CONNECTION

PROCESS

VOL 11ISSUE 04

JULY2013

CONNECTION EDITORIAL COMMITTEEEditor-In-Chief and Creative Director Wyatt Frantom, AIAAssistant Editor, Graphics Nathan Stolarz, AIAAssistant Editor, Content James Cornetet, AIA Assistant Editor, Articles Jeff Pastva, AIAAssistant Editor, News Beth Mosenthal, Associate AIAMarketing Alexis GreenResearcher, News and Reviews Marcus Monroe

2013 YAF ADVISORY COMMITTEEChair Brad Benjamin, AIAVice Chair Jon Penndorf, AIAPast Chair Jennifer Workman, AIACommunications Director Wyatt Frantom, AIA Community Director Virginia E. Marquardt, AIA Knowledge Director Joshua Flowers, AIAPublic Relations Director Joseph R. Benesh, AIAAdvocacy Advisor Lawrence J. Fabbroni, AIA AIA Board Representative Wendy Ornelas, FAIA College of Fellows Representative John Sorrenti, FAIAAIA Staff Liaison Erin Murphy, AIA

THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS1735 New York Ave, NWWashington, DC 20006-5292

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CONNECTION is a the official bimonthly publication of the Young Architects Forum of the AIA.

This publication is created through the volunteer efforts of dedicated Young Architect Forum members. Views expressed in this publication are solely those of the authors and not those of the American Institute of Architects. Copyright © of individual articles belongs to the Author. All image permissions are obtained by or copyright of the Author.

CONNECTIONPROCESS

July 2013Volume 11 Issue 04

ON THE COVER:Alley, Central Busan KoreaOriginal Photographby Darren Hand

2013 ISSUES OF CONNECTION

11 01 EMERGENCE11 02 ADVANCE11 03 LOCUS11 04 PROCESS11 05 PLATFORM11 06 ORIGINS

CONNECTION is sponsored through the generous support of The AIA Trust.

The AIA Trust is a free risk management resource for AIA members that offers valuable benefits to protect you, your firm, and your family. For more information on all AIA Trust programs, visitwww.TheAIATrust.com

CONTENT

06News and ResourcesBeth Mosenthal, Assoc AIA

32 LEADERShIP PROFILEOpportunityLuke McCary, AIA

14 ARTICLEWatch the Words Fly Off My DeskKenneth Miraski

04 EDITOR’S NOTEProcess

Wyatt Frantom, AIA

12 FEATURELending an Open hand

Matthew McGrane, AIA

18 ARTICLEEveryone’s a CriticMark Shaw

16 ARTICLEDesign Build: Now is the Time!

Kevin Singh, AIA

26 DESIGNSSD

An Emerging Firm Profile

QUICKCONNECT

22 FEATURE#aiachatJoseph Benesh, AIA

34 SERIAL FEATURECoffee with an Architect

Jody Brown, AIA

aiachat#aiachat

20 ARTICLEPaying for Retail and Restaurant Claims

Frank Musica

EDITOR’S NOTE PROVOCATIONS

Wyatt Frantom, AIAWyatt is the 2012-2013 Communications Advisor of the YAF National Advisory Committee of the AIA, the YAF CONNECTION Editor-in-Chief, and an Architectural Designer and Associate with Gensler Los Angeles

I KNOW WHERE FOOD COMES FROM(AND A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ThE PROCESS OF DESIGN)

We are in a constant and continuous process of making ourselves. Founded by the act of a single choice, informed by a moment of change, forged through the accumulation of many; we decide who we are through our acts and how we live, in our behaviors and how we interact with others, in the trajectories taken. In the best of instances, we are “by design”. In any case, we are product.

I spent my formative years growing up in rural West Central Ohio. My father’s side of the family had been farmers for generations; most of my cousins, on that same side of the family, remain in agriculture today. So I was fortunate enough during my childhood to have been exposed, to some degree, to that “way of life”. And farming, more than an occupation, truly is a way of life - if not religion - at least in the way that its values are practiced and, like well-sown crops, cultivated from generation-to-generation.

The lessons that I took away from those experiences, as with any childhood happening, shaped me - making me the man that I am today. In witnessing the process of raising cattle and dairy farming, I learned the value in one life nurtured and given in support of many; and with it empathy, compassion and the balance of temperance with necessity. In witnessing the process of crop cultivation, I learned land stewardship; and with it patience, being grounded in steady values, and founding one’s actions on integrity and one’s words on simple forthrightness.

I now live in Los Angeles.

<Insert quippy expression and laugh track retort here> … because Los Angeles is a place that is as far-removed from the rolling hills and green fields of my rural upbringing as Carhart is from Gucci, the farm-to-market road is from Rodeo Drive, or Duck Dynasty is from … well, Dynasty.

When Angelenos enter Ralph’s to buy milk, meat and produce, little thought is likely given to the process of how that food “came to be”; a shrink-wrapped cellophane gift for each of us, ready-cut, bleached-or-dyed, and waxed-to-bead under the mechanical misters as if the shimmering cornucopias sprouted to full maturity right there in the display shelves.

With recent global food shortages and the prognostication for more such struggles in the future, this perceived detachment from our food sources will become ever more commonplace among our millions of urban denizens. While nearly 50% of the world’s population already occupy our cities, this number is expected to

reach 70% by 2050. As populations grow and our processes of living become more automated in order to support that growth, each of us is affected by this commentary to some degree or another; each of us takes on a mantle of superficiality and of lives lived above the mechanisms that truly support it.

Just as mankind graduated from its hunter-gatherer past to farming and animal husbandry, as country cousin eventually left the farm to live among the towering spires of our modern cities, our transition to the online ordering of groceries, or perhaps even governed food stipends, is closer to a new normal for our future as city dwellers than the rural counterpart that my own upbringing had been. And while I take some pride in the fact that I know where my food comes from, so to speak, I couldn’t begin to fathom what makes an iPhone work or even to describe the magic of WiFi that enables our mobile technologies. Eventually, superficiality becomes reality.

And that, to push the analogy, is what dairy farming and food production has to do with the process of design and the profession of architecture.

It’s recognition that we continue to break down our greater processes into modes of specialization and expertise, of automation and systemization, of mass production and mechanization. It is an analogy for our greater societal divisions of labor; processes, at their most benevolent, that are employed to sustain humanity; processes at their most practical, that are employed to maintain the masses; and processes, in the often unquestioned immediacy, that are employed to supply the status quo.

The same analogy can be applied to our profession of architecture. With some reflection, similarities in our processes may be derived; those processes that are benevolent and charitable, those that are prolific in their productivity or industrious in their innovation, and those processes that simply keep the doors of our firms open and food on our tables.

As with any profession, we can choose to disconnect from our processes of “life-support” by employing our services superficially - or we can take ownership of them, more fully engage those processes in ways that allow us to not only meet our societal obligations, but excel beyond our own profession’s aspirations ... ultimately benefitting the end product … not only the field of architecture, but life, yours and mine. ■

05YAF CONNECTION 11.04

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headlined reviewed

RETURN OF THE McMANSIONS ...?!by Beth Mosenthal

The housing market is currently experiencing its strongest growth since 2005, which has led to a tangible increase in home size.

In 2010, CNBC issued an article titled “The Shrinking House: Downsizing the American Dream.” This article illustrated that the median home size in America was about 2300 square feet during the economic boom of 2007, and had dropped to 2100 square feet in 2010. This seemingly negative economic indicator had what might be considered “positive” repercussions that included a shift away from the “McMansion” in favor of an open, flexible floor plan and homes that required less maintenance for homeowners with full-time jobs and little time to clean.

Fast forward to 2013, an improving economy, and a vastly improving residential market, and it becomes clear that shifts towards New Urbanist development based on principles of economy of space and shared amenities are once again competing with previous attitudes and preferences for “bigness.” This has been demonstrated in a significant increase in home size in 2013 for custom and high-end homes, as well as renovations to existing homes.

As noted by AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, PhD and Hon. AIA, there has also been a shift in creating spaces that blend indoor and outdoor living and increase in “informal” spaces. He attributes this to the idea that while lot sizes aren’t increasing, homeowners want to maximize their current square footage to “its highest potential.”

For further reading and statistics regarding overall home layout and size trends, visit http://www.aia.org/press/AIAB099194.

Live tweets from the 2013 National Convention ...

AIA 2013 Convention | AIANatlConv “When you incorporate giving into your practice or brand, you attract amazing partners.” - Blake Mycoskie #aia2013

AIA National | @AIANational“To be an architect is to be of service. If that service is done with love, it can be noble.” - Billie Tsien

Tremmel Design Group | @TDGarchitects“The most sustainable building in the world is the one that is loved.”- Cameron Sinclair #aia2013

#tweeted

A RENEWED PERSPECTIVE: NEOCON 2013 Reviewed by Jenny West

A disclaimer: This article is not about trends, or the best showroom, or the best … whatever. There are hundreds of journals to tell you who was the most innovative, best in class, most sustainable, etc. This article is intended to share one NeoCon-ists approach to make the trip its best yet.

