Every year between the Fall and Spring semesters, graduate students of the architecture program at UIC are required to compose a portfolio documenting their studio projects. The act of designing a portfolio provides the opportunity to revisit past projects and connect them through a larger argument across the work.  The submitted portfolios are then critiqued by faculty of the school, allowing the student to receive feedback for each iteration. By the third year, when faced with the inevitable task of applying to firms, students are armed and ready with a comprehensive, refined portfolio of there graduate career.  In addition, the iterative portfolios provide the school with an inclusive medium to demonstrate the quality of work being produced.

Recent graduate and FM extraordinaire Jake Gay flips through a portfolio in style.

To further exemplify the importance of these portfolios, the school holds an annual Portfilio Day in late January where selected portfolios are showcased.  Alumni of the school are invited to the event and have the opportunity to review and vote on the displayed portfolios.  This provides a great opportunity for former students to see the work coming out of their Alma mater and converse with current students.

Through this event, three categories of awards–the faculty awards, the alumni awards, and a student choice award–are presented to nominated students.  The Susan Nealy/FGM Award for Architectural Studies is also presented to one student who has excelled in their studies.  Below are the award recipients for 2012 and images taken from awarded portfolios.

2012 Portfolio Day Award Winners

Faculty Choice Award
John Dillon (Third Year MArch)

Faculty Choice Award Honorable Mentions
First Year Alvaro Vanegas
Second Year Travis Kalina
Third Year Jennifer Meakins

Alumni Choice Award
Continuing Student Jason Mould
Graduating Student John Dillon

Susan Nealy/FGM Award for Architectural Studies
Hamza Salim

Student Choice Award
Maged Guerguis

See some samples of portfolios and images from the event below.  Keep an eye out for full versions of selected portfolios on the Work page of the School of Architecture website.

Alumni, faculty, and current students browses the 2012 graduate student portfolios at SoA's annual Portfolio Day event.

Students review portfolios to place their vote for Student Choice Award earlier in the week.

Bob Somol and the presidents of the Alumni Association present awards to students.

Alumni browse through portfolios to determine their vote.

John Dillon's Portfiolio was awarded the Graduating Student Alumni Award & Faculty Choice Award

Jason Mould's Portfolio was awarded the Continuing Student Alumni Award

Hamza Salim was awarded the Susan Nealy / FGM Award for Architectural Studies

All photographs provided by Matt Messner.