Interior Design Program Honored by Architecture and Brick Industries

Leading architectural design firm LS3P Associates tipped its hat to Converse College’s interior design program by selecting it as the recipient of a $2,000 honorarium sponsored by the Brick Industry Association Southeast (BIA). At the annual conference of the South Carolina chapter of the American Institute of Architects, LS3P received two design awards for its work on The Heath apartment housing project at Converse. With the BIA President’s Award, LS3P was invited to select the honorarium’s beneficiary. While the honorarium is traditionally given to an accredited architectural degree program of the designer’s choice, LS3P requested that it be designated to support Converse’s accredited interior design program as an allied profession to architecture.

“We thoroughly believe that good design is good business, and in turn, good for our community on so many levels.”

“The commitment by the Converse administration to excellence in design is reflected in the BIA’s recognition of The Heath as an award recipient,” said Scott May, Principal with LS3P. “That same commitment to excellence is evident in Converse’s interior design program, and LS3P is honored to support that commitment through a financial gift. We thoroughly believe that good design is good business, and in turn, good for our community on so many levels.”

The Heath, a LEED-certified $12.3 million project that is part of a 10-year master housing plan at Converse, was built with traditional materials that were noted by BIA award juror and Raleigh, NC architect Frank Harmon as “a delightful play of old and new.” Harmon points out that the use of brick picks up references to other parts of the campus, imparting both a sense of tradition and modernity. “There is an expert weaving of symmetrical and asymmetrical in the massing of the buildings, blending them with the historic campus. The architects have created a truce between tradition and contemporary, allowing both to be savored,” he said.

The honorarium was presented at Converse by Scott May of LS3P and Jewel Warlick, vice president of marketing for BIA. In presenting the gift, Warlick spoke about LS3P’s use of brick for The Heath project, which earned the firm the President’s Award for best and most innovative use of brick. “The use of clay brick for this wonderful project was such a smart choice,” she said. “Not only does brick provide beauty and design flexibility, but it is also a natural, local material with an incredible 100+ year life cycle. Brick is low-maintenance, environmentally responsible and energy efficient. It is truly green.”

Faculty and students from the interior design program attended the event and expressed their appreciation to BIA and LS3P for the gift, which program director Ruth Beals says will be used to bring renowned designers to speak and teach on campus. “Bringing renowned designers to our studios will provide students with opportunities to learn more about our practice while seeing how designers create interiors,” said Beals. She also praised the award for strengthening the relationship between interior designers and architects.

ABOUT AIA South Carolina, LS3P and BIA Southeast

AIA South Carolina is a chapter and statewide component of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) with over 900 members throughout the state. Nationally, AIA is comprised of over 80,000 licensed architects, emerging professionals and allied partners who are committed to excellence in design and livability in our nation’s buildings and communities.

LS3P is an architecture, interior architecture and planning firm providing services nationwide from their offices in South Carolina and North Carolina. The combined offices have received over 400 awards for excellence in design. Their mission is to engage clients and communities, to design meaningful places, with proven results that transform.

BIA Southeast is a trade organization representing 17 brick manufacturers in the southeast region of the United States. Serving a nine-state region, it offers a wide array of educational and technical services for homebuyers, builders, masons and architects, as well as a comprehensive marketing program to advance the benefits of building with brick.