Life and Architecture

The Future of Hospitality Design

2012-01-23T19:06:00.001-05:00

Sometime in the 90's I remember reading about the home that Bill Gates was having built in Washington. The article was several pages long but the only thing I remember was how it described the guest experience. The article said that a visitor to the home would be given a pin that tracked them as they moved throughout the house. As they would enter a room, the house would sense their arrival and change all of the art on the walls to their favorite art and all of the music in the air to their favorite music. Their preferences would have been provided weeks in advance on a questionnaire that they would have filled out. They would be served their favorite foods and anything pertaining to their hobbies or interests would also be available. I remember thinking at the time that this was sort of creepy in an Orwellian way. Little did I realize that Gates had figured out the very essence of Hospitality, even if he was going about it in a strange kind of way.

Hospitality is defined as the relationship between guest and host; the art of being hospitable. It is about welcoming your guests and ensuring that they are well provided for. In recent weeks I had asked a group of close friends and colleagues "What was the best hospitality experience you ever had?" I said that it didn't necessarily have to be a 'hotel' and that it could be a B and B, a friend's house, a relative's place, or whatever. Surprisingly most people chose an experience that they had over the place itself. For example, one friend said that the most enjoyable vacation they'd had was renting a little shore bungalow with some friends. Another cited an Inn that was part of a special trip but they couldn't even remember the name of the place. And my own wife picked a bed and breakfast that served afternoon tea with fresh baked scones.

What this experiment confirmed to me is that people remember how they feel at a place more than they remember the place itself. You always remember an experience that is out of the ordinary or when someone goes out of their way to make your stay more pleasurable. Having worked in the Hospitality Design industry for a number of years you get accustomed to hearing phrases like 'brand standards' or 'signature elements.' Some hotels even have proprietary 'scents' that are pumped in through the duct work. Unfortunately, this uniformity tends to counteract the idea of being hospitable. It takes the personal element out of the equation, which is essential to a good Hospitality experience.

Fortunately, a new group of young companies are out to change all that. These companies are out to create geographically specific and lifestyle oriented destinations that don't try to please everyone. I remember staying at the ACE hotel in Portland, Oregon and finding a record player with a crate of vinyl in my room. I will never forget how cool that felt. The desk looked like it came from an old army barrack and the bedspread and pillows looked like something from a camping trip. When I went down to the restaurant, there were more locals there than hotel guests. This was truly a unique kind of place and the food was fresh and delicious. Definitely not hotel food. Companies like ACE along with others such as King and Grove have tapped into a timeless element that has long been forgotten in the Hospitality industry. They are making destinations that are all about experiencing the place and sharing it with their guests instead of drugging them with rewards points or an all you can eat breakfast buffet. And while the new face of hospitality may be smaller more niche oriented properties, this kind of development will create more variety in the market and more choice for the consumer.

So the next time you are looking for a cool place to stay, get off hotels.com and check out the feedback on trip advisor. You just might find something unique that makes you feel like a human again.

Why I started Pocono Modern

2011-12-13T00:22:00.001-05:00

If you have ever read this blog, I suppose you have come to know alot about what I think about the current states of things. Like most Architects, I have quite alot of opinions about how things run and I do my best to try and affect change where I can. I think that's all you can really do.

When I worked for other companies I found that clients were seldom interested in my opinion about things. In most cases they had already made up their minds about what size workstations they wanted to use or how best to layout a space. I was merely a facilitator. I was the one who put it all on paper and validated their theories about how many people could fit on a floor. That kind of work makes you money but doesn't give you much else.

When I would drive to meetings, I would think about the kind of job I REALLY wanted. It would be the kind of job where you could create things that matter to people. And when I say 'matter' I mean things that were important in the context of a person's life.

A number of years ago there was this documentary on Frank Lloyd Wright that I saw on PBS. One of the stories that was recounted was about a couple who had commissioned Wright to design a home and were very pleased with the result. Unfortunately for this couple though, they could not agree on much else and so it was decided that they would get a divorce. The only problem was that neither one of them wanted to leave the house. Apparently, the only thing they could agree on was how magnificent the house was. And so they both stayed, one on one side and one on the other. I hope to design anything that matters that much to someone.

Four years ago I decided I was going to try and do something that mattered to me. I bought a piece of land. I designed a home. I managed to find a way to build it without getting a loan. I was really proud of it.

I believe that anyone can have a great place to live. It doesn't take alot of money. It doesn't take a big piece of land. The only thing it takes is a person to pay attention to how they live and then to create the kinds of spaces that serve those needs. I believe that we are doing that at Pocono Modern. I am thankful that we have found a group of clients that believe many of the same things that we do about what a home is. I will end the year with a quote from cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead:

'"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

She was from Northeast PA after all. See you all in 2012.

Steve Jobs and a Legacy of Design

2011-10-06T11:49:00.001-04:00

I started writing this post over a month ago when Steve Jobs resigned as CEO of Apple. At the time, I felt really disturbed over this news because it signaled something that many people did not want to acknowledge. It signaled was that Steve Jobs was near the end of his life on earth.

To most people, his death will probably be a blip in the news feed and by next week we will go back to talking about Greek debt or something. But to me, I found a kinship in the work that Steve Jobs did and how he saw the universe. In a world where so many leaders seem to be following a broken compass, I felt reassured that somebody at the top gets it. And not only do they get it, they want to share it with everyone else. This thought gave me comfort.

As I read the many articles and editorials that are flooding the news stream right now, I feel a little scared. Probably more scared than I feel about the economy or terrorists and I know that sounds horrible to say. Yes, I'm sure Tim Cook and Apple will continue to churn out great products and build on the foundation that Steve Jobs created. But somehow, I really did feel like Steve Jobs was looking out for people like me. People who feel that the world could be a better place if we focus on just a few really important things. Steve Jobs used Design to create a line of products that focused on improving communication, creating art, and providing entertainment. Steve Jobs believed in Design against all odds. Although Apple's growth had always outpaced industry standards, his focus was never corporate profits. His focus was on changing the world and making it better. And even though his success is undeniable, it is funny how many business minds dismiss it as a 'one-off' phenomenon. Apple always seems to be cited as an example and almost dismissed as quickly. And that is what really scares me. It scares me that most people really don't understand how building a quality product that is well designed will translate into both success and value.

Steve Jobs was the loudest voice for the movement of Design and Quality. Now that his voice has left us (at least physically) I worry about who will take up that stance. I worry that it won't be taken up at all. At least for the moment, we have enough of his wisdom to help us find the way. I will leave you with a couple of quotes from Steve Jobs on Design and Quality:

'Design is a funny word. Some people think design means how it looks. But of course, if you dig deeper, it’s really how it works. The design of the Mac wasn’t what it looked like, although that was part of it. Primarily, it was how it worked. To design something really well, you have to get it.'

“When you’re a carpenter making a beautiful chest of drawers, you’re not going to use a piece of plywood on the back, even though it faces the wall and nobody will ever see it. You’ll know it’s there, so you’re going to use a beautiful piece of wood on the back. For you to sleep well at night, the aesthetic, the quality, has to be carried all the way through.”

Rest in Peace Mr. Jobs. We miss you already.

Why Architecture Matters after Sept. 11

2011-09-13T14:12:00.000-04:00

I grew up in the suburbs of Manhattan in Long Island. A trip to New York City was about as foreign an adventure as one could hope to have. I remember taking the Long Island Rail Road into Penn Station and looking out the window the whole time. Right before you take the final plunge into the tunnels of New York, there is this moment that you can see the skyline . I remember being 12 years old and looking at that skyline thinking how impossibly tall the Twin Towers seemed. It would be many years later that I stood at the base of those buildings and looked up watching the towers disappear into the sky.

On September 11, 2001 I was a young architect working in Manhattan for a large design firm. Most of my clients were financial firms in lower Manhattan and I would routinely take the Path train in from Hoboken, where I was living at the time. On that day, I would have been coming up from the Path around 8:45 AM if not for a last minute schedule change that put me in Midtown instead. I remember coming up from the N/R subway line and seeing crowds around the TV's in the lobby of the GM Building. The rest, as they say, is history. I spent the better part of the day walking all over Manhattan trying to get back to New Jersey. I made it as far south as 14th street and as far north as 96th street. I watched ash covered people emerging from downtown as a chimney cleaner would emerge out of a chimney. The loss of human life was incomprehensible. It's the kind of thing you never quite get over. Even 10 years later, the loss that we feel for those who died cannot be repaired. Not with a memorial. Not with the death of any terrorist leader. Not with the sacrifice of thousands of others. It will never heal. Unlike Pearl Harbor, this attack was right in our face, in the wide open space of a beautiful morning and broadcast internationally for everyone to see. It's not the kind of thing people will laugh about in 30 years. It's the kind of thing that stirs up the same emotions every time you think about it.

I don't know if it's because of my career or my personality, but I have always felt that the best tribute to those who died would have been to build those buildings back, exactly as they were. I mean no disrespect to the families of the victims by saying this. I realize that there were many bodies that were never recovered and those families will never be made whole again. But I also believe that those buildings represented more to our country than just steel and glass. When built, they were innovative, iconic, and symbolic. They represented the greatness of American engineering and were incredible works of Architecture. There are few buildings that have been built in NYC in the last 40 years that could be identified by the average person on the street. A visit to the top of the World Trade Center was nothing short of magical.

Architecture is not exactly America's national past time. There are few notable structures that really influence people's lives. The destruction of life on Sept. 11 was irreplaceable. The destruction of Architecture was replaceable. I can't think of any better symbol of American resolve and unity than to put those buildings back exactly as they were. It would have sent a message to the world that we will get back up. And in that ascension we will heal together. As far as I know they did not leave a big hole in the Pentagon. I think the memorial that was built is moving and elegant. I also think that it would have been just as elegant if it were a few blocks south. To visit the site of the former World Trade Center a decade later and be staring at two holes in the ground only makes me feel sad. And while that might be the desired result, I don't want to feel sad anymore. I would rather feel inspired and proud. I think that Architecture could have done that. I think that Architecture can do that. I think Architecture has to aspire to that, otherwise what's the point?

What does 'modern' mean anyway?

2011-09-09T01:15:00.000-04:00

If you are one of the many people who attended a Design school of any type within the last 30 years you probably were taught to be somewhat forward thinking. Most schools today try to best prepare their students for the world which they will enter upon graduation. And let's face it, that world is a MODERN world. It is a world full of technology and opportunity for those who wish to embrace it. I don't know how many successful architects are still using a T-square and a drafting table, but I doubt it's very many (Glenn Murcutt may be the only one).

That being said, when the conversation turns to Architecture, the word 'modern' has a very negative connotation. Modern buildings are thought to be harsh and cold, made of steel and glass and very often devoid of emotion. Modern homes are thought to be reserved for movie stars and egomaniacs who like the idea of living in a place that looks like it's meant to be on display but not really 'lived in'. Even the real estate industry has turned it's back on the word 'modern' by replacing it with 'contemporary' in its listings. If no one disputes that we all live in a 'modern' world, then why are modern buildings so few and far between? I don't see people driving around in Model T's, so why would people build their houses in the styles of by-gone eras? I think the answer lies in the fact that no one really knows what 'modern' is.

Let's start with a textbook definition. Modern is defined as 'of or relating to present or recent time'. By that definition anything that exists today is Modern. If you went out and built a pyramid tomorrow, it would be a modern pyramid. This is part of the problem. I don't really think that the definition of the word itself is applicable anymore based on how quickly our society changes. Relatively speaking, a Sony Walkman relates to recent time. Compared to a record player, a Sony Walkman is modern. It is also extinct.

The next problem is that there are very few examples of great modern design. If you open a trade publication you will find that most of the modern buildings that get published border on the ridiculous. They may photograph well and appear very progressive but in fact are borderline dysfunctional and very expensive to maintain. To me, this is not what inspires people, or at least, it doesn't inspire me. Judging from the widespread lack of modern housing, I'm guessing it doesn't inspire alot of home buyers either.

A few years back, the American automobile industry was headed for extinction. For years they had just regurgitated the same old designs and relied on the American consumer to buy their cars regardless of the competition. For 'the big three' there was only one way out of the crisis and that way was 'modernization'. They had to update their product lines, focus more on design and fuel efficiency in their fleets and start creating products that reflected the technology of the day. They introduced features such as parking assist, voice commanded automation, and better engine technology. All of this in sleeker more interesting modern designs. It has been shown time and time again that creating well crafted, socially relevant products will yield great success. To circle back, we have to ask ourselves: "Is the building industry really doing this? Are they giving modern design a good name?"

I think that modern architecture is not about building something that relates to present time. I think it is about building something that relates to present life. And in that pursuit it cannot be contained within an Architectural style. When I look at the homebuilding industry at present, I see the automobile industry three years ago. Unfortunately, there are no major homebuilders leading the way with socially relevant, modern designs. They just keep reformatting different versions of the same thing. If we as a society are truly to embrace modern design as a medium then we have to look at the most successful examples from Joseph Eichler to Steve Jobs and understand how the tools that we have available to us today can carry us into a better tomorrow.

The Genius of Louis Sullivan

2011-03-26T21:24:00.002-04:00

It is widely accepted that the origin of modern architecture can be found in the mid nineteenth century with the construction of the Crystal Palace in 1851 by Joseph Paxton. What is often not discussed is that Joseph Paxton was not an Architect, but a horticulturalist (is that a word?) who specialized in the design of greenhouses and conservatories. What is also not well known is that the Crystal Palace was a 'prefab' structure in that it was designed in a modular fashion and erected on site in a matter of months. The use of iron and glass as well as the progressive technology used in the construction ushered in a new era of 'superstructures' that led to the development of other modern marvels such as the Eiffel Tower and the Brooklyn Bridge (neither of which was designed by an Architect either). And while each of these structures is remarkable in its own way, none of them encapsulate the meaning of Modernism as well as three simple words attribute the great master Louis Sullivan - Form Follows Function.