Some head to the Windy City for baseball. Others for world class culture and the best food … ever. But not me. I was on assignment in Chicago: attending the globe’s largest interior design convention - one of the super bowls of the A+D industry: NeoCon.

As a 4-time NeoCon veteran, I knew the ropes. Take the stairs. Wear comfortable shoes, bring mints, map your route and stay the course. Hydrate. Go digital.

Preparedness aside, I set forth to the Merchandise Mart this year with a familiar feeling of curiosity. Intuitively, I knew what NeoCon would bring, and remained hopeful and eager to witness new ideas and tools that make a good idea great a good designer better.

In years’ past, I’ve approached NeoCon with a journalist’s mindset: take as many photos as possible, see everything, report it all back in themes and simplified trends. This approach was thorough, but admittedly a bit exhausting. 2013 was going to be different. I set forth to rekindle my curiosity about design thinking, and to take time to truly understand the unique point of view of the exhibits and product stories as sources of inspiration.

Stepping into the Mart with this perspective gave me a new drive to listen and to learn. Soon I felt at home again, weaving through the crowds of rookies and veterans alike, window shopping for the next great story. Here is a sampling of some of the more progressive stories I found:

The deliberate mindset I took to seek out the stories yielded inspiring results. As a near-veteran of NeoCon, my advice is this: make it personal. Don’t stress about missing something. Take time with the things that interest you, personally, most. This will produce the meaningful seeds of ideas you take home to nurture and transform/ evolve your thinking, work and process.

Herman Miller. A re-launch of a work philosophy idea that was ahead of its time: 45 years later, Living Office re-emerges to win the Best of NeoCon (and 5 other awards) and the hearts of metric-minded designers everywhere.

Momentum. Soft stone is an idea rooted in sentimental artifacts Artist Sheila Hicks translated into modern, yet nostalgic soft sculptures.

Material Connexion. The innovative manufacturing processes sometimes were more exciting than the product outcome itself. In this case of 3d printed impact-resistant wall paneling, it had both.

Guilford of Maine. Exhibit design manifested its own set of celebrations as the conduit to communicate their unique value add story.

Images courtesy of Jenny West

Flat Lot Competition Rendering, Two Islands

07YAF CONNECTION 11.04

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07

featuredreported

PUBLIC WORKSHOP: GROWING COMMUNITY DESIGN LEADERSBy Marcus Monroe

A self-proclaimed “cheerleader of possibility,” Alex Gilliam founded Public Workshop with a goal of pushing young adults to play a hands-on role in the design of their communities and cities. Through partnerships with organizations and institutions such as the National Building Museum, Charter High School for Architecture and Design in Philadelphia, and Open House New York, founder Allex Gilliam has created a strong model in which individuals, schools, and communities utilize design to impact their surrounding environment.

Public Workshop helps people positively change the places they live, work and play by partnering with an organization and helping them accomplish their goals by creating projects, tools and/or events that directly benefit both the organization and its surrounding community. For example, after the Tiny WPA (Works Progress Administration) was established to help stimulate community improvement projects, Public Workshop was able to utilize this resource as an opportunity to guide young people in Philadelphia to complete a pop-up adventure playground.

In addition, Public Workshop recently helped facilitate the “Building Hero Project,” in which a diverse group of Philadelphia teens were given the opportunity to participate in a summer design leadership program. Teens were challenged to launch a micro-business that would benefit their local communities, thus fostering civic innovation and awareness.

By finding opportunities for youth in the community to engage in the design process, Public Workshop has made strides in motivating the next generation of designers and providing early exposure to “the power of design.”

For more Public Workshop at publicworkshop.us.

Image by Public Workshop

Image by Public Workshop

01. What are you most passionate about as a young architect?

Using Architecture and Design as a way to tell narratives that eventually translate into experiences and lifestyles.

02. What are some of the important issues that Young Architects face in today’s industry?

Young architects face the crude reality of trying to earn trust and gain clients without having much built or having a large repertoire of projects. That is probably, in my opinion, the initial hurdle that a young practitioner that wants to own their own studio faces, creating a solo trajectory.

03. What type of activities and resources do you recommend Young Architects utilize to continue to excel in their careers and professional networks?.

The best activity is to stay curious, ask colleagues what they’re doing, how are they doing it, and how they got to do it. Even if you don’t personally like what they’re doing, there is always something to learn from any kind of process, from others triumphs and failures besides your own. Those around you are your best resource.

This month,William Villalobostells us a little bit about his involvement as a young architect living and working in London.

He has worked for Norman Foster for over 4 years and cofounded Two Islands, a design studio based in London and Madrid that recently won the ‘Flat Lot Competition’ in Flint, Michigan, with a proposal for a floating house.

Image by Two Islands

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made

Image courtesy of Joe Benesh

DESIGNING SOUNDby Beth R. Mosenthal

Can architects design sound? According to Joe Benesh, digital music composition might be the acoustic parallel to designing space...

BRM: How did you begin composing music digitally? JB: I was in a band in high school and had been interested in music since I was little. I first started playing the trumpet and guitar, and then taught myself how to play the cello over the course of a summer--eventually becoming the principal cello in high school. I was also tangentially interested in technology and was on track to be an electrical engineer. While I decided against it in favor of architecture, I started tinkering with different programs with music, and took what I’d learned from playing the guitar and cello to create digital compositions. BRM: What software do you use? JB: I currently use Logic Pro, made by Apple. It’s essentially a recording studio in a box. Not an easy program – it’s kind of like learning complex 3d Studio Max vs learning more simple AutoCAD. The program is easy in the sense you can track through what regions do what in the interface, but when you start adding effects (blue bars) such as delay, phasing, chorus, getting these to work correctly can be difficult.

BRM: How do you compose a song?

JB: I have two different approaches to song writing. The first is analog, the second is digital. Sometimes I’ll start writing a song and it will come out with simple patterns in place. Other times I will write a song on the guitar or keyboard and then in-put it (the software records me playing.) The way you write when you have fingers on a key feels different than programming something; it’s as if you’re dictating it into the computer rather than playing it, so songs end up with a different feel. Sometimes I’ll have a song in my head, and to get it out, I’ll pull out the keyboard or guitar and then it will start to iterate, in which case I’ll then in-put it into the software.

Whenever you sit down, you write a song. You put music into the computer and build around it. Sometimes it’s successful, sometimes it’s not. The piece that I started with often disappears by the final version. Once you redesign and redesign, it might act as the catalyst but may not fit as the song evolves.

BRM: You’ve suggested that composing music can be almost structural. Can you elaborate on how your process of composing might relate to the architectural design process? JB: If you look at how a building goes together, the process (from schematic design to construction documents) the schematic design part is equivalent to establishing which instruments you’re going to use. It’s also where you establish the instruments and style of the song. In the design development process of song writing, I have to decide what the song actually looks like; is it 3 minutes? 5 minutes? Does it have a solo? Is there an intro? Once this is decided, the construction documentation equivalent in song writing is making the chorus/pre-chorus, assembling the song and adding the detail pieces that can augment and enhance what is already there. Construction is when you start to flatten the song, put it in Itunes, see how it sounds, and make final edits. From there, you can iterate, tweak, and refine. BRM: Does composing music inform your built work?

JB: Yes. One of the latest buildings I’m working on is an addition to an arena in Iowa. It is circular. When I was looking at the final design, I noticed that there was a specific effort to define how these spaces radiated out/were defined. There are intangibles when you’re listening to music; outliers that exist as flourishes. It’s hard to put into words; the things that draw me into music, that encourage me to experiment and push certain aspects of it. In this design, there is a whimsical nature inherent in the architecture, in which the walls are a series of fins, and they’re radiating out from the center line of the gymnasium. There is a definite analog to how music is composed to how the fins radiate out in amplified fashion. I think this has a lot to do with how things resonate with me.

Thanks Joe!

There are intangibles when you’re listening to music; outliers that exist as flourishes. This can also translate to design.

Images courtesy of Joe Benesh and RDG Design

09YAF CONNECTION 11.04

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Know Someone Who’s Not Getting The YAF Connection?Don’t let them be out of the loop any longer. It’s easy for AIA members to sign up. Update your AIA member profile and add the Young Architects Forum under “Your Knowledge Communities.”

