, environments are shaped the way they are. It is our duty to rediscover, document, interpret, and share why architecture, the built environment, and cultural landscapes matter.
A HISTORICAL, YET TRANSFORMING, ORGANIZATION
UVASAH (formally TJSAH) is the oldest student-run chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians. It serves as a social and scholastic link between the faculty and students of UVA's Department of Architectural History, which is the oldest such department in the nation. In this capacity, UVASAH hosts lectures by distinguished scholars, coordinates guided trips to historic sites, arranges social events for students and faculty, engages with the community, and provides leadership and feedback on the changing discourse of our discipline.
Traditionally, the Architectural History Department has consisted of friends and colleagues who are stewards and scholars of architecture, the built environment, and cultural landscape studies. The collective goal of UVASAH is to continue to create an open, trusting, and enlightening dialogue between students, faculty, and staff as we elevate the discipline for more inclusive conversations and connections.
WHAT WE’RE DOING:
The organization’s recent goal is foregrounding and responding to contemporary analyses and movements that continue to shift the state(s) of the field of architectural history today. For instance, UVASAH will address that many past efforts to record, archive, and interpret the history of the built environment have been structured through white-centric assumptions of power that often highlight the architectures and deeds of elitist contributors while obscuring much more diverse vernacular narratives and histories.
Along these lines, we will be adding a focus to our programming specifically related to social justice. We hope to expand and promote topics of inquiry that embrace a wide and complicated variety of stories by focusing our events and lectures on vernacular architecture, cultural landscapes, and ways the discipline can center voices from marginalized communities. In doing this work, we pledge to actively listen and support those calling for structural change within our discipline, as well as at the A-School, UVA, and in Charlottesville communities.
We are also actively collaborating with other student groups within the A School, as well as graduates in various humanities programs across UVA to cross-promote and collaborate on shared social and spatial justice programming, trainings, and workshops.
GET INVOLVED WITH US!
We would love to hear your feedback or interest in joining UVASAH. The group is open to all students enrolled at the University of Virginia and members from the Charlottesville community that are interested in the broad-reaching implications of the history of architecture.
Please email UVASAH1826@gmail.com with any questions, comments, feedback, or inquiries on upcoming events, initiatives, and future involvement.