Form Follows Function changed my life. It is not only the defining detail of Modern Design but it mirrors how nature truly works. Prior to Form Follows Function, Form Followed Technology where people built whatever was possible at a given place with the given tools and materials. The industrial revolution gave us the tools to build bigger and standardize building components at any given location. The genius of Louis Sullivan and the modern movement comes in the restraint that needed to be exercised in order to produce true works of art. Form Follows Function is the directive for that restraint.

I imagine that when Louis Sullivan uttered these words he was looking at the Neoclassic buildings of the Colombian Exposition and wondering why we were still building gigantic structures adorned with Roman and Greek columns when we were capable of so much more. What is interesting to me as an Architect is that not much has changed in over 100 years. Our buildings are as sad and referential as ever. We have forgotten about Form Follows Function and have gone back to Form Follows Technology. The Modernists of the early 20th century were all about Function. Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies Van Der Rohe, Marcel Breur, Eero Saarinen, Charles Eames. While their work is remarkable, none of them were ever interested in building the biggest or most ostentatious structure. I was recently struck by how small Saarinen's TWA terminal looks when compared to the new Jet Blue building that envelops it.

The genius of Louis Sullivan was that he understood that people are small. Gigantic buildings only become architecture when they are designed as a series of smaller human sized moments. If you ever get to NYC take a look at Sullivan's Bayard Building on Bleecker Street. You may have walked by it a hundred times, but if you stop and look at it closely, you will notice it is no ordinary building. It is a series of small gestures designed to engage and astonish the viewer. It's function is to demonstrate beauty amongst its giant clumsy neighbors.

Form Follow Function respects nature. It wastes nothing. It is not interested in ornament for ornament's sake. In Sullivan's world, ornament has a function. I once stumbled upon a book of banks that Louis Sullivan had designed and was struck by the attention given to the way that a teller would work, the procession of the customer, the appearance of safety and monumentality that each building had. When compared to what passes for a bank today, it is hard to imagine that we live in a 'progressive' society. The fact that Sullivan and his contemporaries were able to create such beauty in a world that did not have even a fraction of what is available to us today is staggering. When you look at what Eames did with plywood, what Wright did with textile blocks and stained glass, or what Mies did with structure, it is clear that they were all putting function before beauty.

Although I hardly ever quote, I will leave you with one of my favorites from Buckminster Fuller (another function guy): 'When I am working on a problem, I never think about beauty. But when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong.'

Next time you are stuck on a design problem, put functionality first and I'm sure you will find that the solution is not far off.

Starting a new Architecture Firm - Lessons Learned

2011-02-13T15:22:00.004-05:00

I have to apologize for my absence in the blogosphere. For the last six months I have been setting up a new company focused on the practice of Architecture and Interior Design. (For all you Pocono Modern fans: not to worry. Things in Jim Thorpe are unaffected) Luckily for me, I had already done this back in 2005 so I knew what to expect. What I could not anticipate was the current economic climate and the changes to the way business is done. Having now worked through most of the challenges, I wanted to recount some of the more interesting moments in the hopes that others who are considering starting a new firm (or any business for that matter) can be prepared. And while this topic diverts from the usual shop talk of Architecture, I hope that some may find it useful if you may be considering breaking out on your own.

Challenge #1 - Credit for small businesses is virtually non existent. In the old days, you fill out an application with an office supply company or an equipment company and they open an account for you. If it turns out that you don't pay your bills, they shut your account and send you collection notices until you pay. If there is equipment involved, they come and take it. Simple. This is not the case anymore. In order to get any account opened (from the phone company to the copier lease) I had to provide a valid credit card, checking account, professional references and sign a personal guarantee statement. In some cases, I was even turned down despite having near perfect personal credit. The bottom line is that if your company is less than 2 or 3 years old companies don't want to take the risk on you. My recommendation would be to start an LLC on paper even before you know you want to set up shop. That way you can say your company is alot older and skip alot of the red tape that a new business has to deal with.

Challenge #2 - Prices have skyrocketed. For the last few years, business has been down. Many companies have responded to this by raising their prices. I guess they figure if they are going to do less business, the business that they do have should be more profitable. In addition to this, raw material and shipping costs have generally gone up due to additional fuel costs and labor wages. The best way I know to combat this is to try and buy slightly used things that you can get a deal on. For example, there are many places that sell second hand office furniture (such as desks, chairs, and filing cabinets) where the pieces are like new. You can also get computers and office equipment off lease at a big discount. Let somebody else pay for the new stuff. Get yourself a better deal and save a little bit of the planet at the same time.

Challenge #3 - No one wants to help you. I remember when I started my last firm, there were people lined up to try and help us get work and spread the wealth around. Today, everyone is trying to take care of themselves. Most businesses are just trying to stay afloat until things normalize. Many have already laid off people and are operating on a skeleton crew. Companies are cutting back to the bare minimum and that doesn't leave alot of room for going out of their way to look after your interests. If you are going to build a company now, you have to do it on your own.

Challenge #4 - Every company has cut back on something. When we order product literature for building products, we used to get these big binders full of information. Now we get a stack of loose tearsheets with no binder. Companies used to beat down your door to come in and do a lunch presentation where they provide the lunch. Now you don't get so much as a cookie until you actually throw some business their way. Most companies think that these small saves add up to big savings. To me though, it tells you which companies are stable enough to satisfy a customer and which companies have poor management and are fighting for their lives.

Challenge #5 - The cost of money. If you are lucky enough to get some business line of credit or a business credit card, be prepared for really high interest rates. Despite record low borrowing costs from the federal government, banks are taking it to the few customers they have left. I recently cancelled a business credit account from Citibank when they jacked my rate to 28.99%. President Obama's credit card reform bill has done little to avert these kinds of abuses. Combine that with the fact that banks are not lending and you have a perfect storm for high interest rates. My suggestion would be to pay cash for as much as you can and use smaller local vendors that may extend better credit terms. They may charge a little more for the item, but in the end you will be ahead.

So, that's kind of what I have been doing for the last few months. I promise to return to my normal Architectural subject matter in the next post. For those of you who are also working on new businesses, I wish you all the best.

What would you pay an Architect?

2010-10-24T22:55:00.007-04:00

When I decided to pursue Architecture as a career, I really didn't know much about it. I did not grow up hearing about Le Corbusier nor did I spend summers travelling to Architectural monuments across the country. In fact, the only thing I truly knew about Architects was that Mike Brady was an Architect and he had a cool house in California with a kickin' home office. Truth be told, that was enough for me. I always liked the idea of living in a great space and being my own boss. I also liked the reaction I received when I told people my intentions. As George Costanza will tell you, people always seem to be impressed when you say you are an Architect. As far as the general public is concerned, they hold Architects in similar regard as doctors or lawyers (for better or worse). And like doctors or lawyers, most people can only imagine having to consult an Architect as a matter of necessity.

Now those of you who have read my blog know that the reality of the Architecture profession is much different than the perception. Most graduates spend years working at or around minimum wages and the only way to move up the pay ladder at a regular pace is to change jobs frequently. Each day working as an Architect is spent trying to justify your fees to clients and also trying to collect monies owed. When additional costs arise (usually due to field conditions or client changes) many clients are quick to try and assess penalties to our fees as though everything were our fault. And those of you who read my blog also know that we Architects have allowed this to happen as our society has moved to a value driven business model of convenience. We now find ourselves competing against big box home improvement stores and companies who leverage global workforces. To put it mildly, things are getting harder.

Three years ago, I made a decision to ditch the profession of Architecture for development. I sold my practice, started a development company and started building modern houses. The development business gives me the best of both worlds. I get to Design whatever I want to build and I get to sell a product that is tangible instead of a service that is intangible. I don't have to compete with other Architects on a dollar per hour basis and I can pretty much make my own schedule. Of course, I knew it was bound to happen that eventually people would start calling me about Design work. Originally, my thought was just to turn down Design work as I never found it to be as rewarding as development. But recently, the projects being offered my way have started to get more interesting and offer a greater sense of creative control. So the question now becomes what is Architecture in this post-recession economy? Are there firms out there just taking work at rock bottom prices just to keep the lights on? Do people still see Architects as valuable when facing a real estate market that won't likely recover for at least a decade? How important is green design in any new project? Would you hire an Architect to help you figure this stuff out and if so, what would you pay an Architect?

All of these questions reflect conversations that I have been having with other Architects. Some say that the recession has forced the weak companies out of business. Others say that the real estate collapse has created new opportunities for Architects to work with builders to re-engineer their product lines to meet 21st Century demands. For my part, I can only say that the Global Economy has added new challenges and opportunities to everyone's business. Clients of mine want to buy furniture from China (because it's cheaper) have renderings done in Southeast Asia (because it's cheaper) and want to use the internet for video conferencing instead of meeting in person (because it's cheaper). Surviving in business today means cutting costs and being efficient in order to make money on slimmer profit margins. It's only a matter of time before the entire profession of Architecture gets absorbed into the Construction industry similar to how big box stores chain stores are now putting supermarkets in all their stores. One stop shopping for convenience and because the big box stores will make it more attractive from a price perspective. They can afford to lose a little money on groceries and make it up on clothing or sporting goods. Architecture will be like Whole Foods: a niche resource for a very small part of the population who can afford it.

It is likely that I will start doing Design work again and that I will get some great opportunities. But I will tell you that that my approach to the work will be radically different. I will negotiate for more control and better terms while delivering greater value. If I can show a client how I can save them money, I will be able to better justify my own fees. I think this is what it will take to survive in Architecture, if we can survive at all.

The Top 5 American Architects working right now (according to me)

2010-08-18T15:29:00.010-04:00

Ever since Frank Lloyd Wright designed the Guggenheim and then up and died, people have been waiting for the next great American Architect. As I have written in the past, the average person is really not familiar with Architecture, let alone any one Architect in particular. Some people may be familiar with names like Gehry or Meier, but this is only because newspapers and magazines have publicized their work (albeit to mixed fanfare).

Recently, someone asked me who I thought were the best American Architects practicing today and I thought that this might be a good topic for a discussion. So before people start getting angry that their favorite Architect is not on my list, let me qualify the criteria that I think makes a great Architect in today's world. I don't know if all these would apply a hundred years ago, but here goes:

1. Great Architects satisfy their clients. They do this by solving complex problems involving functional needs, budget, schedule, available materials and environmental challenges. It doesn't matter if a building looks great if it doesn't serve its intended use, comes in over budget and leaks. Great looking buildings are nice as sculpture, but most people wouldn't want to pay millions of dollars for a sculpture.

2. Great Architects know how to build their designs. I believe that great Architects should carry on the tradition of the Master Builder or someone who knows how to get the work done. Most contractors I have met do not hold Architects in high regard, largely because most Architects are lost on a job site. A great Architect must not only know construction but be able to develop new means and methods when required. Architects like Frank Gehry and Richard Meier have built some impressive structures, but the details for their buildings are more often figured out by computers and design Architects than themselves.

3. Great Architects are both current and timeless. A building may look good when it's finished, but only time will tell if it will be around in 50 years. How many buildings from the 80's still look relevant? A great Architect can draw on the timeless tools of proportion, rhythm, scale, and physics to produces works that will be useful and desirable for years to come.

4. Great Architects must get their hands dirty. Some notable Architects are successful because of their pedigree and connections. They get the work, but they don't do the work. This is evident when you attend a lecture by that Architect. They can talk about the overall concepts and ideas, but they are lost when asked to discuss specific details. Great Architects stay involved with their projects and care more about the quality of the work than the size of their firm.

That being said, here's my top 5 contenders for great American Architects practicing today. These are in no particular order.

1- James Cutler - Cutler is one of the most successful architects working in the Pacific Northwest because he is an impeccable detailer and creates many beautiful structures from humble materials. Although he did alot of design for Bill Gates' compound in Washington, he is most known for elegant residences that elevate everyday living to a real art form.

2. Tom Kundig - A self proclaimed 'gizmologist' this Architect could easily work in the engineering department of any Hollywood studio. From giant doors designed to be opened by an eight year old, to moving facades that close up your house, this Architect approaches function from a very technical level and blurs the boundries between Architecture and Engineering. If you want to see something really special, check out a project he did for http://www.rollinghuts.com/

3. Stephen Kieran - One half of Kieran Timberlake, and the only East Coast member of my list. His work in the area of prefabrication as well as his portfolio of Social and Educational design is breathtaking. If you are ever in New Haven, Connecticutt you have to check out his work at Yale, specifically the sculpture gallery (above) and the dormitory that was erected in under a week through an advanced prefabrication process.

4. Jonathan Segal - Some days, I wish I had never heard of or met Jonathan Segal. If this were true, I may never have quit my corporate job to pursue development as an Architect. His work in San Diego is changing the profession of Architecture by empowering Architects to build on their own without clients. He lives by the Golden Rule (He who has the gold makes the rules) and has transformed the fabric of downtown San Diego with thoughtful and efficient buildings that have become highly coveted living spaces. With his own team of Architect/Contractors, he builds every project himself to ensure a high attention to detail and proper execution. He has also started a separate company (and a Master's program) whose sole mission is to educate Architects and all those interested on how to positively affect your surroundings through Design based development. We need more of that.

