Howard Alan.
July 7, 1931 – May 19, 2023
Howard passed away peacefully surrounded by love on May 19, 2023. Born in Chicago, Howard graduated from Hyde Park High School before studying architecture at University of Southern California, Los Angeles. He completed his architecture degree at the University of Oklahoma, Norman, where he studied under his mentor, Bruce Alonzo Goff. During this time he was drafted by the U.S. Army to serve as an artillery surveyor during the Korean War. Howard specialized in alternative energy architecture and was part of a school of organic architects known as the “Friends of Kebyar”. He lived his life according to the shared values of the best part of his generation, that of social justice and civil rights. Devoted father of Jessica Alan, Ruth Eve Alan, and Alexander Blakeney (Bonnie Thornton) Alan; loving grandfather (“Jumpah”) of Max Connor Marcus. Former spouse of the late Linda Goffen and Jean Ruth Alan, former partner of Patricia Ann Blakeney. Preceded in death by parents Murray Spiegel and Elizabeth “Betty” (Harry) Feldman (nee Banks), cousin and ersatz brother Jerry Garten, and by his best friend in the whole world, Bumper the red & rust Doberman Pinscher. Private burial at Waldheim Cemetery.
A celebration of Howard’s life is being planned for the Summer Solstice, 2024.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to the Alzheimer’s Association here.
Telesis, a journal produced by students in the University of Oklahoma Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture, has earned first place in the 2026 Douglas Haskell Award for Student Journals for its seventh volume, “Unfold.” This marks the fourth time the publication has earned recognition for excellence in student architectural journalism. It shares the honor with student journals from Columbia University, University of Michigan, and Cal Poly.
Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture congratulates Thinh "Henry" Duong, a master's student in the Division of Interior Design, for earning first place in the 2026 Robert Bruce Thompson Annual Student Light Fixture Design Competition.
Gibbs College of Architecture Institute for Quality Communities (IQC) Director and Division of Planning, Landscape Architecture, and Design (PLAD) faculty member Amber N. Wiley, Ph.D., recently published a new book, Collective Yearning: Black Women Artists from the Zimmerli Art Museum.
