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For a century, the Gothic revival style St. John's Episcopal church, built of distinctive "river rock" stone masonry, was a landmark in Johnson City, Tennessee. When Williamson Pounders Architects were commissioned to design a new nave, they used the same style of masonry to provide continuity between new and old.

The nave's interior is warmed by wood pews and window seats and red-oak ceilings. Laminated wood arches supported on stone piers led jurors to remark on the architects' exemplary understanding of scale and proportion. Acoustical wall panels were custom-stenciled with a decorative pattern developed in collaboration with artist Martha Cooper. Daylight enters through large dormers, supplemented by electric light from architect-designed pendant fixtures.

In Memphis, the Christ Community Medical Clinic was expanded and renovated by Archimania. They applied form and color to their interior design to create visual interest on a modest budget. The jury applauded the project as "sophisticated and likeable... Simple materials and the deft management of color avoid an institutional quality."

Dubbed "the magic flute" by the awards jury, the Clark Opera Memphis Center was designed by Hnedak Bobo Group, Inc. to appeal to audiences of every generation. The new building combines glass, metal, and marble to create a performance center that transcends the stolid stereotype of opera house. According to the jury, "the 'mouth' window detail alone deserves an award."

Rich marble extends from the outside in, reflecting the traditional prosperity of operatic culture. A curved wall extends from exterior benches, along the fountain, through an office hallway, and into the lobby.

The Levit Residence, by John Harrison Jones, Architect, incorporates passive solar and sustainable design principles in a modern farmhouse in Fisherville, Tennessee. The Memphis architects incorporated as many certified forest products and recycled materials as possible.

The awards jury commented that the references to traditional farmhouses are "gently humorous." These include cedar siding, metal roofing, and shed forms. But unlike its traditional forerunners, the house has a roof that flips up along the north to make its active solar hot water and photovoltaic panels face the sun. A geothermal HVAC system is used for mechanical heating and cooling.

One of the two awards of excellence was for the emotionally uplifting and poetic expansion of, and plaza for, the National Civil Rights Museum, designed by Self Tucker Architects and Looney Ricks Kiss. The other was for "A Fallen Tree" by Dryden Abernathy Architecture Design, LLC., said by the jury to "evoke the quality of a Richard Serra sculpture."

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The 2003 jurors for the American Institute of Architects/ Tennessee Society were Peter Stamberg, Stamberg and Aferiat Architects, Frank Lupo, formerly Perkins & Will, and Yale University professor Joel Sanders.

An addition to St. John's Episcopal Church by Williamson Pounders Architects, PC received a design award from the American Institute of Architects/ Tennessee Society. Photo: Tom Raymond/ Fresh Air Photographics Christ Community Medical Clinic by Archimania. Photo: Jeffery Jacobs The Clark Opera Memphis Center by Hnedak Bobo Group, Inc. Photo: Tod Swiecichowski The Levit Residence by John Harrison Jones, Architect. Photo: Tod Swiecichowski "A Fallen Tree" by Dryden Abernathy Architecture Design, LLC. Photo: Jillian Lindsley   Click on thumbnail images to view full-size pictures.