5. Ron Radziner - To say that Marmol Radziner is the most diversified Architectural Practice in the United States is probably an understatement. They are a Design Build firm that does both new work and Historic Restoration. They have more Construction Employees than Design staff. They have Architects running their own Millwork shop. They design everything from furniture to jewelry and they have their own prefab company. Pretty sweet. The design half of all that sugar is Ron Radziner. No disrespect to Leo Marmol, but these two guys do different things. Ron Radziner is the Design Architect. A master detailer and craftsman, his own home is the stuff that Architect's dreams are made of. When you can own a firm that spends five years faithfully restoring Richard Neutra's Kaufman House and then design schools for inner city kids, I think that's worth noting.

In conclusion, please do not be offended if you did not make the list. I didn't even put myself on my own list. All I can say is that there's always next year, right?

If not money, then how about respect? A Designer's Tale

2010-08-16T12:26:00.003-04:00

In the past few years, many Architects and Designers have seen their paychecks shrink. When asked, most people would say that this is probably due to the general economy and the recession. Three years ago, I might have said the same thing. Now I don't think that this is true. I believe the real culprit, the thing that we must overcome as a society is something far more devastating: Ignorance. Recently, I had a couple of exchanges with Clients that led me to believe this is more true than ever. Read on.

About three years ago, I was introduced to this guy who wanted to open a high end restaurant. Let's call him James. James was a seasoned Operator, which means he knew how to run the place. But he needed the money. James was looking for an investor and he was trying to assemble a team that would help sell the investor. I was placed on that team based on my experience as a Hospitality Designer and Architect. In addition to myself, James also had a notable chef, a marketing team, and a graphics and branding team. For two and a half years, James made his pitch to a variety of investors. No one wanted to commit. Finally after almost three years, James found a guy who was excited about the project. By now, the rest of the team had evaporated for one reason or another. I got a call from James and he said that he wanted me to meet with his investor to see if this bird would fly. At the meeting, I showed the investor my portfolio, I spoke about my credentials and I told him the process that we would implement in order to make the restaurant a reality. After he heard me describe everything soup to nuts, he looked at me and said that everything sounded great. He asked me to submit a proposal and we would go from there. Two days later, I submitted a very aggressive proposal, with a very competitive fee. Because I had been tracking the project so long, I wanted to make sure that I could get it, so I cut my usual fee by 20% to ensure my appointment to the team. About a week later, I got a call from James and he told me that the investor was overwhelmed by my fee. He then asked if I could cut my fee by an additional 50%. I said that I couldn't. I was then informed that the investor knew an Architect who could do it for the low fee. I told James that they should go with that guy, no hard feelings.

Story number two begins with a pair of Clients who want to renovate the interior of their house. They purchased a builder's home and after three years have found out that the layout does not work at all. When I met this Client I told them that a house was a machine for living in. That Client told me that his machine was broken. I made two visits to this Client and spent over 10 hours talking to them and writing proposals. When they got my detailed proposal (which described what we would need to do, room by room) I could see that they were 'overwhelmed' by the Design fee. I then proceeded to explain to them that their house was not designed by an Architect but was instead built by a builder. It is common knowledge that most homes are built by Builders who are unassisted by Architects. Most people would rather spend their money on builder upgrades than Design sensibility. That's just how it is. Now I am standing in front of a client who has a budget upwards of $50,000 to repair his broken machine but will not give me the go ahead to spend a few thousand in Design fees.

These are both very true stories. What is also true is that I have a five year Architectural Degree, 15 years of practical experience, have passed 10 different professional examinations, and am legally liable for every project that I touch. Unfortunately, most people do not place a value on these things. The value that they assign to your services is only comparable to their lowest price option. If you are printing letterpress business cards for $400 and someone can get overnight laser printed cards for $15, most people will want to pay $15. Our retail economy has taught people this very well. Don't look at the quality, look at the price. Practically every big store speaks to price in their slogans. "Save Money, Live Better". "Get More, Spend Less." "More Saving, More Doing".

And whether your competition is a Builder or a peer who wants to low ball you, I am asking you please not to compromise your quality as a Design Professional. These kinds of compromises are why we find ourselves in the mess we are today. Eventually you will find those clients who appreciate the value of your services and you can just say no to those clients that want you to cut corners. That's what I ended up doing with the restaurant. I told James, "Thanks, but no thanks." If I'm not going to be compensated fairly, then I demand to be respected, if only by myself.

Can Design Really be Altruistic?

2010-06-30T22:40:00.004-04:00

I once read an interview with Ayn Rand where she described "The Fountainhead" as a tale of the altruist vs. the egoist. Altruistic behavior is defined as being unselfishly devoted to the welfare of others. Egoist behavior is exhibited by those who only care about themselves. I don't know what the percentages are, but I would guess that if you divide the general population into the two categories, most people would fall into the latter of the two. At first, I thought this was just a social commentary. People are selfish, end of story. However, the more I looked at the idea of altruism, I discovered that it's very difficult for Altruism to triumph over Capitalism. This became clear to me after reading a book by Karrie Jacobs describing her search for the perfect $100,000 house.

In the book the author travels over 14,000 miles across the United States to see if it is possible to buy the perfect little modern dream house anywhere in the United States for the total cost of $100,000. She seeks out the most interesting and innovative of the practicing architects available to her (Ms. Jacobs was the founding Editor-in-Chief of Dwell Magazine, so I'm sure she knows a few) and grills them all about the possibility of such a house. In most cases, the Architects are reluctant to guarantee that such a house could be built.

This whole thing got me thinking: Let's say you could build a 1,000 SF modern house for $100,000. And let's say it even looks cool and holds up pretty well to the usual wear and tear. And let's say you got it published in a magazine because you did such a good job that you wanted everyone to see your inexpensive house. What would happen?

If I had to guess, I'd say that the price would skyrocket as soon as your phone could stop ringing. While the initial idea of designing an affordable modern house has real altruistic merit, the reality is that demand would drive the price up. Does anyone remember the arrival of the Mini Cooper? When they started selling Mini Coopers in the US, they were advertising the car around $17,000. As soon as the waiting list got to be more than two months, they jacked up the price in order to quell demand a little. Today, a new Mini Cooper will set you back almost double the initial offering price.

Often in history, Design tries to solve a problem affordably, and succeeds. Look at the Eames Bent Plywood chair. Designed as a modern affordable furniture solution, the Eames Bent Plywood Chair was made in the USA and well within the reach of the average American when it was introduced. Today, a chair like that can run as much as $1,000 per chair. The same is true of the Emeco Navy Chair. Designed of aluminum (steel was hard to come by) these chairs were supposed to be indestructible and affordable so that the military could deploy them all over the world. Today, a simple aluminum chair like that will set you back quite a few Benjamins.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that as a Designer, you may have the best of intentions. You may want to design something affordable and cool. But if you succeed in making something cool, people will covet it and then Capitalism kicks in. Because of Capitalism, I believe it is very hard for anyone to really produce Altruistic design. Even if you do it because you have a ton of money, the work will still not get to the intended recipient.

Let me give you a final example. Let's say a hot musical act wants to put on a show, but they want the tickets to be affordable and they don't want them to be scalped. Let's say the only way to get these tickets is to wait in line the day of the show. The band feels good about this plan because they want the real fans to be the beneficiaries of their generous gift. Unfortunately, what would end up happening is that people would be renting themselves out to stand in line for the wealthier people who want to go but don't want to wait in line. I've seen it happen. That's Capitalism for you.

In conclusion, I don't want to stop you from Designing the world's next needed thing. I would just like to suggest that if you truly have altruistic intentions for a design project, then perhaps you might be better off charging what the market will bear and then giving the proceeds to charity. At least then you know that the beneficiaries of your efforts will be of your own choosing.

Are you a Designer in search of inspiration? Look behind you.

2010-06-16T17:28:00.004-04:00

We've all been there. Faced with a new assignment, you sit there staring at a blank page (or screen) wondering where to begin. You want to create something really great but don't know where to start. Too many times you've had a great idea shot down due to how expensive it seems or how unconventional it is, so you think it might make sense to play it safe and not waste your time. You want to give your client options, but you also want to make money on the project. What do you do? For me, the thing that has always worked is precedents. Studying older works from previous decades, and in some cases centuries. Let me use Architecture as an example.

For me, Modern Design in this country peaked in the 1950's. From toasters to houses, everyone was buzzing with the promise of tomorrow in the television age. Pick up any magazine from Ladies Home Journal to LIFE and you will find that most of what was produced in those years is now the stuff that legends are made of. Globalization had not yet happened and the United States was a hotbed of industrial activity. The world's greatest Architects all aspired to come to the United States and work. Mies. Gropius. Neutra. In fact, so much Modern Design was produced during those years that we have yet to discover it. A recent book entitled "Julius Shulman: Chicago" featured mid-century works from many architects that I had never heard of. One such architect named Edward Dart, designed one of the best houses that I have ever seen and could be featured in the page of Dwell magazine right now. So it goes without saying that there is alot of good stuff out there from the past that is only now coming to light thanks to the Internet.

The other great thing about looking at older work is that you see it in the context of 21st century life. Usually this means that you can improve it based on the technology currently available. A good example of this is radiant floor heating. Most people think that radiant floor heating was developed in the 20th century but the concept goes back over 2000 years to ancient Korea and Rome where various underfloor heating techniques were applied. Koreans used warm stones and heaters placed under the floor to keep their feet warm once they removed their shoes upon entry to a home. The Romans had a similar concept. And although the technology of distributing hot water through copper (or plastic) tubing did not come until thousands of years later, the idea had been in place for centuries.

The more you study history, the more you realize that people have not really changed. As Billy Joel said so eloquently, "We Didn't Start the Fire - It was always burning since the world's been turning". That being the case, finding an existing torch is usually more productive than trying to make your own flame. That's not to say that there aren't the right times and opportunities to make your own flame. I'm just saying that often you can get inspiration or the seed of an idea from studying relevant ideas from yesteryear.

If you are still not convinced, check out www.alvinlustig.org . Another pioneer of Design, Lustig's work is still fresh and relevant despite how long ago it was done. Who knows, maybe there's a germ of inspiration in there for your next project.

I do realize that it's the future that everyone is concerned about. I do realize that innovation is what everyone is looking for. However, I also have found that there is alot of great work out there, most of it unknown. In many ways, technology has made us less competent and less focused. We are more reliant on computers to do our work for us. Going back to earlier times allows us to see the application of a human mind on a problem without distraction. If you like Calatrava, check out Pier Luigi Nervi. If you like Pentagram, check out Herbert Matter. The results will shock you.

Can anyone REALLY be a Designer?

2010-05-26T09:49:00.003-04:00

If I had a nickel for every person who woke up and decided to become a "Designer" I would probably be rich. It wasn't enough that all of these musicians and actresses decided to start clothing lines and call themselves 'fashion designers'. Now we have dozens and dozens of TV shows featuring mock creatives with no relative experience doing anything from cutting hair to flipping houses. Reality TV has empowered networks and individuals to realize their dreams in new professions for which they have zero training. Last night, while watching one such program, I wondered if it were really true: "Can anyone really call themselves a designer?"

Now before someone gets all offended, I am not discounting the fact that there have been MANY great design professionals who stumbled into it without any premeditation. Many of my friends ended up in a design profession because of something that started as a hobby. I'm not saying that all of these people are not talented. They are. But while many design professionals are struggling, there are others scooping up commissions because they are cheap and their qualifications are never checked. Let me give you an example.

A friend of mine lost their job doing graphic design at a boring corporate company because the company's marketing budget had been cut due to the economy. That company cut three staff positions, but still had a modest amount of layout and design work to do. A senior person at that company suggested that they use a freelance designer to get them by. Unfortunately, they did not offer the freelance position to any of the designers that they had just laid off, despite their familiarity with the material and the company. They thought it would be simpler to place an add on Craigslist where they could dictate the pay and the terms of the position. They ended up hiring a person who was not a graphic designer, but successfully marketed themselves as such. This person was just someone who needed some extra money and was looking for a part time gig to supplement their income as an accountant. Apparently, they knew the software very well and had a great portfolio of personal work that they marketed as 'freelance'. The accountant designer was hired and everything was moving along. One day the freelancer was asked to design a logo for a new project that the company was starting. The freelancer tried to step up to the occasion but unfortunately spent the entire schedule producing some of the worst logos ever made. The company was under a deadline and needed more. They called my friend up and said they were in a tough spot and asked for help. Apparently my friend was not talented enough to retain as an employee, but talented enough to bail this company out of a jam. My friend politely declined and then proceeded to call me up and vent about it.

I'm sure you have all heard similar stories. I recently had a friend who wanted to redesign their apartment and hired a total stranger that had been referred to them. When I asked what their credentials were, I was told that this person had 'a good eye' for style. I asked my friend if they had seen any of their work, and was told that they really hadn't done much. When I probed a little further it turned out this person was unemployed and was doing 'interior design'

for fees that were well below market rates. My friend had not even considered engaging my help because he felt that I would have been too expensive. At the end of the day, this person painted a few walls and went shopping at a big box store for my friend's apartment. The result was average at best.

Now, I'm not saying all this to discourage people from doing any profession they choose. I'm sure that there are many people out there with real talent and potential. What I'm asking for is this: If you really do feel that you have a real passion for a creative profession, then respect the profession and the professionals who rely on quality work to make a living at it. Sure, it makes for good TV to watch people fall on their face during a home renovation. But in real life, a bad project hurts the entire profession and one's ability to get new work. Those who have been burned or ripped off go around telling people what a waste of money it was to spend it on design fees. For every company selling a $99 logo, there are really talented designers scraping by because no one will pay them what their time is really worth.

Finally, let me say this about 'self-taught' Designers. Many of you have genuine talent. There is no arguing that. But talent alone is not enough. You have to apply that talent in education, apprenticeship, and respect of the profession. You also have to be honest with your clients about your abilities and your experiences. Many design professions (particularly those related to Building and Construction) have serious legal ramifications for mis-representing yourself. So before you go around calling yourself a "Designer" make sure that you are ready to put in the work and respect your peers. Get yourself an internship and invest in learning anything anyone will teach you, even if it's what not to do. Once you make this investment, you will likely not give away your time so cheaply (unless it's for volunteer work) and your work will improve. In the end, your work will speak for itself no matter what title you put on a business card.

