Herbert Keatinge Fowler

FOWLER, Herbert Keatinge Herbert Keatinge Fowler, beloved husband, brother, father, teacher, friend, and exceptional human being, died last Thursday (April 10, 2008), at 10 in the morning. He had been suffering from lung disease. Herb was born in 1921, in Lewiston, ID, to Herbert Eugene Fowler and Mary Keatinge Fowler. His father, a teacher, moved the family to Bellingham, Washington when he was two, where they lived until Herb was 13 years of age. Herb recalled that time in his childhood with special fondness. The beauty of land and ocean were firmly etched into his being, as were the friendships that he formed there. In 1934 the family moved east, to New Britain. In 1939 Herb attended Yale University, but his schooling was interrupted by World War II. After Army training, he was shipped off to Hawaii, then on to Guadalcanal and the Philippines. After the war, Herb returned to Yale, where he finished his schooling with a degree in Architecture. He worked in New York City and in Connecticut before meeting the love of his life, Judy (Marie) Ellen Booth. After a whirlwind courtship, they were married in 1952. Later that year, Herb and Judy traveled to Fayetteville, where he had been hired by the University of Arkansas to design the Animal Sciences building. The young couple found kindred spirits at the university, and Herb stayed on there, becoming a founding faculty member of the new Architecture Department, which had recently been formed by John Williams. Herb's expertise extended from the medieval to the modern, and his passion was teaching design. In 1953, Herb and Judy moved to Oslo, Norway for a year, on a Fulbright scholarship. It was the first of many travels together. Upon their return to Fayetteville, Herb designed their residence, located on the edge of a bluff outside of town. The "Deepwood" house, with its sweeping view of surrounding mountains and forested valley below, was to be their home for 35 years. In 1970, on sabbatical leave from the school and with their children Ian and Alison in tow, the young family took a year-long tour of Europe, in a VW camper. The adventure became an inexhaustible source of shared memories and stories for the family. Herb officially retired in 1989, whereupon he was accorded the honor of Professor Emeritus. But the retirement was short-lived, for he was encouraged by students in the School of Architecture to continue teaching a popular advanced course of his own invention, Design Determinants. The course addressed tensions between philosophical and pragmatic considerations in design, and the social and environmental forces that help shape it. Through projects and discussion, professor and students grappled with the complex moral and ethical dilemmas often encountered in the real-world practice of architecture. Because of its limited enrollment, the course allowed a great deal of personal interaction with students. Herb often said that these last years of his teaching career were the most rewarding. In 1995, Herb and Judy moved to Butterfield Trail Village in Fayetteville, where they spent their remaining years traveling and making new friends. Judy died in March, 2005. In 2007, the Herbert K. Fowler Award was established at the School of Architecture. Each year, an architecture student with exceptional drawing ability is selected to receive the honor. Herb Fowler had a kind and gentle spirit, and a wry, ever-present humor that colored his optimistic outlook on life. An avid animal lover and advocate, he helped to found the local animal shelter. He leaves behind much evidence of his prodigious creativity, including the numerous residences that he designed. Of them, he was most proud of Deepwood, and of Seachange, a house on the coast of Maine that he designed for his eldest sister. Seachange became a gathering place for extended family, and was Herb's favorite retreat. There, on many a bright summer morning, he could be found seated on the porch, pencil poised above a sketch of some new house design idea, looking out to sea with a blissful expression. Herb greatly enjoyed drawing, delighted in wordplay, and loved to tell stories. These ranged from recountings of his childhood travels from coast to coast (several times) with his family in their Model T, to encounters with Arkansas country folk. One of Herb's last projects involved documenting these stories. Herb Fowler is survived by his sisters Mary Elizabeth Fowler and Helen Eugenia "Jean" Parsons, his son Ian Keatinge Fowler and daughter-in-law Olga Luz Arango, his daughter Alison Cope Fowler, and grandson Oliver Luke Fowler. Herb lives on, in the many that knew and loved him. A celebration of Herb's life will be held on the 31st of May, on what would have been his 87th birthday. It will start at 3 pm, at the Giffels Auditorium, in the Old Main building, on the University of Arkansas Campus in Fayetteville. Herb was a supporter of many charities, and was especially passionate about local causes. Memorials may be given to the following organizations: Humane Society of the Ozarks; The Darcy Fowler Memorial Book Fund, at the Fayetteville Public Library; KUAF (Fayetteville Public Radio); Friends of Lake Wedington; Fayetteville Natural Heritage Society; Beards Funeral Chapel and Crematory of Fayetteville, AR handled the cremation arrangements. To send an on-line condolence: visit www. beardsfuneralchapel.com.