Anthony Eardley, the former Dean of the University of Kentucky College of Architecture (now the UK College of Design), passed away on September 25, 2020 after a short illness. He is survived by his son Dominic A. Eardley of Lexington, Ky.
Having previously taught at the University of Washington-St. Louis, Princeton and The Cooper Union, Eardley served as Dean from 1972-1987 at UK and then went on to serve as Dean of the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture at the University of Toronto. On his retirement from academic administration in 1998, Professor Eardley accepted a reappointment as Adjunct Professor of Architecture at the University of Kentucky, where he taught studio classes until the spring of 2005.
From Professor Mary McLeod of Columbia University, included in the book “Architecture School: Three Centuries of Educating Architects in North America” by Joan Ockman: “Eardley brought to Lexington a group of young faculty, many straight out of architecture school, and he gave them free reign to shape their own courses. Thanks to Eardley’s administrative style and the open-minded attitudes of the existing faculty…the school gained a national prominence.”
Eardley had achieved recognition from National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) for his studio teaching and from The Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation for his revived practice, focused on residential projects in Lexington’s historic districts.
After his retirement from teaching, Professor Eardley spent time traveling with his wife Una until her death in 2011. The last decade of his life was devoted primarily to scholarship of personal interest, including an extensive analysis of 22 city halls worldwide, prompted by the potential development of a new city hall in Lexington, Ky. The website, https://eardleydesign.com/halls, is one of the manifestations of this work.