The Destruction of Sylvia Packard Middle School (and so much more)

2010-04-04T21:32:00.017-04:00

In many cases, your life is the result of a million coincidences that you are mostly unaware of. You can't pick who your parents are. You can't control the weather in your part of the world. You probably don't even have a choice as to who your friends are going to be in high school. They end up being the people who are most like you in terms of social standing, appearance, and financial status. With so many people in today's world searching for purpose and understanding, it's important to realize that the path you choose to walk in life is often not your choice at all.

I grew up and went to school in a middle class neighborhood in Long Island. The schools were all sturdy masonry buildings with flat roofs. I loved school. I recently realized that I could remember every detail of each school I attended in my town. From the terrazzo floors of my high school to the golden bricks of my elementary school to the metal railings of my middle school. The floors were always waxed and shiny; the dull black science countertops always felt warm to the touch. All in all, these were sturdy buildings designed by competent architects with an eye for detail. Built in the 60's, all of these buildings are still standing today. At least for now.

What I also recently realized was that these schools subconsciously provided me with a love for architecture; more specifically a love of place. With their large aluminum frame windows, generous natural light, and perfectly executed floor plans, these buildings made my young educational experience a pleasure. I remember the brick lined corridors of my elementary school and running my fingers along the grout lines as our class walked the corridors each day. The grout was tooled to be smooth and curved and perfectly fit young fingers without getting scratched. While I can't remember every teacher I ever had, I can remember every class room I ever sat in. I remember the pull down maps that opened as closed as needed, I remember the Eames-esque bent plywood chairs that we sat in, and I remember how the breezes filled the room when all of the windows were opened. We didn't have air conditioning or even a fan. There was nothing made of plastic.

Now while it sounds like I am romanticizing the experience (and maybe I am) this genuinely relates to the state of things in our society. Everyday I hear people say how our world is degrading around us. Values, Customs, Quality. Everyday we lose a little ground to the future. In the town that I grew up in, there was a vote last June to tear down the middle school that I attended. Of course, this came as no surprise to residents, as the school had been closed for more than a decade as a middle school. In recent years it had been rented out as a day care and for office space, but really the sad and inevitible conclusion was that one day Sylvia Packard Middle School would be torn down. And now this day has arrived.

It would not be so sad if not for the fact that the Board of Education had made a choice some years ago that it would be better to build a new middle school than to 'modernize' the current one. The funny thing about that is that the old school (built in 1964) is far more modern than the new one. With its vaulted concrete bus canopy, it's custom aluminum window facade, curved masonry stair towers, and endless examples of craftsmanship, the comparison is not even close. You could not afford to build a building like this in today's market. The craftsman don't exist and the Architects don't spend this much time on Design. The following pictures are just a sample of the Building's elegance (double click to enlarge):

Now take a look at the school that replaced it (designed by Wiedersun Associates):

While we cannot save every building from the wrecking ball, we can do our best to appreciate the beauty of another's effort in the pursuit of passion. The Sylvia Packard Middle School was designed and constructed with an attention to detail that rivals the work of any great modern Architect. The scale of the building is both human and monumental. The concrete design is economical and poetic. The use of unit masonry as both a giver of structure and a delicate screen creates something bordering on magic when the light dances through it. Schools should not only be places where children get inspired, they should be inspiring. It is both sad and disappointing that the educators of the 1960's were more forward thinking about education than those who are making the decisions more than five decades later.

Looking back, it is easy to see that my passion for Building and Design was greatly inspired by my surroundings. What I can't understand is how we could build schools like this in the 1960's, but we can't build these kinds of buildings today? We have used our technology to engineer the quality out of construction instead of improving it. Instead of masonry, we have foam. Instead of drywall, we have acoustical tile. Instead of terrazzo, we have vinyl flooring. I can only hope that the next Renaissance is around the corner and that future generations will realize that beauty is essential to human happiness. For me, the Sylvia Packard Middle School represents a beauty in constructed form that can serve as an example, even if that example relates to that which should not be destroyed.

Our latest project finally nears the end and here's what it looks like!

2010-03-29T22:55:00.013-04:00

For those of you who have been kind enough to read my posts, I have to apologize for the lengthy time in between each one. Lately, it seems as though I only get to write about once a month. Rather than go into the trials and tribulations of the Design/Development business and what keeps me away from my computer, I figured that I would just show you. For the last seven months, we have been feverishly working on a new prototype called 'the Rayburn' and in the past seven days we have come alarmingly close to completion. Other than a few open items such as paint touch ups and landscaping, we are mostly done. Those who have been keeping up with my Design philosophies will be able to see how those manifest themselves into three dimensional form. And for the rest of you who just like to see other people's houses, here's a look inside of our latest project. Thanks to all of you for your patience while we put this together and of course, we would love to hear any comments about the work. I will return to my regularly scheduled Design commentaries next session, but for now, enjoy "the Rayburn". Better images can be found on our Facebook group or our web site at www.poconomodern.com

Has Design just been through a 'Lost Decade'?

2010-02-16T11:56:00.001-05:00

If you have been following media coverage of the current recession you probably have heard the term 'the Lost Decade'. This refers to the notion that the current recession has erased any gains in employment and economic growth that the past decade had created. And, as a bonus, the past ten years marks the first time when investment income (using standard averages) has actually contracted over a ten year period. The reasons for all of this are beyond the subject of this blog, but in summary, the dollar just ain't what it used to be. For anyone in a creative profession, we have certainly seen rising unemployment, Client focus on cost instead of quality, and the globalization of many industries. Has Design been through a "Lost Decade" and if so, how can we rebuild and re-brand?

Our economy constantly cycles through a series of 'boom' and 'bust' periods. Those of you may remember the 'dot com' boom of the 90's where companies were setting up shop overnight with furniture made of plastic and bright colors on every wall. Industrial buildings that had been occupied by printing companies where converting into 'loft office suites' practically overnight. While all this seemed good for the economy, that printing shop was probably forced out of business and the work went elsewhere. I recently looked at a bunch of books at my local Barnes and Noble to discovered that they were all printed in China. Madison Avenue may still be where advertising dollars are spent, but the work of those graphic artists often gets produced in other places for less money.

I experienced a similar phenomenon when I owned a Design firm that did a lot of Hospitality Design work. We would spend weeks designing a set of guestroom furniture only to have to wait months for prototypes of the designs to come back from the Chinese factory. I remember our pieces also being held up in Customs once for almost two weeks alone. Now don't get me wrong. I'm not dissing on China here. There are many good quality products that are made by hard working people there. The trend that I'm interested in is whether or not we have made progress as Designers due to the economic trends that have affected our business. Globalization is obviously one such trend.

Another trend that we have to consider is the value of our dollar. Our clients love to spend fewer and fewer of these things, even though they are worth less and less each year. When my Graphic Designer told me that our new stationary and business cards would cost over $7,000 to produce, I will admit that I flinched a little. But then I remembered that a business card may be the only piece of my company that a prospective client ever gets to touch. I knew I had made the right decision the day I took a bunch of letters down to the Post Office and the clerk said that I had the coolest envelopes that she had ever seen. (for more on our stationary design see Ty Mattson's blog at http://mattsoncreative.com/blog/category/brand-identity/ ) That being said, I don't think Client's think about Design in this way. Most companies market themselves as though Design were a service that needs to be rendered, not a mark of success like Fashion. In Fashion, there is a huge difference between Old Navy and Gucci. Unfortunately, most people do not see design this way. They will go for the Old Navy prices all day long. As Designers, we need to give our clients a good value for the money that they spend and also help them create return on that investment. Then perhaps our Clients will see Design as a vehicle that can generate business for them.

Lastly, I would like to briefly talk about the Internet. Ten years ago, the Internet was slower, uglier, and used primarily for e-mail. Today, the Internet is unavoidable. I wish I could say that it has made it easier to get work. It hasn't. Instead, we are now overwhelmed by information. A Google search for 'graphic designer nyc' will yield about 25.5 Million results. Seriously. In the old days, there was a book or a professional society you could turn to find a qualified professional. Today, anyone with the ability to point and click can set up a website with images that may or may not reflect their work. People have businesses selling stock images just to help other businesses make their collateral look legitimate. If you don't the time or money to hire a real photographer, you can buy a stock image for $1. Is this helping photographers? Maybe. But just like everything else, it's one step forward, two steps back.

So, given the current realities, how can we move design forward? I have come up with three easy steps, and if all Designers adopt them, I guarantee the respective professions will be better off. Here they are, in no particular order:

1- Volunteer your services to create great Design opportunities. Whether you are in Interior Designer or a Graphics wizard, there are many people and/or organizations that could use the help of a qualified professional. They don't always have the budget so this is your opportunity to get a foot in the door by volunteering your services. Charities are also a great place to help. And here's the best part: you get to pick the Client. Not only will you be excited by choosing something or someone that you like, but you will also feel good about the work. And while it may not pay money, it will create a great piece for your portfolio and potentially lead to other paying gigs.

2- Don't compromise quality - If you have a Client that wants to work with you (for one reason or another) don't jeopardize that relationship by allowing them to demand cheap work. The only thing worse than giving in to a Client's cheapness is getting blamed for how crappy something looks after they see the result. If you're going to be associated with it, make sure you want to be associated with it. Even if it means sticking to your guns in a tough spot. Remember that one compromise leads to another and eventually you're shopping at Walmart.

3- Help your peers - One of the problems I have with Architects is that (professionally) they all see each other as competitors. They compete for work, they compete to get the best consultants, and they compete for fees. What they don't realize is that they're killing the profession. I took another approach. I decided to befriend a bunch of really good architects and I sometime throw work their way. I do this because it helps me out. Not every client is a great fit. Not every project is one that I am interested in. If I can't make the Client happy (because I don't like them or their project) then I'm not going to be doing anyone any good. In turn, I create a relationship with a colleague that can have other benefits. Maybe they will refer work to me. Maybe they will let me plot at their office when my plotter dies at 5:00 on a Friday. Either way, we're all in this together. It is better to be a small office that does great work, than a big office that just churns out the same crap all the time.

Has the last decade been lost? In many ways, it has. Salaries and positions have been shed. The Internet has given everyone a voice and they're all screaming at the same time. Fortunately, we now have the tools and the experience to avoid a collapse similar to the one we just experienced. Working together, we can lead our profession into a new Renaissance and spur unexpected growth for all creatives. Dare to dream.

The Power of the Plan - some tips on getting things done..

2010-02-10T16:00:00.004-05:00

Today I realized that it's been over a month since my last post. I guess I could blame it on having a newborn in the house or working day and night to finish our latest project. But simply put, my problem is organization. While I have the best of intentions to accomplish everything I set out to do, I often fall short and realize that I need to re-think how the parts of my life are organized. In short, I need a better plan. Now don't get the wrong idea. I am not saying that I am disorganized or inefficient. I own a 2 person company that needs to do the work of 12. In today's economy, you cannot get ahead by replicating the status quo. You have to find a way to be better. Hence, the PLAN.

Today I want to talk about THE PLAN, not just as a component of a set of architectural documents, but as a metaphor for universal organization. You may be familiar with LeCorbusier's quote, 'The Plan is the Generator'. When I first heard this quote in college, I didn't really get it. Almost two decades later, these five little words impact almost everything I do. Today, I hope to describe how you can be more effective by analyzing the steps in making a great plan. As you will see, these steps hold true for both the architectural document and the notion about getting things done.

Step 1 - What do you want?

When I first think about designing anything, I ask myself what I am trying to accomplish. I say, "Self - what's the big idea here?" After I do this, I then make a written list of all of my goals in as much detail as possible. For example, if I were designing a house, I might develop a program that lists all of the spaces that I want to be in the house and I might assign them a value. It might say something like "Master Bedroom - 200 SF, Master Bathroom - 80 SF, Laundry Room - 40 SF" and so on. If I were thinking of developing a print ad for Pocono Modern, I would make a list of all the sentiments and feelings that I want the ad to get across. I might even write a list of words or adjectives that would help me brainstorm later on. Make no mistake, this step is crucial to carrying out a plan. You have to know what you are trying to do before you can figure out how to do it. And while this sounds very simple, you would be surprised how many times I have seen colleagues staring at a blank screen or a blank piece of paper claiming that they don't know where to start.

Step 2 - Know your limits

In my experience, the two big limits in this country are time and money. It seems that every task somehow involves at least one of these two things. Your partner may want you install a new closet system in your guest bedroom (which seems simple enough), but he or she may want it done by next weekend when their parents are coming to stay. Often things that seem simple are complicated by the availability of these resources. There are of course other limitations, but for the purpose of this piece, we will just call these limitations the 'X Factor'. Fill in the blank for whatever your 'X' is. Once you know what you want to do, you have to consider what the potential limits or road blocks are so that you can factor them into your plan. I have seen many graphic designers come up with incredible ideas for things like invitations and stationary only to find out that the designer was thinking Letterpress and the Client was thinking Kinko's. In short, know your limits before wasting your time on a plan.

Step 3- Small steps.