• Go to www.aia.org and sign in• Click on “For Members” link next to the AIA logo on

top• Click on “Edit your personal information” on the left

side under AIA members tab• Click “Your knowledge communities” under Your

Account on the left• Add YAF

Call for ‘QUICK CONNECT’ News, Reviews, EventsDo you have newsworthy content that you’d like to share with our readers? Contact the News Editor, Beth Mosenthal, on twitter @archiadventures

Call for ‘CONNECTION’ Articles, Projects, PhotographyWould you like to submit content for inclusion in an upcoming issue? Contact the Editor, Wyatt Frantom atwyatt.frantom@wf-ad.com

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Application Deadline: Monday, August 26, 2013

The Young Architects Forum (YAF) is the voice of architects in the early stages of their career and the catalyst for change within the profession and our communities. Working closely with the AIA College of Fellows (COF), the YAF is leading the future of the profession with a focus on architects licensed less than 10 years. The national YAF AdCom is charged with encouraging the development of national and regional programs of interest to young architects and supporting the creation of YAF groups within local chapters. YAF programs, activities, and resources serve young architects by providing information and leadership; promoting excellence through fellowship with other professionals; and encouraging mentoring to enhance individual, community, and professional development.

Advisory Committee positions available January 1, 2014:

Vice Chair (2015 Chair)Public Relations DirectorCommunity Director

Director terms are two years. Vice Chair term is three years (including Chair and Past Chair positions). Major meetings of the AdCom are typically scheduled three times a year (YAF Annual Meeting, AIA National Convention, and a fall YAF conference) along with monthly conference calls.

CLICK HERE to read more about volunteer expectations.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

• Applicant Letter of Interest: one 8.5”x11” page describing applicant’s interest in a specific position.

• Back-up materials: five 8.5”x11” pages maximum, including applicant’s resume at a minimum.

• Three letters of recommendation, including one from an AIA component leader (such as a Chapter President, Regional Director, or Component Executive).

Please submit application as a PDF document titled:

“YAF_AdCom_Application_LastName_FirstName.pdf”

... and address your submittal to the AdCom Selection Committee Chair, Jon Penndorf at yaf@aia.org

ELIGIBILITYNominees must be members of the AIA in good standing, and architects licensed ten years or less, for at least the first year of their term. Appointments are based on submitted materials, and selection will be made by the YAF AdCom selection committee in late August. Although the Young Architect Regional Director (YARD) roster often serves as a pool of nominees for the AdCom positions, YARD experience is not required. Other members of the AdCom (in a non-voting capacity) include the immediate AdCom Past-Chair, the Emerging Professionals Director, an AIA Board Representative, and a COF Executive Committee Liaison.

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERSAIA Young Architects Forum Advisory Committee

PUT YOURSELF ON THE MAPGET CONNECTED by contributing to our next issue!

MAPdepicting locations of article contributors for this issue

Columbia, SC

Los Angeles, CA

Denver, CO

AIA NationalWashington D.C.

This month’sLeadership Profile

Luke McCary

Raleigh-Durham, NC

Chicago, IL New York, NY

Monroe, LA

Leicester, UKDes Moine, IA

Cambridge, MA

FEATURE

Matthew McGrane, AIA is an Associate at Cannon Design in Chicago. McGrane is a designer in the Corporate Commercial market and a leader of the firm’s Open Hand Studio.

PROCESS AND ThE CITIZEN ARChITECT

Solar trellis at the Academy for Global citizenship, design and fund raising by Open Hand Studio

Open Hand Studio leaders and guests at the National Building Museum, Washington DC for the Open Hand Studio Forum 2012

Central Space, an Open Hand Studio designed and constructed community plaza in Rosslyn, VA.

LENDING AN OPEN HAND

As a young professional embarking upon a career at a large firm, it is sometimes difficult to feel as though your day-to-day work is truly making an impact. Projects are large, budgets are tight, and deadlines constantly loom. You spend long hours perfecting the latest renderings, wrestling the BIM model, and working through the final set of redlines. You find yourself working on multi-million dollar projects in distant cities, countries, or continents with limited access to clients or the building’s eventual occupants. While the sexy skyscraper or stadium project a half a world away may excite us as designers, it can present a disconnect for young practitioners who are also attracted to the profession’s ability to engage local communities, address pressing social issues, and fundamentally improve the lives of those around us.

In 2008, a group of young professionals at the Chicago office of Cannon Design got together to discuss how we might be able to use our skills as designers to more actively engage with the city in which we lived and worked. Many of us were active in design organizations outside of our office, including Architecture for Humanity, which regularly worked with not-for-profit organizations and under served communities around the city. Although this work was satisfying, the fact that it was in addition to our day jobs made it easy to peripheralize and neglect. Instead, we sought a better way to incorporate the passion that we felt for impactful community engagement into our everyday practice. As a result, the Open Hand Studio was born.

We eventually caught the ear of the design and operations leadership of our office who began providing the support and resources to help us realize our vision. Our first step was to sign on to Public Architecture’s 1% program, committing to spend 1% of our time on community-based and pro-bono design efforts. Although our scope was small, the leadership of the office quickly recognized that this work reinforced our firm’s core values while providing an opportunity to cultivate leaders from the next generation of designers. In the process, those of us who otherwise were fairly naive relative to the nuts and bolts of our practice received a crash course in what it truly meant to get things done.

In order to begin the interior build-out project with a worthy not-for-profit organization, we first had to receive an education in proposal-writing, contracts, and project planning. In order to put on the event showcasing successful partnerships between designers and community groups, we first had to create a budget, secure grants, and network with partner organizations. All of this effort led to successful projects and partnerships while also elevating our own sense of responsibility and satisfaction in what we had accomplished. Not only were we making a real impact, but we also saw the very real career benefits that these opportunities had afforded us. In turn, the initiative and leadership demonstrated in making these small-scale pro-bono projects work was rewarded with promotions and increased responsibility on our day-to-day large-scale project work.

13YAF CONNECTION 11.04

Solar trellis at the Academy for Global citizenship, design and fund raising by Open Hand Studio

Cannon team members volunteer through AmeriCorps to help remove debris in Joplin, Mo

Open Hand Studio leaders and guests at the National Building Museum, Washington DC for the Open Hand Studio Forum 2012. Kimberly McDowell of SEED network presenting.

Central Space, an Open Hand Studio designed and constructed community plaza in Rosslyn, VA.

We eventually caught the ear of the design and operations leadership of our office who began providing the support and resources to help us realize our vision. Our first step was to sign on to Public Architecture’s 1% program, committing to spend 1% of our time on community-based and pro-bono design efforts. Although our scope was small, the leadership of the office quickly recognized that this work reinforced our firm’s core values while providing an opportunity to cultivate leaders from the next generation of designers. In the process, those of us who otherwise were fairly naive relative to the nuts and bolts of our practice received a crash course in what it truly meant to get things done.

In order to begin the interior build-out project with a worthy not-for-profit organization, we first had to receive an education in proposal-writing, contracts, and project planning. In order to put on the event showcasing successful partnerships between designers and community groups, we first had to create a budget, secure grants, and network with partner organizations. All of this effort led to successful projects and partnerships while also elevating our own sense of responsibility and satisfaction in what we had accomplished. Not only were we making a real impact, but we also saw the very real career benefits that these opportunities had afforded us. In turn, the initiative and leadership demonstrated in making these small-scale pro-bono projects work was rewarded with promotions and increased responsibility on our day-to-day large-scale project work.

Since 2008, the Open Hand Studio has completed numerous projects, hosted events, and created lasting partnerships with many inspiring organizations and community groups. Consequently, what began as a small collection of individuals in one office has ballooned into a robust program that is recognized firm-wide in each of our 15 global office locations. Open Hand Studio projects now involve not just architects, but also engineers, graphic designers, IT professionals, and sustainability consultants, each bringing their unique expertise to solving critical problems. Ultimately, with increased involvement and awareness, Open Hand Studio is becoming endemic to the culture of our firm as a whole.

Every year we organize an Open Hand Studio Forum that brings together the leaders from each office location to establish the vision and direction of the program. The majority of these leaders are young professionals who are spearheading exciting efforts within their respective cities through support from their local office leadership. These efforts include the design and construction of a public plaza in Virginia, an event connecting eager designers to not-for-profit organizations seeking design services in San Francisco, and assistance with clean-up and construction for the city of Joplin, Missouri, to name a few. This past Spring, the Forum was held in Washington DC to coincide with the AIA National Convention. Here we were able to connect not only to our colleagues within the firm, but also to the broad network of like-minded professionals working throughout the world who are concerned with the topic of public interest design and social justice.

We were able to discuss ways in which our different offices, firms, and organizations could pool resources and expertise in order to address broader global issues with the goal of creating scalable strategies which could be implemented in multiple contexts locally and abroad. It was amazing to see what began as a small group hoping to connect to our city was now helping to shape the conversation relative to this topic for the profession as a whole.

All in all, as I sit at my desk for what will inevitably be another late night at the office, I am comforted by the fact that my job allows me to work on exciting projects around the world while also supporting me and other young professionals looking to make a greater impact in the places right outside my door. From the skills and expertise that I have gained, as well as the robust network of which I am now a part, I feel more than equipped to begin to tackle the most pressing challenges facing our built environment. ■

ARTICLE

Kenneth MiraskiMiraski is an Intern Architect at Loci Architecture in New York, NY. Miraski is also pursuing licensure in New York state and is an aspiring writer covering topics such as urbanism and transportation.

