An exhibit celebrating the great architecture produced by architects in Nevada will be on display to the public Dec. 10-Feb. 28 in the UNLV Marjorie Barrick Museum. Focusing on AIA Nevada Excellence in Design Award-winning projects from 1994-2014, the exhibit is presented by the Las Vegas chapter of AIA in collaboration with the UNLV School of Architecture, UNLV Galleries, and the Marjorie Barrick Museum.

UNLV Marjorie Barrick Museum hours are

• Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Thursday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Saturday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

David Baird, director of the UNLV School of Architecture, said the purpose of the exhibit is to present these projects to the general public in a compelling and engaging fashion. "It will provide a unique opportunity for the profession and the public to reflect on our future, in the context of where we have been."

About the Exhibit

Although all of us spend the majority of our lives in and around buildings, few stop to think about why we like certain spaces. What goes into designing great buildings? What kind of physical world do we want to live in? What people, processes, tools and ideas allow us to give form to our aspirations? Everyday our values, ideas and aspirations influence the things we build and the environments we create. This exhibit provides a unique opportunity to ponder these important questions. The exhibit has three elements.

The centerpiece of this exhibit is displaying the past 20 years of AIA Nevada Design Honor Award-winning projects. This is the first time these projects have been assembled or displayed in one location. We have arranged these projects in chronological order around the perimeter of the museum. The large boards placed on the top rail are reprints of the original boards that were submitted to the competition. This annual competition is open to all and extremely competitive. The projects are reviewed and judged by a distinguished panel of architects from another state or region. Names and logos cannot appear anywhere on the submission materials -- making every entry anonymous. In turn the competitors are not told who will judge the entries until after the award winners are selected. This double-blind process makes the AIA Nevada Design Awards the gold standard of design excellence in our state. Awards are given out at several levels however the Honor Award is the highest distinction that can be received.

The second component of this exhibit are office vignettes that showcase workspaces with the various tools and equipment that architects have used during the past 20 years, as the submissions were created. The workstation form the 1990s was created by assemblageSTUDIO; the workstation that shows current space was created by Gensler. The third vignette is speculative and tries to project into the future and imagine what the workspace of an architect might look like in 2030. This workstation was designed by UNLV School of Architecture faculty members Jonathan Anderson and Josh Vermillion. Edward Vance will also have a wall display of freehand sketches that explore various projects.

The third component is a display of selected materials and products used to design and build the buildings we occupy. Architects and designers rarely if ever develop new products or materials. Rather, they rely on the numerous options that are provided by various industries and companies. Manufacturers have to go through rigorous testing and certification processes in order for their products and materials to be used. It's an expensive and time-consuming process, but a crucial one. These companies and the products they provide are vital in shaping our buildings and environments. The following companies have provided display materials for this exhibit: Trespa, Arktura, Dal Tile and Vegas Rock.