When you are starting any new endeavor, it's very easy to get overwhelmed. When I start to put together a plan, I go back to the small parts of my program and work on each piece by piece. For example, I never just sit down and draw a floor plan of a house and say, "This is how it should be." What I do is start by designing each room how I would want it to be and then make smaller tweaks later on when the spaces get connected. In short, I break down the larger tasks into smaller ones so that there is an underlying rationale to the bigger plan. More often than not, examining the smaller details forces you to think about things that you would have not considered if you were focusing only on the big picture. I once worked with an Interior Designer who wanted pocket doors everywhere. I still remember the puzzled look on his face when I told him that all the walls would need to be twice as thick to do this. When he didn't understand why, I asked him where the wiring for all the switches would go. He said, "In the walls!". I then asked him where the pocket doors would go. He said "In the walls!". To make a long story short, the Client didn't want to spend more money and lose double the space. I think the Designer ended up in the walls of that project, but it just illustrates how you should work small and consider the details.

Step 4 - Connect the dots

Once you have put in the time of figuring out all the details, now it's time to piece your plan together. Of course, no plan ever comes together perfectly, but I find it's much easier to tweak some smaller items than sit there trying to solve everything at once. If you've heard the saying 'the whole is worth more than the sum of the parts', then it should be said that a good plan is based on the sum of the research. Once you go to implement your plan, you will certainly appreciate having done the bulk of the work beforehand.

Whether you are designing a house or figuring out how to buy a new car, a good plan is essential. If you are starting out in the world of Design, I hope that you will consider this post when trying to make a strong impression at a new job or on a new project. There will always be plenty of people to sit around a table and criticize an idea or an approach, but a man (or woman) with a plan is a valuable asset to any team. As for me, I will try to plan more blog writing time into my future days.

What you can learn from Frank Lloyd Wright...

2010-01-07T09:26:00.005-05:00

If you ask most people in this country to name a famous Architect, I have found that nine out of ten people will say 'Frank Lloyd Wright'. If you probe further and ask them to name a building by this famous Architect, you might get 'Guggenheim' but more often you will get a blank stare followed by 'I'm really not sure'. I was always curious how Frank Lloyd Wright became so famous without anyone really knowing much of his work. Practically every book store has a book about him on their 'SALE' shelves, yet beyond a few notable buildings, most people are generally clueless about his work. As Designers and Architects, we aspire to be acknowledged and compensated for our work. I believe that Frank can offer us a little insight into how to do a better job of it.

-'Well now that he's finished one building, he'll go write four books about it' - Frank Lloyd Wright talking about Le Corbusier

This quote illustrates several of Wright's successful attributes. First, he detested any Architect who was gaining fame during his reign. He referred to himself as 'the World's Greatest Architect' and lashed out at anyone who suggested otherwise. Secretly, he was happy that 'the International Style' was making it's way to America and often copied the ideas of his contemporaries to make them better. Publicly, he said that he hated Architects such as Mies Van der Rohe, Le Corbusier, and Walter Gropius, but privately, he studied their work and learned from them. In this way, he was constantly able to re-create himself professionally without anyone thinking he was a plagiarist. You could say that Apple uses this same technique. They don't always invent the technology that they use, but they find a way to improve it and make it their own. This is a very FLW trait.

Secondly, this quote talks about self promotion. Wright could very well be guilty of the same thing that he is accusing Corb of. During the depression, when there was no work, he decided to write an Autobiography and embellish many of the details to make it read more like a novel. Wright was a tireless self promoter, often doing TV and radio spots in addition to maintaining two studios and dozens of projects at a time. When he had no projects,he conjured up a program for apprentices to come study with 'The World's Greatest Architect' and rich kids paid handsomely to live and work on FLW's farm. While the curriculum was focused on Architecture, he also had them working the fields and building his house. Genius.

'Take care of the luxuries and the necessities will take care of themselves.'

This is truly counter-cultural. During times of crises, most people would probably make sure that they have the necessities. But not Frank. When his family couldn't pay their food bills, he went out and bought a grand piano on credit. He believed that the small stuff would take care of itself. He always maintained the appearance (through his cars, clothes, and residences) that he was doing quite well, and therefore attracted the types of Clients who would pay his bills and indulge his eccentricities. As Designers, we rely on attracting the kinds of Clients who will allow us to do our best work. To a great extent, appearances are important. So if you think you can't afford that great web site, or that extravagant ride, think again. Frank wouldn't hesitate.

'The next one'

When asked what was his favorite building or his greatest project, Frank would always say 'The next one'. This almost always ensured that he would stay on the radar because everyone would always be waiting to see what was next. As George Costanza would agree, you have to always leave them wanting more. As Designers, we often focus on what we've done as a barometer of how well we're doing. Maybe it's time to re-direct that focus on what is to come as way of getting people interested in our work. Frank would often dream of 'larger than life' projects that of course, would never get built, but they did get him attention. His designs for a mile high building or the ideal city are the stuff that museum exhibitions are still made of.

'Maybe we can show Government how to operate better as a result of better Architecture.'

Being the ego maniac that he was, Frank never believed that anything was beyond his grasp. I have written about this before, but it was never more true than in the life of Frank Lloyd Wright. He was the true Renaissance man. He enjoyed writing, music, art, architecture, cuisine, travel, culture, and he had an opinion about it all. He painted his own car Cherokee Red because at that time cars only came in black. He felt that he could do or improve upon anyone's work and he never took no for an answer. When building the Guggenheim, he stayed at the Plaza hotel and re-designed the suite to meet his needs. Can you imagine?

'Mr. Hotel Owner, I'm going to be staying here for a bit, so I'm going to bring in some construction crews to re-do my room while I'm here. That's OK, right?"

As a Designer, you have an opinion. A perspective. Use it. Madonna once wrote that most people don't get what they want because they don't say what they want. I'm not a Madonna fan, but I couldn't agree more. I think Frank would have agreed too.

So if you are into fame and success, perhaps you should take some cues from Frank Lloyd Wright. More than 50 years after his death, people are still talking about him and celebrating his work. Remember that every day is an opportunity to slam your competition, promote yourself, and address your adoring public. Just remember to exit on a high note and keep them wanting more.

Can Craftsmanship survive the 21st Century in America?

2009-12-01T16:26:00.008-05:00

A friend of mine recently returned from Europe proclaiming that she saw the most beautiful Architecture there. When I asked her which buildings she saw, she could not remember any specific names but had lots of photos of carved masonry friezes, ornamental metalwork, and highly detailed glazing. After looking at the photos it occurred to me that everything she had admired was not so much the work of an Architect, but the work of the Craftsmen who brought the Architect's vision to life. Sadly, these great laborers of bygone days are almost extinct with no great revival in sight. Will these highly specialized trades disappear all together, or just scrape by on wealthy patrons alone? To answer this question, let's take a brief look at the history of Craft and how we got here.

To begin, let's skip through thousands of years of tools and craft and head straight to the Industrial Revolution. People discovered that through the use of machinery, certain tasks could be expedited and completed with a high level of consistency and efficiency. You have heard me say that the Crystal Palace was actually pre-fabricated way back in 1851. At the beginning of mechanization, designers were trying to figure out how to balance craft and industrialization so that the soul of a thing was not lost. Some designers are still trying to balance these things today. Look at Frank Gehry. He thinks that he is an artist making sculptural forms, yet I don't know many sculptors that need complex computer programs to make their art stand up. And while the Design community has tried to figure out where this balance lies, all of the crafts people have moved on to white collars jobs in 6x6 cubicles where they don't have to break a sweat all day. We have gone from a laboring society to a servicing society and craft has disappeared along with it.

I remember being at a conference and remarking that 'Craft' does not exist anymore to which someone replied "I don't know how I'm going to live without their Mac and Cheese." Yes, it's true, the most popular thoughts about Craft have to do with pasta not plaster. And that pasta is also a good example of why the other Craft is dying. One box plus once sauce packet plus milk and butter and you have a complete meal in one pot. What could be easier? Oh, except for the easier version that you just microwave and eat? Yes, that is easier.

Here in America, we are fixated on convenience. We now install plumbing lines in houses made entirely of plastic tubes that clip and glue together without any soldering at all. We have ceilings made up of tiles that we just drop into a grid, and we have mouldings and false beams made of Styrofoam that you cut with a utility knife and glue to your wall. People are not interested in craft because craft takes time and time is money. Here in America, we only care about getting the best version of something for the cheapest price so that we can keep as much money for ourselves. Forget about the betterment of society. Forget about creating an urban fabric where each building actually enhances the other buildings around it. That only happens in those Socialist European countries. No, here in America, we would rather hire an uneducated laborer to glue some fake stone to the front of our house than pay a fourth generation mason to work each piece perfectly. Here in America, we would rather go down to the discount furniture superstore and buy a dresser (that was made in a country where factory workers make 6 cents an hour) than pay a woodworker to create an heirloom piece of furniture. Those kind of luxuries are reserved for the wealthy and those who can afford such quality.

Well, I'm here to tell you that those kind of luxuries used to belong to everyone. Towns were full of tradespeople and craftsmen who served everyone. From blacksmiths to cobblers to cabinetmakers to bricklayers, craft was the right of every citizen. For many, coming to America was and is more than the promise of work, it is the promise of pursuing that which makes you happy. I recently read a statistic that over 70% of Americans hate their jobs. I think that's because most people are working solely for the money rather than the satisfaction that a job can provide. So here's how I propose we get out of this all-consuming disposable society of convenience rut and preserve craft for generations to come:

1. The children of today need to learn that there's more to life than video games, TV, and cel phones. Instead of giving your child a technological baby sitter, teach them a skill or enroll them in a class at your local arts and crafts store. From baking to painting, there's a class for it.
2. Instead of purchasing lots of cheap things, purchase a few things of good quality. This will encourage more businesses to focus on quality items rather than cheap items.
3. Support local businesses and encourage the development of downtowns. Wouldn't it be nice to go to the butcher shop to get your fresh meat instead of the Sam's club?
4. Introduce craft back into your life. Visit websites like etsy.com and find a unique piece of art for your house instead of some framed poster from a big box store. Buy a handmade quilt for your bed, or better yet, learn to make one. Get a sewing machine and learn to use it instead of just watching Project Runway. Shop at Antiques stores for interesting pieces of furniture that you will use. Old desks and tables are useful in any house.

In movies, the future is always portrayed as a dark place where everything is automated. If we are to avoid this fate then we must put our faith back in people and be amazed at what the human spirit can accomplish. Become an individual who appreciates the labor of others and I guarantee you will start finding fulfillment in something other than your checking account balance.

A Designer's Guide to Making Money - the abridged vesion

2009-11-18T13:57:00.005-05:00

It goes without saying that when you work in Design, you meet a lot of really talented and creative people. Unfortunately, very few of these people are appropriately rewarded or compensated for their talent. You would think that talent must grow on trees if all of the Creatives that I know are struggling. I can assure you that it doesn't. What can be said is that all of the talent in the world won't do anything for you unless you apply it. Knowing how to apply it is really the challenge and the subject for today's conversation.

I will keep this short and simple. If you want to make money with your design skills, then make something. Make T-shirts, make stickers, make posters. Just make something. The Design world is currently divided into two types of companies: Design Firms and Service Firms. The service firms are the ones who crank out chain stores and insurance company brochures. The Design Firms are the ones who make plaster molds out of coffee lids and turn them into a wall treatment. The current economic climate has made mince meat out of service firms. They are laying people off because their big client has cut their budget and therefore they are out of work. The Design firms are picking up the trash from this economic tornado and making stuff with it. In short, there is always money to be made with great Design, but service providers are a dime a dozen. Let's look at some examples.

Kate Spade started out at a magazine as a Senior Editor in charge of accessories. She was providing a service, competing with all of those other magazines out there. Every month racing around to compile pictures and reviews of the best belts, handbags, jewelry and shoes. Think about how exhausting that must have been. She was not designing anything, although she clearly had the eye and talents of a designer. One day Kate decides that there are no great handbags out there and starts her own line. She has a bunch of them made and gets a booth at a big show at the Javitts center. Immediately, orders from all the Fifth Avenue stores start rolling in and the rest is history. Kate made the switch from service provider to Design provider and now she is a household name.

Martha Stewart started a catering business in 1976 and catered many high profile parties in NYC. At one such party, she met a book publisher who loved her recipes and offered her a book deal. I think we all know how that one turned out. Now Martha could have gone on catering parties and providing a service, but now she's got her name on everything from Furniture to Paper Products. You could make a million meals and never be successful, but make one cookbook and it will sell while you sleep. To sum up, make something.

I recently came across a graphic designer who sells all sorts of 'swag' on his web site. He puts his name on a pocket comb and calls it a 'hair organizer'. It sells for $3 and people buy it. Why can't anyone do this? Anyone CAN do this. While working for a big architecture firm, I realized that I was killing myself making them a lot of money, but I wasn't getting anything out of it. I was just providing a service, and at a meager wage at that. Many of us have jobs. Many of us make our companies a lot of money. But many of us are still unfulfilled creatively and as a result, no amount of money will ever seem like enough. So let me offer you this advice. Brand yourself. Make something that screams of your personality. Whether it's a special kind of cupcake or a typeface or a prefab composting shed. If you put it out there, someone is bound to see it. And if you are as good as you think, you will be rewarded for your efforts.

Who Killed Modern Architecture?

2009-10-31T12:30:00.004-04:00

While I would like to believe that there are Modernists a plenty out there, all the evidence unfortunately speaks to the contrary. The latest evidence of this is how many Modern shelter magazines are either folding or getting noticeably thinner, while Architectural Digest seems to hold steady amid the rough economic seas. My latest issue of Residential Architect (which focuses mostly on progressive Residential buildings) tops out at a whopping 59 pages. While I don't fully understand most people's bias towards "traditional" styles, I have to wonder what it is about Modern Design and Architecture that turns people off? People don't seem to mind trading in their old car for the latest model or going down to Best Buy for the most technologically advanced Audio Visual experience. So why is it that in the year 2009, people still want to build houses in styles that were fashionable 200 years ago? After all, we weren't building Medieval Castles in the 1800's? So the question remains, Who Killed Modern Architecture?