At the beginning of my first job after college, I was certainly anxious about talking to clients, understanding my office’s CAD program, and completing work to hit a deadline, but I wasn’t in the least worried about writing an e-mail.

By this point in my life, I had written many professional e-mails, composed numerous cover letters, kept my resume well tweaked, and believed that I understood the full importance that proper communication has in the workplace. I soon learned, however, that writing a concise e-mail is as important as drawing a precise detail.

Almost immediately, it became clear that certain words carried greater weight than others. Understanding the difference, for instance, between ‘Install’, ‘Furnish’, and ‘Provide’, among others, became necessary to properly communicating intent. And while these three words in particular may have similar meaning, their misuse in a drawing’s note could leave you in a sticky situation once construction begins.

Similarly, the words that you use in an e-mail, or how you use them, can alter the meaning of a message; and, if miscommunicated, may have serious repercussions for your firm.

So my asking a fellow co-worker to proofread an important e-mail became a valuable process. As my own experience grew, I began to recognize those words and phrases that require care in their use.

Three words in particular that I found troublesome to use, ‘Approve’, ‘Recommend’ and ‘Confirm’ were often the subjects of anecdotal experiences from my supervisor. I’d like to share my own thoughts on these words, their meanings and some tips for their proper use in correspondence.

APPROVEThis is the first word that I learned to use cautiously in my correspondence. My firm’s principal would always say to be careful “approving” anything, especially when speaking to a contractor. Most importantly, when you approve something in writing, it is akin to setting something into concrete and there may be legal consequences. It is a commitment and often difficult to renege.

However, there are obviously times when the firm must provide approvals when, for instance, the project team reviews material and product samples, shop drawings, mock-ups and other submitted components to be used in construction.

Architects also require others to provide approvals as with clients approving a design scheme as a final and decisive statement as to whether or not the Architect may proceed into the next phase of the project.

Conversely, if an Architect approves something that conflicts with the client-approved design intent, the code, or the contract, the Architect could be in some trouble.

WATCH THE WORDS FLY OFF MY DESK

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I believed that I understood the full importance that proper communication has in the workplace. I soon learned, however, that writing a concise e-mail is as important as drawing a precise detail.

As a tip, never approve a highly visible design element without first reviewing a mock-up or sample. You may get a surprise with the final product. Similar words to approve: accept, allow, and authorize.

RECOMMENDThis is a loaded word because it appears to be fairly straightforward. To recommend something assumes a level of authority for the person making the statement. When an Architect recommends something, they are using their authority as an expert in building practices and design in order to advise or to provide credibility to a statement. When you are a representative of a firm, to make a recommendation means that you are using your firm’s authority.

This can be a scary position, but one that most of us will surely face during our careers. When you recommend something, those that you are advising may base an important decision on your recommendation. For example, if you recommend to a client that off-white is better than beige, and the client selects off-white, you maintain a level of responsibility for the color selection.

Another tip, be cautious when recommending a contractor. Construction could turn into a nightmare if your recommended contractor fails. If a client requests suggestions, give a list of contractors who have worked with the firm on previous projects. Similar words to recommend: advise, suggest, and support.

CONFIRMI love this word. It conveys much responsibility, with little consequence to the person using it. Asking someone to confirm something is simply a request. When in doubt, it does not hurt to ask someone to confirm a fact. However, when you use this word, make sure that you are clear about what is requested. Have you ever received a similar e-mail: “Meeting is next Thursday. Please confirm.” Confirm what? Our response? A meeting time? Place? Without a clear direction for the reader, confirm can be an

open-ended request that will likely go unanswered. But this vagueness can also be useful. I have found it helpful to ask a contractor to confirm an installation, material, price, etc. when I question a contractor’s performance. Without being accusatory, it places responsibility on the contractor to state whether that requested item is correct or incorrect. The request for confirmation must be fulfilled, otherwise critical information may be wrongfully denied and may affect the project.

For example, a paint color was incorrectly provided and the Architect’s request for confirmation was never answered. It is unlikely a contractor could blame the Architect for this misstep if the contractor is responsible for confirming the paint color.

One last tip, always confirm a meeting time and place, even if it seems unnecessary, because you never know when someone may forgets to show up. Similar words to confirm: acknowledge, assure, and verify.

Words are tricky, especially when Architects are known to make them up. Clear and carefully worded communications will not only produce stronger letters, e-mails, and discussions, it will ensure a greater quality of work that comes from your desk.

As a guide, it helps to review e-mails from higher-level associates, marketing materials, and other documents issued by your firm. Three years later, I continue to develop a greater level of written communication. I look back at older e-mails from those first few weeks and do a peer review for myself. Spend a lunch break re-reading a few older e-mails; you may be surprised how your own words have changed. ■

The statements and opinions in this article are solely the author’s and do not constitute legal advice. You should retain your own attorney or professional advisor(s) to counsel you as to your specific set of circumstances.

ARTICLE

Kevin J. Singh, AIASingh is an Assistant Professor of Architecture at Louisiana Tech University and past Young Architect Regional Director for the Gulf States region. He is the Director of the HabiTECH Design-Build program and the Community Design Activism Center (CDAC).

With approximately 100-out-of-123 NAAB accredited architectural institutions currently utilizing some form of design-build in their curriculums (either required or elective courses), it is now time to make it a required component of a professional degree in architecture.

Design-Build education started with Yale’s Building Project in 1967 and new programs rapidly expanded in the 1990’s with publicity from Auburn University’s Rural Studio. Design-build has become a unique, collaborative model of educating architecture students with the reality of practicing today. This type of education provides students with the opportunity to truly participate, interact, and be a member of a design and construction team. The traditional relationships of the owner, architect, and contractor are experienced through this interaction and collaboration.

My students have expressed the importance that their design-build experience has had on their architecture education. Many would not have had the opportunity to work with a real client or get construction experience while in school. Others said the experience was a key factor in being offered summer internships and full-time employment after graduation. Indeed, potential employers in architecture firms understand that the students’ design-build experience has accelerated their knowledge, productivity, and marketability in the profession.

Since over 80% of our institutions are currently engaged in some form of design-build, the initial requisite organizational structure and monetary expenses (tools, equipment, etc.) have already been incurred. So as the new NAAB Conditions for Accreditation cycle comes around, additional capital expenditure should not be a concern. The real challenge is to strike a balance between the organizations that are divided along the lines of education (ACSA and AIAS) and practice (AIA, NCARB). For design-build to be successfully added to the program, NAAB must also realize the value add that it brings to education.

NAAB plays a major role in this process and needs to establish criteria in which schools can utilize their unique locations, situations, faculty, tools, and pedagogical approach to meet the criteria expectations. Once established, individual institutions can design their curriculum to meet the objectives set forth.

I believe that the NAAB design-build criteria should address the following aspects for all programs:

DEFINED CLIENT COMMUNITYDesigning and building should not be for the sake of creation of the work itself. An engaged client/community is important to provide input and direction for the project. Students need to have this engagement in order to refine and defend their designs.

ESTABLISHED BUDGET AND SCHEDULEStudents need to learn the reality of designing for a budget and meeting a project schedule. Design decisions need to be made that address the means and methods to execute them, while being co-requisite with the budget and schedule.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOMESDesign-build projects need to have clear learning objectives and outcomes prior to project inception. The learning and project outcomes need to be evaluated (by all involved parties) at the end of the project and used to refine the process of future projects.

PROFESSIONAL INVOLVEMENTStudents need to work/interact with local professionals. These can be architects, engineers, contractors, subcontractors, etc. Students need to understand the collaborative nature that is a part of the design and construction of projects. Learning directly from these professionals will reinforce lessons from the classroom and instructors.

These are very loose criteria from which NAAB can create the objectives that schools must define to meet them. ACSA, AIA, AIAS, and NCARB leadership must work together to bridge the current educational and practice divide. Design-build is uniquely positioned to bridge this divide by bringing design into the real world. The marginalization of design-build in architecture programs must end. Design-build for all students and future practitioners! ■

DESIGN-BUILD: NOW IS THE TIME!

“House Divided: Challenges to Design/Build from Within” - W. Geoff Gjertson (2011 ACSA Fall Conference)

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Design-build is uniquely positioned to bridge this divide by bringing design into the real world. The marginalization of design-build in architecture programs must end. Design-build for all students and future practitioners!

ARTICLE

Mark ShawShaw is an experienced Project Architect, and a former tutor at Birmingham University, England, he is passionate about architecture and although suffering from epilepsy he strongly believes disability should not be viewed as a barrier to achievement.

