The story goes like this: Jack Kerouac taped together 8 1/2 x 11 sheets of paper to form a continuous stream to feed through his typewriter. Then he typed “On The Road”, In one long seamless burst of creativity. They call it the “On the Road Scroll“. Jack and his scroll It probably wasn’t as simple and elegant as it sounds. But, … Read More
Augmented Architect
I got a new phone this week. One of those thin ones, with the touch screen thing and the apps & such. The guy at the phone store showed me the tab that you pull to remove the battery. “Don’t pull the tab all the way out” he said… That was the extent of my new phone lesson. I should be able to … Read More
Architects follow like ants, Giant freakin’ ANTS!
Buildings are very complex and it takes a team to get them built. There’s property owners, investors, Financial institutions, City officials, Architects, Engineers, Consultants, Contractors, Building Inspectors, Insurance agents, Osha inspectors, lawyers, real estate brokers, marketing professionals, and more on the team. Swarming over the “soon to be” building like ants. Giant Freakin’ ANTS! Think about keeping all those diverse … Read More
Don Draper can suck it
. Remind me, when did Architects become advertising agents? During the first week at my last job I heard the word “product” used to describe the project I was working on. I should have dropped my t-square and walked slowly towards the door. When the hell did we become Mad Men? Are we selling something? Are we designing buildings or just … Read More
Standing on shelves, quietly, waiting
There’s an amazing degree of craftsmanship involved in printing and binding a book; Making paper, carving the plates for the engravings, printing the sheets, tanning the leather, sewing the signatures, sewing the textblocks, and binding the book. Not to mention – creating the work within; making the art, writing the story, crafting the poetry. William Blake was a master of … Read More
Why are these chairs making me so sad?
I’ve been reading “The Architecture of Happiness” by Alain de Botton. Because I read anything about architectural philosophy and anything written by anyone named “Alain”. (umm – please ignore THIS POST – as it may undercut the aforementioned “fact”) And, while reading, I’ve found myself struck by one premise in particular. We interpret inanimate objects using the exact same process we use to interpret other people’s … Read More
Museum with George
There was this little patch of gravel in front of the new North Carolina Museum of Art. It’s a lovely field of tiny grey stones that sets the museum off like a pavilion in a Japanese garden. It’s very hard to push a wheelchair through gravel. I wiggled his chair back and forth until we made it to the entry. … Read More
Architecture filters the environment, you know, like a clam
I spent the weekend in Beaufort, NC. I looked over the water, and the marshes, and watched the sun go down over the sound. I watched the fishing boats come in at the end of the day. I felt the wind on my face. I squinted my eyes and tasted the salt in the air. I dreamed about buying a … Read More
Hey Architects, we are all going to die!
. We are all going to die! If you drop a lobster into a pot of boiling water, it’s going to freak out, because that water is hot. And, it’s going to know that it’s going to die. But, put the same lobster into a pot of cold water and slowly heat it up, and the lobster’s just going to … Read More
In tunnels
Tunnels Eventually, you don’t have another choice. You have to dig through the mountain. I bet they’d built the road along the edge of the mountains for years. They took the easiest route, even though it was out of the way. They meandered along, using the indirect path. And, they made a scenic route. They tried to convince themselves that … Read More
Community on a Bridge
I got caught in traffic a few weeks ago. Before the accident, we had been driving for hours. We listened to podcasts. We drank coffee. The kids were watching movies in the back of the van. For hours, we just drove. If we thought about it (which we never do), while we’re driving, we’re surrounded by hundreds of other people. … Read More
Pieces of Chicago
I’ve been visiting Chicago again this week, or at least pieces of it. I lived in Chicago, IL. for about a year just after college. In December of 1991 I met my wife while visiting friends over christmas break. We saw “white dog” at the Music-box and held hands. We went to the Green Mill, and stared at each other over vodka tonics. We … Read More