When you look at the history of what we call Modern Architecture, it is hard to divorce its origins from the rise of the Industrial Revolution. Machines gave us the technology and the ability to grow buildings faster and stronger. Most people will cite structures such as Joseph Paxton's Crystal Palace, the Eiffel Tower, and the Brooklyn Bridge as being some of the first truly Modern accomplishments. Those gave way to breakthroughs such as modern glazing, the elevator, and prefabrication technologies (the Crystal Palace was a pre-fab building in 1851). From there, the founding fathers of Modernism enter through the likes of LeCorbusier, Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright, Walter Gropius, and finally Mies Van der Rohe. In the early 20th Century, Modernism was in full swing, also commonly referred to as "The International Style". The Museum of Modern Art (under the lead of Phillip Johnson) organized a pivotal exhibition that changed the face of Architecture forever. By the late 1940's Modernism had arrived and permeated every publication and merchant builder throughout the country. Have you ever seen an issue of Better Homes and Gardens from the 1950's? How about Fortune Magazine? Google them sometime and you will be shocked. They're all progressive and modern. The prevailing style of that day is now known as Mid-Century Modern and objects from that era are highly sought after due to their originality and quality. What happens after the 50's is a product of two different phenomenon that was like a 1-2 punch to all things Modern.
First, you have the Depression era children growing up and reaching the age where they want to buy a home. Growing up during a depression leaves you with some pretty lasting memories. (I have a friend who still ties together broken rubber bands instead of throwing them away, but we'll save that for another day.) Since homes were (and still are) the largest single investment that the average person is likely to make in their lifetime, this group had no interest in risking their hard earned savings on the latest and greatest trendy home. They wanted security and comfort and chose older homes with time tested styling. The second part of the double whammy has to do with all of the wars which were being fought in the 40's and 50's. The world was not as small as it is today and resources were rare. Modern Architecture often relies on the latest materials to execute the greatest gestures with the least effort. Steel, Glass, and Wood were considered too valuable to be cladding houses with, so the era of vinyl began. And then all of these soldiers came home and needed somewhere to live. The Government was giving them cheap loans to go buy a house and everyone wanted to settle down and make babies. Builders saw the opportunity and started cranking out tract homes. Cities like Levittown in Long Island grew up overnight. And as you can guess, there were not many tract home developments where each home was designed by an Architect. Builders made alot of money building the fastest and cheapest house they could and they couldn't keep up with demand. And the rest, as they say, is history. The era of the tract home began and the media now had to change focus on how to decorate and style your brand new tract home. 50 years later, the major publications such as Better Homes and Gardens are still doing the same thing, except now they are decorating McMansions and faux bungalows.
Of course, there are still those who want Modern housing thanks in part to magazines like Dwell (my latest issue was REALLY skinny). But now that the latest recession has all but wiped out traditional funding for new and innovative companies, will the Moderns just give up or regroup? If only Ayn Rand were here...

Why all the fuss about e-readers??

2009-10-27T10:47:00.002-04:00

Architects LOVE books. I have talked about this before. In fact, pretty much every creative I know loves books. As an admitted bibliophile, I have personally spend hundreds if not thousands of hours combing through used book stores to find rare and out of print titles on my favorite subjects. There is something very comforting and romantic about curling up with a great book and cracking it open to discover what lies within. For me, it is something that started when I was very young and it has been a romance that has lasted my entire life.

I have also talked before about great companies and how great companies embrace great Design to change our world. Last week, Barnes and Noble announced that it had developed a new e-reader called "the Nook" to take on Amazon's Kindle head to head in a battle for the e-consumer. Amazon is also fighting Walmart over prices of digital book downloads. You would think that a person who loves books AND design would be excited about the potential of bringing a new distribution network to book lovers. Unfortunately, I don't see what the big deal is.

First and foremost, I believe that e-readers are a fad. The reason being is that book publishing (when done properly) is an Art. How many times have I been attracted to a book simply because of the cover design or the font on the spine? Choosing a good book is like choosing a good friend, even if the relationship is only temporary. When a great narrative is married with a great layout and produced on a high quality medium the results are extraordinary. I have built a collection of books that I hope to pass on after I have gone and I revisit most volumes fairly often. (I will say that many of my books are non-fiction and are not read in the traditional sense. I use many of them on a regular basis for their imagery and inspiration.) As a great book is a work of art, the classics constantly appreciate in value. A vintage first edition of any major work accompanied by its dust jacket is always a prized possession. How can an e-book compare to this?

The e-book is the 'McMansion' of the literary world. Just another way to try and deliver more for less. The problem is that the consumer ends up with no tangible product for the money. Why would I pay $10 for a new digital novel when I could buy a hard copy in a used book store for $5 a month after it comes out? The argument for e-books is that you can carry hundreds of books in your pocket. I don't know about you, but I only tend to read one novel at a time, maybe two. If I have ever brought a book with me on a train or to the beach, it has often been a conversation starter with a random stranger asking if the book was any good or sharing a story about a part that they liked. What is the new alternative? A nation full of people staring down at a screen all reading the same book?

We live in the most technologically advanced society the world has ever known. We have conveniences that our parents could never have dreamed of. With all these gifts however, we are losing our ability to feel and communicate as humans are meant to do. School age children learn to type before they know how to write in script (Do kids even learn script anymore? Or is called cursive?). We have taken experiences that are meant to be emotional and we make them mechanical. For this reason, I don't believe the traditional book will ever go away. Like everything else of quality, they may increase in price, but hopefully this will make it such that only the great books get published. One can only hope.

What is a "Traditional" Home?

2009-10-15T17:38:00.005-04:00

Have you ever seen the show "House Hunters" on HGTV? It is definitely one of my favorites. I love to see which houses people are attracted to and what they do to them after closing. I have to admit though, I am often baffled at what people are looking for in a house and what they consider their tastes to be. I would say that most people, young and old, seem to gravitate to more "traditional" style homes and this greatly disturbs me. Today I wanted to examine what makes a home "traditional" in an effort to figure out why most people seem to prefer it.

First and foremost, the word "traditional" to me means something that has not changed over time. Traditional food would be dishes that have been made the same way for generations. Traditional houses are ones that emulate historical styles such as Colonial, Tudor, Victorian, Queen Anne, or Mediterranean to name a few. People seem to feel connected to these styles as they have seen many examples of each and they are familiar to them. Perhaps it is this familiarity which breeds comfort and contentment with these styles.

Inside our "traditional" homes, we typically find "traditional" interiors. From wrought iron dining tables to poofy sofas, to wing chairs with gold damask upholstery, it's all there. With swags on the windows and Oriental rugs on the floor, the "traditional" home owner can pretty much go into any store and find plenty of inexpensive furniture to suit their tastes. It is also worthy to note that most of the interior offerings in the "big box" stores also cater to those furnishing their "traditional" homes. I guess you could say that this makes Traditional homes easier to furnish.

Lastly, we should talk about maintenance. Colonial builders used things like wood clapboard siding and divided light windows to construct their homes. These represented the best marriage of technology and craftsmanship that they could come up with. Today we have used our innovation to engineer products that are virtually maintenance free and offer comparable appearances to "traditional" designs without the cost or headaches that an older home offers. If you in fact wanted to build a historically accurate "traditional" home complete with extensive millwork, wood windows and siding, slate roofing, hand laid masonry foundations and plaster interiors, you would be looking at a hefty sum indeed. I would think most people would choose cheap and easy.

So there we have it: comfort, availability and affordability. When you look at it like that, it's easy to see why most people are biased towards "traditional" homes. Unfortunately, there is a problem. The problem as I see it is that "cheap and easy" is not usually associated with quality and desirability. As a society, we have spent the last few decades building houses that have no long term value and will likely be torn down rather than fixed up. What people consider to be "traditional" or "American" in terms of style are mostly poor copies of something that was once a genuine reflection of our ability and craftsmanship. Your cabinets may be honey colored with paneled doors, but if you look closely you will find no real joinery on the drawer fronts and no solid wood to be found anywhere. Your "hardwood" floors probably came pre-finished with only a few layers on the top that are real wood and the rest is something else. But as long as there are stainless steel appliances and granite countertops, everything will be alright ("Where did the settlers put their Kitchen Aid Mixer?")

The sad reality of all this is that I really can't be upset about how uneducated people are about Design. We did it to ourselves. Architects got fat and lazy and gave away so much of our profession that it's no wonder every home owner believes that they know how to Design an Interior. So instead, I suggest that we get off of our high horses and take back our right to work for regular people who would love to live in great spaces. Let's create some great examples of Modern Design that are warm and inviting instead of stark and cold. Let's empower people to go on a housing diet and design more efficient homes that do the work of much larger ones so that the average person can afford the best of what the 21st century has to offer. Finally, let's volunteer our time to those who could actually use it instead of complaining how much work has slowed down. If you are looking to do some pro-bono work, there are hundreds of potential clients in your local home improvement store just asking for someone to help them. They are the ones staring up at the ceramic tile displays with the blank looks on their faces. Simply introduce yourself and ask them if they need any help making a selection. It's really that easy. Almost as easy as picking out those new Venetian Blinds for your Tuscan Inspired Kitchen in your Tudor Style home. Love me some of that Traditional Design.

Some suggestions for the AIA on saving the profession of Architecture

2009-10-03T14:45:00.006-04:00

In 1857, 13 Architects got together and founded what is now known as the American Institute of Architects, or the AIA. The group had two main goals which were to educate their members in the science and art of Architecture and to elevate the status of the profession. Fast forward 152 years, the AIA has become an organization that has over 200 employees and 83,000 members. And while it is no longer a grass roots movement, many would argue that the organization is irrelevant and out of touch. Having worked among AIA members for the last fifteen years, I would constantly inquire about the advantages of membership. The conversations would go something like this:

Me: Do you get special privileges that Registered Architects can't get?
AIA-Member: No.
Me: Is it affordable
AIA-Member: No.
Me: Do you get better deals on books and stuff?
AIA-Member: No.
Me: Do the other members help you out if you're in a bind?
AIA-Member: No.
Me: Do they get you work?
AIA-Member: They have a section on their web site where my name is listed, but other than that, not really.
Me: Do you go to any local meetings?
AIA-Member: No. They're too boring and nothing ever happens.
Me: Can you charge more for your time because you are in the AIA?
AIA-Member: No. In fact, I just lost a job to another AIA Architect who undercut my fee by 25%.
Me: Wow. So what are the advantages of being in the AIA?
AIA-Member: I get to put the letters "AIA" after my name. Basically that's it.

Now I should say that the people that I know in the AIA are small practitioners. This is their experience. It may be different if you go higher up the AIA food chain. Maybe those Architects actually help each other get work or maybe they have the power to get things done. If they do, I haven't heard about it. What I have heard is how disgruntled Architects are about the AIA and how most people I know wouldn't even be members if their company didn't pay the registration fees for them. Those fees by the way, include membership at the National, State, and Local levels. Every branch gets a piece and it gets expensive. They do give you a $37 annual subscription to Architectural Record, so I guess that's something.

In 2006, I attended a conference sponsored by Residential Architect Magazine in San Diego. The conference attracted alot of attendees and was generally very successful. At a portion of the conference, we broke up into groups and got to have lunch with different groups of people for lunch. In our group were some national AIA officers who confessed that they had come to the conference to try and attract smaller firms to the AIA. In their research, they had found that small firms (under 10 people) and sole practitioners represented a very small percentage of their membership. They asked us if anyone at the table was a member. Not one person was. They asked us how they could make it more attractive for people like us to join? Needless to say, the lunch wasn't long enough to give everyone a chance to speak. Almost three years later, I see that they have taken none of the suggestions to heart. That being that case, I wanted to put the ideas out there again in the hopes that maybe someone will find these suggestions and bring them up at a meeting. So here they are, in no particular order:

1. Your web site, your marketing, and all of your promotional campaigns are terrible. You people are supposed to be representing Great Design. Your web site looks like a Pharmaceutical company's web site. You can't even find how much it costs to join. On the application, it says "please call for local and state rates". When you try to search for an Architect on your web site, it does it by zip code alphabetically. I'd hate to have a name that started with a W or a Z. How about filters for type of work and size of firm? Lastly, your print ads depict Architects as family psychologists instead of Great Designers. Whoever came up with that campaign should be fired. I did hear an ad recently on AM radio though. Way to elevate the profession.

2. Stop trying to keep people OUT of the profession. In recent years, the AIA has spent alot of time and money lobbying for tighter regulations on who can officially call themselves an "Architect". Apparently, they now own the word and can sue anyone who tries to call themselves an Architect without the proper credentials. I think you have all forgotten who does the 'heavy lifting'. You know those recent graduates who work 90 hours a week when all of the "Architects" have gone home? Instead of trying to prevent them from putting "Project Architect" on their resume, why don't you try to give people more incentive to become an Architect? Better pay for Registered Architects would be a good start.

3. Lobby for Laws that make sense and help Architects. Almost everyone I know has renovated their house in some way. HGTV and big box stores have empowered homeowners to bust apart their houses and get dirty. If you are building a home from the ground up, most states don't even require an Architect's involvement which is evident by cookie cutter developments cropping up all over our country. Perhaps if there was legislation to require that Architects be involved at a Residential scale, there would be more work available for Architects and the overall quality of Residential Design in this country would improve.

4. Don't let EVERYONE join. I'm sure there was a time when being a member carried some exclusivity along with it. Not any more. Every time a new EIFS clad drug store or bank gets built in my neighborhood, it usually bears the seal of an AIA member. Shouldn't the AIA be endorsing great design? For all of your 83,000 members, how many actually build buildings that adhere to the principles of true Architecture? If you want good architects to join (the ones who will really be a credit to the AIA and attract new members) you have to understand that they don't want to be lumped in with bad architects. Recently, an Architect that I admire (who is actually FAIA- very high up on the AIA food chain) told me that if he had to do it over again, he wouldn't even join. How's that for an endorsement.

