Lieutenant Junior Grade Euine Fay Jones

Description:

Lieutenant Jones, deceased, Fayetteville, U.S, Navy, WWII.  He flew multi engine aircraft against Japanese forces in the South Pacific near the Solomon Islands. An internationally renowned architect, he was the 18th American to ever receive the Gold medal from the American Institute of Architects in1990. He designed over 200 buildings, including the Thorncrown chapel, and taught in the U. of Arkansas Fay Jones School of Architecture for 35 years.

Lieutenant Euine Fay Jones was a qualified Naval aviator service at Naval Air Station Alameda California, Solomon and New Hebrides Island, Naval Air Station San Diego, California, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, and Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas. 

After his time in the US Navy Lieutenant Jones became an internationally renowned architect from Arkansas. He was ordered the 1990 Gold Medal of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) for his lifetime of architectural achievement. The AIA Gold Medal is the highest individual honor the institution can bestow on an architect. He is only the 18th American and the 48th person in the world to receive this award since its inception 83 years ago. The Gold Medal was presented to Lieutenant Jones  by President George Herbert Walker Bush in a ceremony at the White House on February 22nd, 1990. President Bush spoke admiringly of Lieutenant Jones architecture; “Grounded firmly in his Ozark roots, Fay Jones has created a truly American architecture that is respected the world over. His reverence for the land and his respect for the inner needs of the people who visit or dwell in his buildings give his architecture rare beauty and dignity.” At the Gold Medal ceremony the keynote address was delivered by his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales. Prince Charles, A world-renowned architectural critic, praised Lieutenat Jones’ architect talent: “Fay Jones' buildings speak of the poetry of architecture, a poetry arised out of buildings in harmony with their natural  surroundings. They seem to evoke the amplitude of nature without damaging nature.”

Lieutenant Jones had designed more than 200 buildings, mostly residential. He is perhaps best known for his Chapels, particularly his first Chapel, the highly-acclaimed Thorncrown Chapel, in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Thorncrown Chapel has received numerous accolades and awards since its completion in 1980. In 1981, it received a prestigious AIA National Honor Award. In 1991 a national survey conducted by Architectural Record Magazine, Thorncrown Chapel was voted the best work of American architecture since 1980. In 2000, the AIA recognized Thorncrown Chapel as the fourth most significant structure of the 20th century. In 2006 Thorncrown Chapel was named to the AIA exclusive list of 25 year award buildings. This award recognizes one project completed between 25 and 35 years ago, that has endured the test of time as an embodiment of architectural excellence and enduring significance. 

From 1966 to 1974 Lieutenant Jones served as Chairman of the Department of Architecture at the University of Arkansas. 1974-1976  he served as the first Dean of the School of Architecture. In 2009 The University of Arkansas officially named the Architecture Department as the Fay Jones School of Architecture.

More Info:

Lieutenant Jones, deceased, Fayetteville, U.S, Navy, WWII.  He flew multi engine aircraft against Japanese forces in the South Pacific near the Solomon Islands. An internationally renowned architect, he was the 18th American to ever receive the Gold medal from the American Institute of Architects in1990. He designed over 200 buildings, including the Thorncrown chapel, and taught in the U. of Arkansas Fay Jones School of Architecture for 35 years.