As we emerge from University, we are placed in a variety of circumstances on a daily basis in which we deal with criticism. While universities educate us in the critical analysis of our own work by hardening us to the fact that “everyone’s a critic”, this training may not provide a choice of solutions, or “tool box”, on how to handle criticism effectively.

Criticism is a negative psychological construct of an observer’s point of view, communicated to another, directly or indirectly, via sensory perception. The dynamic effects that criticism may has on someone is dependent upon their beliefs and the social behavioral skills that they had acquired in childhood.

While everyone responds differently, the fundamental human psychological response to criticism is that of emotional rejection. This rejection of the criticism may lead to submissive, passive or aggressive, defensive behavioral patterns; and ultimately preventing the criticism from being embraced as a positive learning experience.

Constant exposure to criticism is also very damaging; even resulting in psychological and physical reactions such as reduced self-confidence, anxiety, depression and weight gain or loss.

Take a moment to consider the following situation and, being totally honest in your response, write down your thoughts and feelings on how you would respond to the hypothetical critic.

An unknown person tells you, “I don’t like you and I don’t like the work you’ve produced!”

Do the exercise again; this time replace the unknown person with the following individuals: your partner, a work colleague, a client - and note your thoughts and emotions in the same way.

Did you notice any variances between your answers?

Depending on who the critic is, your emotional feelings will range from shock, surprise, anger, fear, disbelief, dismay, apathy, panic, betrayal, rejection and feeling unloved. These emotions will have dictated how you define and communicate your response to the critic.

This hypothetical scenario may make you aware of how your communication and personal emotional state are affected by different forms of criticism. What you may have discovered is your primary “behavioral type”; i.e., how you have been “trained” to respond to criticism and how you behave when challenged or confronted. Recognizing and understanding your personal behavioral type is the first step towards finding effective ways of adapting that behavior in order to take advantage of the positive opportunities that criticism creates.

Most people will respond, dismissively and possibly aggressively to the unknown person; work colleagues may leave us feeling dismayed, anxious and insecure; while feelings of betrayal, guilt and rejection may occur in reaction to the criticism of a partner.

There should be a marked difference between these responses to those responses that we would have with a client. Our responses to a client will often be more positive, because we will be more curious and willing to investigate and discover what had provoked the client to make the statement, in order to positively alter these perceptions, reassure them and maintain their future business.

EVERYONE’S A CRITICTECHNIQUES OF EFFECTIVELY DEALING WITH NEGATIVE CRITICISM

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Clients have the prerogative to question the quality of work during a project. In order to maintain a professional relationship, you must be prepared to question them objectively in order to positively understand their perspective and make necessary changes.

In all cases, the response which should have been given is,

“I did not know that. Tell me more!”

This statement is appropriate because it:

• directly challenges the statement in a positive way while requesting justification for their statement and clarification on how the perception was reached,

• maintains a line of communication,

• removes any emotional response you may have and allows you to distance yourself

• reframes the criticism by ensuring that the critic retains ownership of the issue,

• prevents you jumping to conclusions,

• allows you to remain objective, positive and open to their response

While listening to the response you should maintain eye contact, your body language should be open and you should allow the communicator to finish prior to responding yourself.

This is a positive way of challenging, reframing, venting and distancing yourself from the negative emotions that criticism creates, thereby reducing their overall psychological impact. The way to deal with someone who fails to provide you with a suitable explanation for their critical opinion is to state, “Having listened to your opinion, unfortunately I don’t fully understand or agree with it! But as we need to move on, I suggest that we discuss this in more depth later.” Both sentences use distancing as a way of ensuring ownership is retained by the communicator. The line of communication is maintained and the negative emotional impact is reduced, allowing you to detach yourself from a person or problem, thereby limiting your emotional involvement while also allowing you to remain open, professional, and objective.

Distancing techniques include:

• setting a future date to objectively consider and discuss issues

• recording criticism so that it can be reviewed and discussed later

• confidentially discussing the issue with work colleagues

All of these techniques utilize reframing and venting. Venting is a technique to reduce the emotional pressure; feelings of anger, betrayal, loneliness, paranoia, depression and self-criticism.

Venting techniques include:

• challenging the situation by requesting additional information and offering to discuss the issue later; thereby limiting emotional reactions such as passive aggressive behavior, loneliness, inadequacy and paranoia.

• discussing the issue with another person; to expose your emotions, reduce stress, gain an external opinion, and objectively review the issue.

• Maintaining a confidential diary, about daily events and your emotional responses, which can be review later

• Taking physical aggression out on an inanimate object or using sport; to vent anger

The technique of reframing involves changing your approach to a situation in order to remain emotionally detached. Thus, when a work colleague tells you that they don’t like you”, you should change the way that you think about the situation by placing that work colleague into the position of a client. In order to maintain a professional client relationship and their business, you must be prepared to question them objectively, in order to positively analyze this data and make necessary alterations to their perception. In this situation you will be more open to change then you would with a work colleague, partner, friend or relative in the same situation.

Once you begin to approach and address future situations in this way, you will be better equipped to effectively cope with all forms of criticism as you progress throughout your career. ■

ARTICLE

MANAGING RISKA LOOK AT THREE RETAIL AND RESTAURANT CLAIMS

Frank MusicaMusica, a Senior Risk Management Attorney at Victor O. Schinnerer & Company, Inc. in Chevy Chase MD is an architect, attorney and a frequent speaker at the AIA Convention and other AIA component programs.

The AIA Trust is a free risk management resource for AIA members that offers valuable benefits ranging from term life, disability and auto insurance to professional liability and business owners insurance to legal information and retirement plans. For more information on all AIA Trust programs, visit www.TheAIATrust.com

Case Study 01An architect provided design and construction phase services for a new car dealership. The project budget grew from $6-million to $10-million and was 15 months behind scheduled completion. As a result, the contractor’s services were terminated due to cost overruns and delays. The client filed a $4.5-million claim against the contractor and design team based on lost revenues, extras and delays.

The architect was vicariously liable for the structural engineer, a subconsultant, who caused a 3-4 month delay by refusing to supply additional information about foundation dimensions.

The contractor went bankrupt and settled with the client. To prepare for trial, the architect’s attorney estimated the need for 40 depositions at a cost of $450,000. This large expense was partly because of the architect’s poor record keeping. There were no RFI or change order logs and everything had to be reconstructed to determine what happened. The claim ultimately settled for $1.5 million. The structural engineer paid his policy limits of $250,000 and the architect paid the remaining $1.25-million in addition to more than $500,000 in expenses and a waiver of $270,000 in fees.

Case Study 02An architect agreed to design a restaurant for a “partnership” between a celebrity chef and a father and his son. The architect contractually agreed to turn over a fully completed restaurant within 15 weeks at a cost of no more than $1 million for design and construction.

After the project was underway, the chef demanded a new “state of the art” kitchen. He also demanded that his office, originally located in the kitchen, be enlarged and relocated. These changes took seven seats from the restaurant and delayed the opening by a month. It also increased the cost to $1.7-million.

A review of Schinnerer and CNA’s claims statistics from 2002 to 2012 reveals that most claims involving retail and restaurant projects were made against architects. In fact, architects accounted for 50% of these claims in terms of frequency and 42% of the payments in terms of severity. Civil engineers were the second major target with 25% frequency and 24% severity.

Although 42% of the claims involved delays and extras, property damage accounted for 32% of these claims. Interior construction and plumbing, HVAC, and fire protection generated the highest frequency rates; while claims involving the building superstructure and site preparation had the highest severity rates.

Following are several examples of the types of claims prompted by retail and restaurant projects.

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The father/son partnership filed suit against the architect for $2-million, claiming lost profits from the delay, future lost profits from the lost seating, cost overruns and defective design. The father and son made the claim difficult to settle in mediation.

Although it was felt that the architect had minimal liability, his greatest exposure was due to his contractual guarantee that the restaurant would be completed within a certain time and budget. In addition, the architect’s file documentation was poor, making it impossible to prove what the father and son knew and when. There was concern that if the claim went to arbitration, an award might be rendered that exceeded the architect’s remaining policy limits. The claim finally settled for $400,000, with the remaining $600,000 in policy limits spent on expenses.

Case Study 03An architect was retained to provide design services to extend the front parapet of a video store so that it matched the height of other stores in a strip mall. Eight years later, high winds toppled bricks and an awning from the store, killing a father and his 7 year old son. A $250-million lawsuit was filed against the video store, building owner and more than a dozen contractors and design professionals.

During discovery, it was learned that a former owner had taken a conceptual marketing plan prepared by the architect and hired a contractor to do the work without plans or a permit. According to expert testimony, the wall was so poorly anchored that it was obvious that no architect ore engineer had been involved. The claim settled in mediation for $5.9-million, with the contractor paying $2-million, the former owner paying $2-million, the current owner paying $1-million, the video company paying $750,000, and the awning company paying $140,000. However, the architect was required to pay $110,000 in expenses. ■

MANAGING THE RISKS

Below are a number of ways that the architects involved in the prior Case Studies could have better managed their risk and exposure to such claims. While specifically referencing retail and restaurant projects, these risk-management means are universally applicable.