5. If you can't do any of the above, can you at least get a deal on some books? Architects love books (as do non Architects, and pretty much every Designer I know). With 83,000 members and millions more interested in Architecture books, you would think maybe the largest professional Architecture organization in the US could at least help bring down the cost of publications to its members, right? Wrong. I went to the AIA website to check out some deals on 'Publications'. Even those which are published by the AIA are still 10-20% cheaper on Amazon. How is that possible? If I were spending $1,000 on membership, couldn't you at least give me some deals on a book that you publish? It's just absurd to think that in a world where you can compare prices of everything from your phone, the AIA can't find a way to deliver educational materials to their members at a reasonable cost. And don't even get me started on the AIA Documents.

In conclusion, I hope that there is someone out there who can talk some sense into the AIA. I would recommend starting with a frank conversation with the current members to determine what value (if any) membership still has. From what I have seen in the last year, the profession has taken a serious hit from the economy and shows no signs of a quick recovery. I think people and companies will be taking a long hard look at what those three letters are worth on a business card.

Our latest project rises from the ground..and fast..

2009-09-26T18:40:00.008-04:00

For those of you who may not be familiar with my company, we develop Modern Architectural Houses in the Poconos. Although I aspire to walk in the footsteps of Joseph Eichler and Jonathan Segal (two prominent California developers) I have to come to terms with the fact that right now I am no one of importance. Furthermore, I started my development business at the worst possible time in the history of the modern US Economy. And while this may seem romantic, possibly even daring to some, I deal with rejection on a daily basis. Lenders won't touch us, most people ask me if I am stupid and I spend most nights lying awake trying to figure out how to do more with less. All that being said, our houses sell before most people even see them. Our last house sold in one day. Not bad for a depressed market, right?

Our latest project aims to beat that one day record. Before we could even get out of the ground, we started getting calls from interested parties about purchasing it before it was even complete. As of right now, we have at least three interested parties for our next project (on a side note, I find it extremely ironic that all of our buyers tend to have i-phones) and we are hoping to start a fourth before the end of the year. As the project gets further along in construction, I will post more pictures, but I wanted to share some anecdotal evidence about the process so far.

For the first two months of the project, we did nothing but wait for approvals. This meant that our land and our subcontractors basically sat doing nothing. Even though we knew what we wanted to build, we were frozen. After about two months, we got our approvals (permits) and began. In the first week, our lot was cleared and the stumps were dug up. In the second week, our septic system was installed and the basement for the home was dug. In the third week, our footings were put in and the foundation walls were nearly complete.

What we are finding is that the economy has created a buyer's market for goods and services (as well as real estate). We took the time to notify each subcontractor of our project, provide drawings well in advance, and coordinate the timing of each so that one followed the other. Because we did this, we were able to competitively bid much of the work to realize some savings over our last project. The best part is that the work is progressing very quickly, allowing us to save money by finishing the project sooner. In the end, we may find that the time for Design and Approvals may actually equal the construction time. In the pre-bubble days it seemed you were able to get fast approvals and slow construction times, because every subcontractor was so busy that it took forever to tie up all of the loose ends. Now, the tables are turned. Municipal officials are looking at the drawings more closely and doing a better job of making sure that you are building properly (another thing that did not happen in the boom). This is likely to do with the fact that there are also less projects on their desks too. At any rate, all of this is good for those who want to build. Subcontractors are working more diligently to keep your business, often at more competitive rates. We are really excited about our next few projects and I hope you check in our progress.

If you would like to see renderings of this house (known as the Rayburn) please see our website at http://www.poconomodern.com/

The Magic of Ikea

2009-09-14T23:51:00.002-04:00

Everyone has their guilty pleasures. The things that you enjoy a little TOO much. For some it's Mallomars. For others, it may be a TV show like Gossip Girl or Project Runway. For me, I am embarrassed to admit that what tops my list is a trip to the local IKEA. Yes, you heard me right. Those Swedes have got me hook, line and SATER.

First, there is the ideology. Great Design at Great Prices. Their stores have big signs that say things like "We'll never stop making good design affordable." Right on brother. Then, there is the Environmental aspect. Flat pack to save on shipping. Put it together yourself. Genius. I think that when you go for a job interview, they should just leave you alone in a room with an EXPEDIT shelving unit and an Allen wrench and just see what happens. If you can do it in under 10 minutes, you're hired. (Just make sure you recycle that cardboard package.)

Secondly, there is the store design itself. The entire apartment in 250 Square Feet. The maze like layout with shortcuts for people in the know. It's an experience to say the least. I won't even talk about the restaurant, where you can get an entire hot meal for $4. To sum it up, they definitely get you thinking.

Lastly, and most importantly, is the sheer volume of their offerings. Other than the exterior shell of a house, they've got it. From napkins to bed frames, they have thought of everything for home AND business. And of course, everyone knows how affordable it all is. For the life of me, I can't understand why people would shop at places like Walmart and Bob's Discount Furniture when you can get thoughtful, well made products at IKEA.

I first discovered IKEA when I was in college. It was then that I purchased my first BILLY bookcase. After that, it was the KLIPPAN Sofa, the POANG chair, you know the drill. You stock up on all of this cool looking stuff and then your friends come over and ask, "Where did you get this? IKEA? Really?" And then IKEA began to grow, adding other systems and finishes to their lineups. Black-Brown began to pop up on everything from LACK shelves to kitchen cabinets. Architects in NYC started specifying IKEA kitchen cabinets for apartment renovations due to their durability and affordability. Stores started popping up everywhere.

Now I have taken my share of criticism for endorsing IKEA among colleagues in the past. Some say that the stuff is not made well. Some say that it is cheap. I would be remiss if I did not mention those criticisms. But here's the rub: No other company is focused on affordable, accessible modern design like IKEA. It's not like there are alot of other options. For a recent project, I was trying to find a sofa with a boxy shape and square armrests. I went to Raymour and Flanagan. Nothing but poofy sofas. I went to Ashley. No dice. I even went to Bob's. Total waste of time. I finally found a 79" sofa at Macy's for $699. When I told the salesperson that I would take it, he said the lead time was 12-16 weeks. I passed.

Yes, I also looked at Crate and Barrel, Room and Board, and the local furniture stores. I found nothing that was less than $1000 for what I wanted. Room and Board came the closest, but had an 8 week lead time. Still not happening. Only IKEA offered the product that I needed. A boxy brown leather sofa, in stock for under $500. Sold.

So, I admit it. I love IKEA. I wouldn't say that I would go out and furnish an entire project from there, but I do selectively purchase staple items and then use the savings to splurge at other stores. And the best part is, they continue to get better. They improve the systems that are lacking, and stick with the systems that are great. They understand what people are looking for, and find a way to deliver it to them on budget without compromising Design. As a company, they act responsibly towards the environment and pass those responsibilities along to the customer. What more could you ask for? How about a free Cinnamon Roll with that Swedish Meatball lunch? Now you're talking my language...

Can You Design a Better Government?

2009-09-09T15:39:00.002-04:00

Architects by nature are problem solvers. Give us a site, a problem, a program, and a budget and we go to work finding solutions. I often wonder why there are not more Architects in Public Service. Sure, you might find one on a town planning board, but you never hear about notable Architects running for Congress. And since I think that anything can be Designed to be better, why not a better Government? Let's explore some hypothetical concepts using some Design based thinking and see where we land.

In order to simplify things, let's imagine that our country is one big hotel with lots of residents. The hotel was built a couple of hundred years ago (give or take) and has had several additions put on over time. Currently, the hotel is pretty run down and in need of some upgrading. Now, don't get me wrong, the hotel still has some pretty luxurious suites, but the people who rent those rooms don't come out much and don't really care that the corridors and the lobby need work. In fact, they are pretty much against any renovations to the common areas if it means that the price of their suite will go up. We'll call these people the 'preferred guests' because they pay the most money per room and they typically get the best service.

The next part of our client base is the 'bargain shopper'. These are the people who shop all the web sites and want to pay the least amount of money to stay in our hotel. They want the place to have a nice fitness center and pool and they want a free breakfast included with their discount accommodations. In short, they don't want to spend one cent more than they have to and they are the most demanding guests you can have.

Lastly, we have the regular paying customer. These are the customers that make reservations, pay the market rate for the room, eat in the restaurants and respect the property. They would love to work their way up to 'preferred guest' but by following the rules, it takes longer. The paying customer is the best guest that the hotel has.

So the current management tells me that they want to fix up the public areas of the hotel to attract more Paying Customers. They are not concerned so much about the rooms because the Bargain Shoppers won't care so much and the Preferred Guests have the nicest rooms as it is. With respect to the Paying Customers, they want the public areas to be so nice that the Paying Customers don't stay in their rooms. They come out of their rooms and spend money in the restaurants or at the bar. In fact, they want the Paying Customers to be so happy with the amenities of the hotel that the Paying Customers insist on renting the hotel for big meetings and conferences. Lots of new Paying Customers will come to the hotel for the meetings and everyone will be eating and drinking and socializing in the renovated Hotel. Life will be great.

So I get the job to do the renovations and I start by putting together some schematic plans and estimates. Despite the fact that these are not final drawings, everyone starts to go nuts. From the cost of the light fixtures to the price of the carpets, management slashes the construction budget by 40%. The leather on the bar stools becomes vinyl with a faux leather grain. The original artwork in the lobby is changed to framed prints with non-reflective glass. And finally, the walls that were to be clad in wood panels become vinyl wallcovering. We have saved a fortune and management is happy. We issue the drawings and start getting bids on the work. The numbers come in close to budget and construction begins.

What happens next is the most curious part of the process. The management sees the work progressing and they think the renovations look cheap. They say the carpet doesn't feel luxurious (probably because we changed the specification from wool to nylon to save money) and the vinyl wallcovering looks institutional (duh, it's vinyl). Even though the decisions they are unhappy with are theirs, they blame the Architect. They start saying that the Design is flawed and must be changed. They want everything swapped out to the more expensive materials and they want the Architect to pay for it. Since the Architect's fee is minuscule compared to the cost of the project, I can't afford to give up any of my fee. My only hope is to appeal to the contractor for some charity. And so begins the juggling act between charity, contract work, and change orders. Eventually, the hotel will get done. It will look better than before, but will not be great, and the guests won't really care either way. They probably wouldn't have cared if the renovation didn't take place at all because none of the items on their 'wish list' got addressed anyway (can we get Wireless in the restaurant please?!)

So, can you figure out who's who in our story? The funny thing is that the above story is a totally real account of a job I did not too long ago. When I listen to all of the pandering and spin surrounding our political process, one thing is very clear to me. No one really cares about the guest. The guest is never at any construction meetings. The management and contractors both THINK that they are helping the guest, but really both are looking out for themselves.

So, the question remains, Can You Design a Better Government? The answer is Yes. But you need to cut out the Management and the Contractors and develop a dialogue directly with the Guest.

I remember one time, I was Designing an office space and the Client gave me the new seating plan of where everyone was to be located. As I was doing a survey of the floor, the workers in question were trying to get a peek at the plan. It was clear that they had not seen it or had any input in its creation. I set the plan down on a file cabinet so that I could take some measurements of ceiling heights and came back to find a small group surrounding the plan. Before I could take the plan back, comments started flying at me. In a matter of minutes, the staff on hand had proposed several re-organizations that were far more efficient and cost effective than what the management had come up with. I made a note of their suggestions and brought them up to my Client at our next meeting. When I suggested that perhaps we lose some of the copy rooms and add a networked printer in the open floor, he asked me why I would suggest that. I stated that some of the staff came to me and suggested it. To this, he replied, "If we were going to let them make decisions, I wouldn't need to manage this project."

"Exactly" I thought. And so goes the Political Machine.

My Love/Hate Relationship with HGTV

2009-09-08T00:01:00.002-04:00

Recently, our cable company sent us a simple message: Convert or die. Up until now, we only had a basic analog signal and that gave us about 50 or so channels of basic cable. We believed them when they said that we didn't have to do anything during that whole changeover that happened in February. Now we were being told that if we didn't get some digital converter boxes, we would lose everything. Now my first inclination was just to drop the cable altogether. Neither my wife nor myself watch very much TV and I certainly not up to speed on my Lost, Mad Men, Survivor, or whatever reality show passes for Prime Time TV nowadays. After weighing all of the pros and cons of keeping the service, we could come up with only one major thing in the plus category: HGTV.

Now for those of you who may not be familiar with Home and Garden Television (aka HGTV) it is one of those channels that you have likely skipped by on your way to Comedy Central or the E! Network. Most of the content features people walking around some unfortunate looking house with the intention of either buying it or fixing it up. The shows have titles such as "House Hunters", "My First Place", "Divine Design", "Spice Up My Kitchen", and my personal favorite "Designed to Sell." On 'Designed to Sell' all of the magic happens in the beginning of the show when they bring in the 'real estate expert' to tell the homeowners why their house has not sold yet. Perhaps it has something to do with those four uncleaned litter boxes on the kitchen floor. Trust me, you don't have to be a real estate expert to figure this one out, but it's entertaining at the very least.