• Select clients carefully. Understand each party’s role and responsibilities and communicate accordingly.

• Communicate with the client regarding their commitment to follow proper design and construction requirements and procedures.

• Select projects that have a realistic budget and schedule.

• Don’t make promises regarding budget and schedules.

• Pay appropriate attention to the quality of the design.

• Develop a systematic and objective documentation process to record all recommendations, decisions and changes.

• Develop a well-defined scope of services that is agreed to in a professional services contract.

• Establish and follow appropriate contract administration services to respond to RFI’s, change orders and submittals.

• Understand what damages may result from any “delays” with the project.

Architects accounted for 50% of these claims in terms of frequency and 42% of the payments in terms of severity.

The statements and opinions in this article are solely the author’s and do not constitute legal advice.

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@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q1 - What is the best career advice that you have received? #archcareers #aiachat -1:11 PM May 1st, 2013

@JDGarch #aiachat #careers best advice ... stay active in #AIA -1:13 PM May 1st, 2013

@rkitekt Q1. It was a simple one, but great piece of advice for #business and #life was to “never burn a bridge” #aiachat -1:15 PM May 1st, 2013

@melissamorancy A1- make sure you love what you’re doing. #aiacareers #aiachat -1:16 PM May 1st, 2013

@wyattfrantom @AIAYAF Best career advice: be proactive. navigate ur own career. don’t just let it happen. understand what you want. go get it! #aiachat -1:16 PM May 1st, 2013

@AishaDBdesigner @AIAYAF And nurture relationships! Networking is nothing if you don’t pay attention to the relationship. #aiachat -1:17 PM May 1st, 2013

@SnarkitectDC Best career advice? Be honest. People may not like honesty but they respect it. #aiachat -1:17 PM May 1st, 2013

@jenworkman013 Best career advice: always confirm a question never ask a question. #archcareer #aiachat #aiayaf -1:17 PM May 1st, 2013

@bradbenjam @AIAYAF Best career advice: be the change you want to see in the profession. #archcareers #aiachat -1:18 PM May 1st, 2013

@kizmutt71 #aiachat. Best career advice: don’t wait for opportunities to present themselves....create your own -1:19 PM May 1st, 2013

@NCARB We agree! MT: [Moderator] Question 1 - What’s the best career advice that you’ve received? RT @globalsiteplans: Never stop learning #aiachat -1:21 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIAYAF [Moderator] Q2 - How have you known it was time to leave one job for another? #archcareers #aiachat -1:19 PM May 1st, 2013

@RitaSaikali A2) When it was no longer a learning / challenging position to help with professional growth. #aiachat #archcareer -1:21 PM May 1st, 2013

@HenneberyEddy a2 - When you wake up in the morning and are no longer excited to start working. #aiachat -1:21 PM May 1st, 2013

@bradbenjam A2 for Q2 When you can no longer achieve the professional goals you have set for yourself. #archcareers#aiachat -1:22 PM May 1st, 2013

@GlobalSitePlans A2: Great to see that we all want a challenge, respect, and professional growth! #aiachat #archcareers -1:24 PM May 1st, 2013

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@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q3 - What is your biggest career regret? #archcareers #aiachat -1:27 PM May 1st, 2013

@AishaDBdesigner Q3: Staying too long at a toxic firm (bad work envir.). Not having enough confidence earlier on. Not asking enough questions. #aiachat -1:30 PM May 1st, 2013

@wyattfrantom @aiayaf A3: biggest regret: allowing others to limit my perception of what it is (or could be) to be an Architect #aiachat #archcareers -1:32 PM May 1st, 2013

@AishaDBdesigner *Clapping* RT @AIAYAF: [Moderator] -@wyattfrantom - No limits. We can do so many things as an Architect. #archcareers #aiachat -1:35 PM May 1st, 2013

@apertedesign Re: biggest career regret? That I didn’t allow myself a few (several!) years to ‘taste test’ firms/ project types #archcareers #aiachat” -2:05 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q4 - What did you learn from the biggest mistake you ever made on the job? #archcareers #aiachat -1:37 PM May 1st, 2013

@BusinessofArch @AIAYAF A4 always double check the elevator dimensions - again. #aiachat -1:38 PM May 1st, 2013

@melissamorancy A4- make sure you double check that you hit forward and not reply when making a snarky comment about a client. #aiacareers #aiachat -1:44 PM May 1st, 2013

@wyattfrantom A4. Create the level “playing field” for your contractor and owner thru honesty and mutual respect. It’s a partnership. #aiachat -1:46 PM May 1st, 2013

@SnarkitectDC A4: I feel like I would have benefited from more training in management - schedules, proposals, etc. Non-design topics need more. #aiachat -1:49 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q5 - What skills do architects need that are missing from architecture education today? #archcareers #aiachat -1:47 PM May 1st, 2013

@BusinessofArch @AIAYAF A5 how to make money. #aiachat -1:47 PM May 1st, 2013

@kurtneiswender regarding q5 schools should train architecture students in office culture #aiachat -1:48 PM May 1st, 2013

@RitaSaikali @AIAYAF #archEdu is missing business & leadership skills. #archcareers #aiachat -1:49 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIACenterforEPs A5 Business skills: how to operate/run your own firm, manage finances & human resources, etc. #archcareers #aiachat -1:50 PM May 1st, 2013

@mdumich A5: Architects need to learn facilitation and persuasion skills to lead collaborative teams #archcareers #aiachat -1:50 PM May 1st, 2013

@Archncik @AIAYAF A5: communication skills, and leadership. Architects don’t know every thing but need to

#aiachat #archcareers

be able to work with everyone #aiachat -1:51 PM May 1st, 2013

@erinmurphyaia Q5. Architects need to know how to write, not just draw. #archcareers #aiachat -1:52 PM May 1st, 2013

@JRSorrenti @AIAYAF @SnarkitectDC Yes architectural curriculum needs to be modified to include business. Repositioning must include this. #aiachat -2:05 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q6 - How does your firm articulate what it takes to advance in responsibility, salary, or position? #archcareers #aiachat -1:55 PM May 1st, 2013

@mdumich Informal mentoring RT @aiayaf Q6 How does your firm articulate what it takes to advance in responsibility, salary, or position? #aiachat -1:57 PM May 1st, 2013

@GlobalSitePlans A6: Our internship program comes with performance evaluations. Mark high in those and be a team player for advancement. Innovate. #aiachat -2:01 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q7 - What is more important: meaningful work or a higher salary? Why? #archcareers #aiachat -2:02 PM May 1st, 2013

@_clinger_ @AIAYAF - A7 - You have to strike a balance between the two. Salary only can be soulless, work only will starve you.#aiachat -2:03 PM May 1st, 2013

@mdumich Meaningful work, learning, autonomy A7: RT@aiayaf Q7: What is more important: meaningful work or a higher salary? Why?#archcareers #aiachat -2:05 PM May 1st, 2013

@SnarkitectDC A7: You need to love what you do, or you cannot possibly judge yourself successful. #aiachat -2:05 PM May 1st, 2013

@LFabbroni A7. Need to learn how to be more efficient with meaningful work. Too much time goes unbilled. Too many hours wasted. #aiayaf #aiachat -2:06 PM May 1st, 2013

@AishaDBdesigner A7: Cash is great. REALLY great. But waking up with a purpose is priceless. #Love #aiachat -2:06 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q8 - How do you work creativity into career advancement? #archcareers #aiachat -2:07 PM May 1st, 2013

@AishaDBdesigner Q8: I think it goes back to learning how to craft your own career. Once you know how to guide it, the creativity comes easier. #aiachat -2:09 PM May 1st, 2013

@mdumich Be creative in redefining your careers = design entrepreneurship RT @AIAYAF Q8: How do you work creativity into career advancement? #aiachat -2:14 PM May 1st, 2013

@_clinger_ Learning so much from the #aiachat today. Great insights on career development.

About the Moderator:Joseph R. Benesh, AIA, NCARB, CDT, LEED AP, is currently a Focus Market Leader and Project Manager for RDG Planning + Design in Des Moines, Iowa and is licensed in Illinois and Florida. He is currently President of the AIA Iowa Central Iowa Architects Council in addition to serving as the AIA YAF Public Relations Director. Joe received his Bachelor of Architecture from Iowa State University. @joebenesh

25YAF CONNECTION 11.04

@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q9 - Is volunteer service important for career advancement? #archcareers #aiachat -2:14 PM May 1st, 2013

@PlusLab @AIAYAF yes, public service for a greater good, or those in need, expands your contacts and gets your name out there.#aiachat -2:16 PM May 1st, 2013

@GlobalSitePlans A9: I think it is important. I learned a lot about what I didn’t want to do by volunteering in #AmeriCorps for two terms. #aiachat -2:16 PM May 1st, 2013

@SnarkitectDC A9 it can be. Service to AIA very developmental. To other orgs yes: exposure to other ways of doing things & good for the spirit. #aiachat -2:17 PM May 1st, 2013

@rkitekt Q9 Being a citizen architect is important not only for your career but for your profession and #architecture in general!#aiachat -2:18 PM May 1st, 2013

@CGerrity @AIAYAF Volunteering can give opportunities outside of the cubical to learn about business practices, community, etc.#aiachat #aiachat -2:18 PM May 1st, 2013

@mdumich But an architect/design entrepreneur has more to contribute to the world than just designing buildings... @AIAYAF#aiachat -2:18 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIAYAF [Moderator] - @mdumich - YESSIR! We can design almost anything - organizations, buildings, thought processes, etc...#archcareers #aiachat -2:20 PM May 1st, 2013

@melissamorancy A9- it can never hurt to volunteer. Learn about the community and teach the public more about architects #aiachat -2:20 PM May 1st, 2013

@mdumich It sounds cheesy, but Architects have the skills to solve the complex problems of the world through design @AIAYAF#aiachat -2:21 PM May 1st, 2013

@CGerrity @mdumich Agree! Design is more than just buildings - it’s a creative way to look at a problem #aiachat @AIAYAF #aiachat -2:23 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIAYAF [Moderator ] Q10 - Have you turned your passion into a career? #archcareers #aiachat -2:19 PM May 1st, 2013

@LFabbroni @PlusLab Agreed. It’s all about personal relationships. Bring value and authenticity to each person, SHARE your passion.#aiayaf #aiachat -2:27 PM May 1st, 2013

@mdumich #aiachat I challenge you all to be #mentors and nurture others career advancement as well @ AIAYAF -2:28 PM May 1st, 2013

@AIANational Hopefully you’ve met new colleagues today. Make plans now to join us June 5 for our next chat. See you then?#aiachat -2:30 PM May 1st, 2013

DESIGN

Jinhee Park AIA is a principal at SsD with offices in Cambridge, MA, New York, NY, and Seoul, Korea. She is a Design Critic in Architecture at the Harvard GSD and her firm was recently featured in the 2012 Design Vanguard issue of Architectural Record.

John Hong AIA, LEED APis a principal at SsD with offices in Cambridge, MA, New York, NY and Seoul, Korea. he is Adjunct Associate Professor at the Harvard GSD and his firm recently won a 2012 Emerging

Voices Award from the Architectural League of New York.SsD is an architecture firm that approaches design as a convergent, interdisciplinary venture that aspires to bridge the utopian and the pragmatic. Instead of separating aspects of architecture, urbanism, landscape, history, social systems, and codes into their constituent disciplines, these essential design ingredients are simultaneously explored so that minimum form gains maximum effect. In this way sustainability emerges as an integrated rather than additive result. Along with being published in major media such as Metropolis Magazine, Dwell Magazine, Architectural Record, The New Yorker, and PBS, SsD has received many prestigious design awards including the AIA Young Architects Award, the Emerging Voices Award and the Young Architects Forum Award by the Architectural League of NY, an Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction Award, the Metropolis Next Generation Prize, and twelve AIA awards. They have lectured and exhibited at many universities and conferences including venues at the Harvard GSD, Ohio State University, and Seoul National University, as well as at several national design conferences. SsD is a certified Minority and Woman owned business.

White Block GallerySSD

“High” and “low” tech strategies are used for daylighting: A parametrically developed frit pattern optimizing for daylight distribution while minimizing heat gain.”

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White Block Gallery Heyri , Korea | 2011PROCESS

Saved by the Section: A Project (Almost) Lost

“Why are we wasting our time with this drawing?” It was 7 hours before our flight to Seoul and we were now officially in panic mode putting our competition submittal together for the White Block Gallery. Rewind 6 weeks: Jinhee Park had won the AIA Young Architects Award earlier in the year. Through a combination of happenstance and the fact that Architectural Record (which featured Jinhee as one of the YA winners) has a high readership in design-savvy Korea, we had been invited to compete for a breakthrough project – the design of one of the largest new galleries at the center of the Heyri Art Valley, a community of 300+ art houses near the border of North Korea.

In putting together the presentation, we were faced with a perennial dilemma: Through the design process, we had created work that those in the profession might appreciate and understand, but now it was time to edit (or redo) the materials so that they could communicate to a larger audience - in this case a jury of art collectors and curators, financiers, and a minority of architect advisors. One of our key drawings was an ‘unfolded section’ showing the sequence through the building. Because our work is not overtly sculptural from the outside but attempts to deal with the exterior and interior simultaneously, the section has become a key design tool. We were confident that the experience of the actual building would be compelling, but would the jury be able to understand the design in its abstraction?

Fast forward to the presentation: As we showed our models, plans, and perspectives, we were met with a combination of stone-cold stares and tired yawns. Nothing seemed to pique any level of action beyond the occasional glance at a wrist watch. But when we showed our unfolded section mid-way through our presentation as an animated scrolling drawing, something clicked. The diagrams, the verbal barrage, the renderings, all of a sudden made sense to the jury. When we finally left the room, we realized we had been held 30 minutes beyond our presentation time with a multitude of questions, comments, and engaged criticism. Even if we did not win, we were happy we were able to make a connection. After all, we were not sure how the six other talented competitors all with their gorgeous models displayed in the foyer had done.

DESIGN

At the end of the week, we received ‘the call’ and it was as watershed moment for us. We had finally shaken off our ‘winning streak’ of honorable mentions and 3rd place projects and had landed an actual commission through the formal competition process. Speaking of the other competitors’ gorgeous models, months later during construction, one of the jurors now turned client’s rep, recounted for us the internal doubt of the jury prior to our presentation. Having reviewed all the models the previous day, they had unanimously written us off as our model was admittedly flat, minimal, and mute in comparison to the enthusiastic exteriors of the other teams. As the only foreign office that was invited, they believed we had not taken the brief seriously and had glibly submitted a schematic under-cooked proposal. It was indeed the unfolded section drawing that had single-handedly turned the tide however. As simple as it was, it was the one drawing that showed the clarity of thought as well as demonstrated the disciplined effort it takes to synthesize multiple complex factors into a succinct solution.

The completed project is a 20,000sf exhibition and cultural space at the center of the internationally recognized Heyri Art Valley. A matrix of 3 solid gallery volumes carefully positioned creates 7 additional galleries in a compact but open ended configuration. Designed to showcase global contemporary art from super sized sculpture and paintings to multi-media installations, the individual spaces are unique in proportion and lighting allowing curators to accommodate new future forms of art and media. Integration with the landscape of the prominent lake-front site is also of crucial importance: The design places the intense and controlled experience of art side-by-side with informal social and landscape interactions. Passive heating and ventilation are integrated into the art house’s high efficiency environmental systems and runoff control measures become part of the spatial experience of art. Completed in 2011, it has won two AIA awards, an American Architecture Award, and has been featured in multiple magazines including Architectural Record, Metropolis Magazine, and SPACE magazine. ■

PROCESS

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“The fritting pattern takes on more figural volumes to create areas of privacy and publicity. The shapes merge with the patterns of early morning fog. A functional space of the fire stair becomes a main feature as a public viewing platform at the building’s corner.”

DESIGN PROCESS

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The ‘Supercore’ is an organizational void space that mediates between the autonomy of each gallery space and its connection to the surrounding landscape. A series of bridges cross the space and become viewing platforms for artwork.

LEADERSHIP PROFILE

Luke McCary, AIAMcCary is an Associate at Stevens & Wilkinson in Columbia, South Carolina. McCary is also the President of the South Carolina Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

I moved to Columbia, South Carolina after graduating from Virginia Tech in 2003. I became involved in AIA through an invitation to play on the AIA Columbia softball team in 2004. Our team was terrible; we joked that the next year we should switch our name to “Batting Practice”, but it was great to meet the other Interns and learn more about how my experiences compared to theirs. Shortly thereafter, I was asked to run for a position on the AIA Greater Columbia Board. As a small component, being asked to run was the same as volunteering to serve and I jumped at the opportunity. After two years on the local section board, I was elected President just as I finished up my last registration exam.

In 2006, I was on a fund-raising trip to the Columbia Museum of Art for a conservation group. Somehow our messages became crossed and the museum staff thought I was there to give a donation instead of receive one. I found myself in a room with Directors of the Museum and nothing to offer. Luckily, on the way in to the museum, I passed a sign advertising the Frank Lloyd Wright Exhibit coming to the Museum, and I thought to myself what a great opportunity for AIA Columbia to promote Architecture in our community. I left with a water bottle and tote bag for my fund-raiser and a promise that AIA Columbia would support their exhibition. It turned out to be one of the best impromptu meetings I had ever had.

AIA Columbia and the Columbia Museum of Art worked together to develop several programs over the course of the exhibit. One of the most successful was “Kids in Architecture”, an all day event in which students toured the exhibit and worked with Architects on a design project. The success of the program led to a yearly “Kids in Architecture” event held at the museum and run by volunteers from our membership. We helped promote special programs during the exhibition, organized tour leaders for a trip to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Auldbrass and, as a Board, approved our largest donation ever of $10,000 to support the exhibit. The Museum had record attendances for the exhibit. Nationally, our small section of under 200 people received a component excellence award at Grassroots; a first for any section in South Carolina. On the local level, a teacher who heard of our program contacted us to help develop a District-wide curriculum that focused an entire school year around Architecture. We pulled together over 40 volunteers to mentor 4th and 5th graders that year, and every two years since.

In 2009, I was elected Midlands Director of AIA South Carolina. I was one of 3 people representing my region on the Board. The State Board definitely had a different feel to it from my small section board. We were dealing with bigger, sometimes national issues. We had paid staff to support our efforts and what seemed to be an overwhelmingly large and complicated budget. For several meetings, I mostly listened. I was fortunate to be surrounded by great advocates for our profession, colleagues and mentors, many of whom have become lifelong friends. I learned to rely on their expertise, but equally important, I learned to speak up with conviction on issues that I am passionate about.

I soon found my niche working on the community outreach programs. I, and another Board member Seth Cantley, developed the first AIASC Legacy Project. The concept was to bring something tangible to the community hosting our annual state conference. We had all of these Architects in one place; why not try to solve a problem? We had no idea how hard it would be to find a problem. After months of searching, Seth wound up sitting beside Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter at our Legislative breakfast. She was working with a Child Advocacy center that had recently purchased an old home and needed a plan to renovate. Seth and I met with the staff and visited similar facilities. We measured the building and developed a program. Together we pulled together the materials to facilitate a half-day design charrette at the state conference. About 3 months later, Seth and I presented the findings to the staff and worked with them to further develop the design. On nights and over the weekends, we finished renderings and plans the center could use for fund-raising. Even though the charrette was over months ago, we kept working until we delivered what the Children’s Center needed. Representative Cobb-Hunter is now one of our best friends and allies in the South Carolina

OPPORTUNITY

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When I look back at my beginnings in AIA, I am thankful for the opportunities I have been given, but I also know that if I had not embraced those opportunities I would not be where I am today.

Legislature.In the fall of 2011, I had received a call from our current President Todd Reichard. He asked if I would be willing to run as VP/ President Elect for the upcoming year. This definitely caught me by surprise. I was coming up on the last year of my 3 year term, was one of the youngest members on the Board, and quickly doing the math this would have me as President of the Chapter in 2013. 2013 is the 100 year anniversary of AIA South Carolina. I wasn’t there for the conversations behind closed doors, but I was told I was chosen because I took ownership of the Legacy Project and did not quit until the job was done.

January 1st, 2013 I formally became President of the South Carolina Chapter of the American Institute of Architects at age 33. When I look back at my beginnings in AIA, I am thankful for the opportunities I have been given, but I also know that if I had not embraced those opportunities I would not be where I am today. Nationally, AIA has recognized the importance of our emerging professionals and young Architects.

Last year a resolution from the South Atlantic Region was passed almost unanimously to allow Associate members to serve on Executive Committees of components. The January 2013 “Architect” magazine focuses the next generation of Architects. We have been given the opportunity to be involved, to speak and be heard, and even to lead. Don’t miss these opportunities; you never know where they might take you. ■

Photos / Images (top to bottom)

Justin Abrams, AIA and Luke McCary, AIA accepting the Component Excellence Award on behalf of AIA Columbia

AIASC 100 year Anniversary logo

Presenting the project for the first AIASC Legacy Design Charrette

COFFEE WITH AN ARCHITECTarchitecture + angst

As written by Jody Brown and first published online at coffeewithanarchitect.com, September 30, 2012

Architects Should Show Their Work Architecture is an undervalued profession. There, I said it. I feel like I spend a large amount of my time with clients (particularly new clients) justifying my cost. Clients come to me with a list of things they need completed, and more often than not, they have an idea of how much those “things” are going to cost, and, more often than not, my fees are more than that “idea”. I’m guessing I’m not the only one who’s had this experience.

So, why are we as a profession continually undervalued? I think I know. I think it’s because my clients don’t really know what I do. They hire me to design something. We meet to talk about what they need, and what they want, then I retreat to my desk and start working. When I’m ready, I call for a meeting and I present the design to the client. Before that, I spend weeks and weeks coming up with that design. But, to my client, it must seem like the drawings magically appeared in front of them. Plus, most of the time I missed something in that first round of concept design. The first pass is never exactly right. And, my client has to sheepishly tell me that maybe this thing that they’re seeing for the first time today isn’t quite what they had in mind. That is a hard thing to say to someone. But, I, as an architect, stiffen my upper lip,

The photo is from pucci.it’s photostream on flickr (used under the creative commons license).

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Jody Brown, AIA, LEED AP BD+CBrown is an Architect running his own firm (Jody Brown Architecture, pllc.) in Durham, NC. His work focuses on urban infill projects, mixed-use, urban design, and urban renewal. Over the last 18 years, he has built on his passion for planning and urban design, and has worked on enhancing, adding-to, re-using, renovating, and sometimes creating-from-scratch the places where people meet, learn, play, and become inspired. His work is grounded in the belief that Architecture can save cities.

When he’s not doing that, he can be found making fun of himself and his profession, and blogging about his ideals at – Coffee with an Architect. Or, you can find him sipping coffee with someone at a cafe near you, blathering on-and-on about Le Corbusier, while looking aloof and interesting at the same time somewhere over in the corner.

Jody Brown is just an Architect, standing in front of an ideology, asking it to love him.

take the criticism to heart, and go back the drawing board. Because, to me, the solution is ALWAYS within the design. So, I’ll keep at it; refining, and revising, and exploring alternatives, and variations. I walk down blind alley after blind alley, until I see a solution. And when I “see” that solution? Finally? It just seems so obvious. It’s the clearest most straight-forward path to the idea. And, I always ask, “why didn’t I think of this before”. But, I’ve come to realize that that simple clarity of a solution doesn’t ever come early in the process. It always arrives after a series of lesser, more complex solutions, stumble around the potential design and cloud my vision. And I probably need to pass through all these alternatives, and flesh out their weaknesses, before I can fully understand the problem. I probably need to endure this series of failures before I can arrive at a solution. But to my client? Do they understand the circular path I run in to find the best solution? Do they value the missteps and the false-starts and the blind alleys that I knock around in before I come up with something that works? Do I tell them about that path? I don’t. And, I doubt if any architect really does. We tend to present the final solutions. We rarely expose the path we followed to get there. We never show the process. So, of course our clients don’t value what we did to get to the final solution. Of course they don’t understand how many long hours we put into this. Of course they don’t understand how much we put into this idea. How many failed concepts we had to trash to get to this one, how many mistakes, how many missteps, how many ideas we had to discard. Of course they don’t understand that. Because we never tell them. We only present the best representation of our ideas to our clients. Only those ideas that worked. Nothing less. And, if that’s all they ever see? Then that’s all they’ll know. And that’s all they’ll have to use as a guide to value our work; That final solution that magically appeared before them. Maybe, if we want our clients to value the work that we do? We should show them all the work we did to get here. ■

ARE YOU AN EMERGING VOICE? THEN BE HEARD!

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CALL FOR SUBMISSIONSWe are currently soliciting articles for the SEPTEMBER 2013 issue focused on the subject of P L A T F O R M

PLATFORMP

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celebrating 22 years of advancing the careers of young architects

The American Institute of Architects Young Architects Forum1735 New York Avenue, NWWashington, DC 20006

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WHAT IS THE YOUNG ARCHITECTS FORUM?The Young Architects Forum is the voice of architects in the early stages of their career and the catalyst for change within the profession and our communities. Working closely with the AIA College of Fellows and the American Institute of Architects as a whole, the YAF is leading the future of the profession with a focus on architects licensed less than 10 years. The national YAF Advisory Committee is charged with encouraging the development of national and regional programs of interest to young architects and supporting the creation of YAF groups within local chapters. Approximately 23,000 AIA members are represented by the YAF. YAF programs, activities, and resources serve young architects by providing information and leadership; promoting excellence through fellowship with other professionals; and encouraging mentoring to enhance individual, community, and professional development.

GOALS OF THE YOUNG ARCHITECTS FORUM

To encourage professional growth and leadership development among recently licensed architects through interaction and collaboration within the AIA and allied groups.

To build a national network and serve as a collective voice for young architects by working to ensure that issues of particular relevance to young architects are appropriately addressed by the Institute. To make AIA membership valuable to young architects and to develop the future leadership of the profession.

PLATFORM

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