After you've seen enough shows on HGTV, you can pretty much divide each show into one of two categories (or at least I do). The first category is the Design Documentary. These shows follow a project from beginning to end, over a realistic timeline and give you a sense of how to complete a normal home improvement project. They follow reasonable time lines and often show real Architects and Designers working with the Homeowners to achieve their goals. I love these shows. I love it when every project goes over budget. I love it when it takes twice as long as it's supposed to. I love these shows because they offer a glimpse into the real life challenges of being a Design Professional. The editors cram months of hard work into a neat little half hour package that I can digest in little bites and feel totally satisfied. I could watch these tiny morsels for hours.
Now the other category is all together different. I call these 'Time's Up' shows. These shows are typically taped over a very short period (usually two or three days) where the entire project from start to finish happens right before your eyes. The crew always has to meet some fictitious self imposed deadline ("the open house is in one day!') and you see people racing to throw together some half baked Willy Wonka color parade. In two days, paint goes a long way. On a show like "Design to Sell" most of the dramatic improvements are made just by taking all of the Homeowner's crap out of the space so that you can see the floor. On other shows, they try to sell you on homemade art pieces and MDF furniture that is both cost effective and attractive. It is these shows that are like Poison to those of us in the Design profession. It is these shows that exemplify the disposable society in which we live. I can assure you that going down to Home Depot and buying a $50 Chandelier is not going to make your dining room more valuable. But if you hot glue some fringe to that fixture, now you've got a custom touch that screams chic. Give me a break.

I want to share with you a quick story that gives you some perspective on my experience with these shows. I had gotten a call from a prospective client who owned a very nice house with alot of potential. The house was in an area where homes commonly sold for over $1M and the buyers had purchased a fixer upper for around $700K. I was referred to them by a previous client and I went to meet with the Homeowners on a Saturday afternoon. During the meeting, they asked me questions like, "How many people do you have in your crew" and "Do you think you could do the work while we are on vacation?". I tried to explain to them that I live in a world with liability insurance and permit drawings, not the TV world of weekend transformations and artwork made on their front lawn. They looked at me as though I did not understand what they wanted and that I must not be very good at my job if it would take months to do what can be done on TV in three days.

And so continues my love/hate relationship with HGTV. When people watch movies, they can pretty much tell what is real and what is movie magic. I await the day when the same is true for Home Improvement Television, but I won't hold my breath.

Will Main Street ever return?

2009-08-27T18:45:00.002-04:00

For those of you interested in Architectural History, there was an event in this country in 1893 that influenced the Architecture of America more than any other since. This event, held in Chicago, commemorated the 400th anniversary of Columbus' discovery of the New World. It was known as the Colombian Exposition, or more simply, the Chicago World's Fair of 1893.

Before the fair ever happened, it was a big deal to even win the rights to have the fair. Chicago and New York fought for more than a year to see who would host. When Chicago was chosen in 1891, it seemed almost an impossible task to design all of the necessary buildings in so short a time. The effort was lead by Architects Daniel Burnham and John Wellborn Root (Root died before the grounds were completed) and they enlisted the best and brightest of their day to participate in the designs of the Buildings and Grounds. Included among them were Louis Sullivan, McKim Meade and White, Frederick Law Olmstead, and George B. Post among others. Now, I won't go into details about the fair itself, but I will say that the aesthetic was decidedly Classical. Columns and pillars as far as the eye could see and all at a scale that was more impressive than Disneyland. In fact, the buildings were so amazing that it brought in over 1 million people a day at its peak. That may not seem like a lot, but this was 1893, in the middle of a severe recession, and the only way to travel cross country with any speed was by train. Considering the circumstances, this was impressive.

A by product of the Fair's success was the creation of a new style of civic architecture. People were so taken with the Neoclassical revival that practically every big city adopted the same Architectural Language for the creation of their public buildings. From state capitals to banks to libraries, many new large projects constructed after the fair bore strikingly similar profiles to those in the Colombian Exposition. Now this is not to say that Classical Architecture was not used before, just not at the same scale as after the 1893 Fair. Even the United States Capitol Building in Washington DC was expanded (in 1904) to reflect a grander scale for a rapidly growing nation. Downtowns in every major city were bustling with new buildings and a cohesive Architecture that gave people Civic Pride and a sense of unity in their towns.

Now I don't have to tell you what happened next. In the middle of the 20th century, downtowns and Main Streets were being abandoned for the suburbs with tract houses and strip malls. People moved out of cities at an alarming rate and many great cities died as a result of this. Beautiful turn of the century buildings were torn down as developers moved in and bought up city blocks to build office buildings. The city became a place of business, not a place to live. McKim Meade and White's Pennsylvania Station was torn down in 1963 to build Madison Square Garden and One Penn Plaza and it's limestone columns were sent to the swamps of New Jersey where they still lay buried in the muck.

Fortunately, time heals all wounds. Main Streets are being re-discovered for their irreplaceable Architecture and the benefits of city living. Where I live, the most expensive towns to live in are the ones with beautiful historic downtowns where new restaurants and boutiques are thriving. This has always been a country where you have choices. It seems we are always at a crossroads waiting to choose. So with the national economy in the toilet, and the McMansion housing bubble burst, the question is this: Can it be possible for future generations to rediscover a smaller, higher quality lifestyle or will Walmart wipe out every store in the country? I think you know which way I'm leaning.

Being an Architect: Myth vs. Reality

2009-08-18T17:21:00.005-04:00

If you have ever seen Seinfeld, you know that George Costanza is constantly lying about being an Architect. And why not? It seems to impress the ladies and gives George a sense of reputability and esteem that his normal character lacks. Having spent the last 17 years of my life in either Architecture School or the profession of Architecture, I can say that the public's perception of the profession is fairly consistent with the response George usually gets. Unfortunately, it's also not true. Below are some of the biggest myths about the Architecture (and Design) Industry and note that they are listed in no particular order.

Myth No. 1 - You need to be good at math to be an Architect.

I suppose in the 'old days' Architects had to do all sorts of calculations as it related to simple structures. As buildings got larger and more complicated, Architects handed all liability for computation off to Structural Engineers. If you are a small shop working on small projects, you can likely have the manufacturer's engineers help you with anything more difficult than reading a chart. And although you may get drilled with formulas in a college structures course, the real world value of that experience is zero.

Myth No. 2 - Architects get paid well.

I don't know where this one comes from. On my first day of school our critics told us that if we were going into Architecture to make money, quit now. Of course, there are famous Architects that make alot of money. And there are famous actors that make $20 Million per film. But for every box office breadwinner, there are 10,000 wannabe actors filling in as extras for $100 per day. That's kind of how architecture is too. When you graduate, most people will spend the first 3-5 years doing construction documents until you are deemed knowledgeable enough to talk to a client. Once this happens, you might go from draftsperson to 'job captain' or something like that. In a recent survey, starting salaries for Intern Architects averaged between $35K-$45K per year. It is also worthy to note that a Bachelor of Architecture is usually a 5 year degree. Between the schooling and the Internship, it will take you a minimum of 8 years just to be eligible to start taking your licensing exams. You find me a doctor or lawyer that starts at $35K per year.

Myth No. 3- You have to be able to draw well to be an Architect.

Having worked with many young graduates, I can tell you that this absolutely is not true. With computers taking over as the default production method, I don't know why you would even need to draw by hand. Computers can generate 3D models faster and more accurately than any human. You can also forget about Penmanship. What is often referred to as 'Architectural Lettering' is now found only in your font menu as 'City Blueprint'. Now don't be confused by my tone. I am not happy about it. It's just the reality of the world we live in. I was probably in one of the last graduating classes that had to stay up for weeks on end inking my final drawings on mylar. Those days are gone.

Myth No. 4- It must be great to Design things all day.

Prior to starting my own firm, I had about 10 years of experience working in various Architectural Offices and I had never really designed anything. This happens for a number of reasons, any of which may apply. It could be that the office you work in has a 'Design Director' who spends all day handing off sketches to junior grunts who put it in the computer. It could also be that the project you are working on is all about budget and the client is dictating every decision based on how much things cost. Or it could be that you were only hired to produce a set of filing documents because it is required by the municipality that an Architect be involved and no one really wants your opinion about anything (this is most common in retail work where you are just cranking out a prototype established by the Client by their 'in house design team'). In my experience, one of those three scenarios accounts for over 90% of the work.

Myth No. 5 - You need to be licensed to practice Architecture.

I find this one to be the most false. I have found that there are two types of Architecture firms: Service Providers and Design Firms. Service firms are crank out work. Design firms focus on problem solving using Design as a medium. Most firms in existence focus on providing a service, not providing Architecture. Look around your town at what gets built. In my town, most of what gets built are retails stores and houses. I would not call a Best Buy a work of Architecture, no matter how big the pointy sign is. In 20 years, it will not be there.

Now in contrast, look at Brad Pitt. Not an Architect. However, he has been largely responsible for the construction of more Architecture in New Orleans than most large firms that I know and he didn't even do the Design. Brad Pitt has essentially opened a Design Firm (by way of a not for profit organization) and brought together a staff of talented young Designers to conceive and execute thoughtful new housing. I don't know any big firms that have done that. So if you want to pursue Architecture, pursue Architecture. If you want to sign and seal drawings for demanding clients, pursue a license. Either way, make sure you are doing what you want to do for the right reasons.

Finally, don't mistake my intentions for writing this article. I love the profession. And that's why I started a development company.

The Stylish Side of Sears Modern Homes

2009-08-16T18:42:00.006-04:00

Lately it seems that every time I pick up a magazine about residential design or construction, someone is talking about 'green' design. Phrases such as 'rapidly renewable', 'eco-friendly' and 'prefab' are quickly becoming a part of the general public's vocabulary. Recently, I started seeing recycled glass tiles and zero VOC paints at the big box stores. And while all of this is definitely good for the planet, I can't help but wonder how it REALLY affects the architecture of our day. Are these new products really changing the general consciousness about Design, or is it just a marketing necessity to offer a sustainable option?

Consider this: In 1913, Sears Roebuck and Company offered 'kit houses' as part of their general catalog. For under $2,000 you could get an entire house in numbered pieces including Millwork, Plumbing Fixtures, Rough Lumber, Roofing, and Finishes. You had the option of putting it together yourself with an enclosed instruction manual, or hiring a local crew to do it. Now the interesting thing about these homes, was not the progressive method of distribution (decades ahead of IKEA), but rather the Design of each residence. With regards to millwork, exteriors, and planning, no detail was overlooked. In order to attract the would be buyers, each model had to be comparable in both price AND aesthetics.

Just for fun, do an image search for 'Sears Modern Home' and you will likely see a collection of modest but very charming homes. If you do a little more digging, you can probably find images of actual homes still in existence from the first part of the twentieth century. Now compare these homes with the current 2009 offerings for affordable 'pre-fab' or 'modular' homes. The results from this search will be dramatically different. Now don't get me wrong, there are plenty of companies that make beautiful modern pre-fab homes. But in my experience, they are not affordable to the average American. Take the Kithaus offered by Design Within Reach. Although visually elegant, it will cost you around $400 per SF for a single 9x13 or 11x17 room. Ouch.

So my challenge to everyone out there is this: If Sears could design and produce elegant and affordable homes made from high quality honest materials in the 1920's, then why can't we do it today? In all this dialogue about Environmental Design and Sustainable Building, perhaps people ought to look at the past before we miss a great opportunity in the future.

The Elements of Style

2009-08-12T12:53:00.002-04:00

It has been a couple of weeks since my last post as I have been taking it easy. One of those two weeks was spent on a beach with some books that I have been waiting to read for almost a year. I find that vacations are great for that sort of thing as it totally takes your mind off of all of the things that you go on vacation to forget. At any rate, I got through about five books in total and there were winners and losers. The winners were the ones that read very easily with great flow and the losers were the ones where I was wondering why I was still reading it after 300 pages. It occurred to me that anyone can author a book, but the truly successful writers possess something that makes their work more popular. That 'thing' is STYLE.

Now you cannot talk about Style at it relates to writing without of course mentioning 'The Elements of Style' by William Strunck and E.B. White. Although this book is small, it is has had a profound impact on the world of literary education. Having never studied English beyond high school, I first heard about it from Stephen King's autobiographical manual, "On Writing."

It goes without saying that artists and architects have their own style when it comes to developing designs for new projects, but I was wondering if there were any connections between the traditional design process and the construction of great prose. So I picked up Strunck and White and here is what I found. Section V of the book is called "An Approach to Style" (sections I-IV deal mostly with English and Grammar) and offers a look into the enigma of great writing. The author(s) say:

"If you doubt that style is something of a mystery, try rewriting a familiar sentence and see what happens. Any much quoted sentence will do. Suppose we take "These are the times that try men's souls." Here we have eight short words, easy words forming a simple declarative sentence. Yet in that arrangement, they have shown great durability. Now compare a few variations:

-Times like these try men's souls.
-How trying it is to live in these times!
-These are trying times for men's souls.
-Soulwise, these are trying times.

It seems unlikely that Thomas Paine could have made his sentiment stick if he had couched it any of these forms. But why not? No fault of grammar can be detected in them, and in every case the meaning is clear. Each version is correct, and each, for some reason that we can't readily put our finger on, is marked for oblivion."

Reading those words made me realize how universal Style is. Here Strunck and White are talking about words, but you could easily replace the grammar of language with the colors in a fabric or parts of a building. We have all seen structures made of wood, concrete, and brick, but why do some call for attention and others 'marked for oblivion'? Style is something that must be a part of every great designer's toolbox. Projects that are executed with an eye for function only are functional, but boring. Louis Sullivan was function with Style. Frank Lloyd Wright went through multiple styles and the rest of the modernists got together and framed 'the International Style'.

Looking back at previous generations, I wonder if we have given up style as a society. Our cities are populated with the same identical big box stores and landscapes as every other one. I tend to think that this is good for those who want to think differently. So I encourage anyone to start their own company or open up your own shop. I believe you will be rewarded for thinking differently, just make sure you do it with Style.

To Buy or to Build? The truth about the REAL cost of a home

2009-07-29T23:19:00.002-04:00

For years I worked in Architecture firms designing things for other people. Eventually you become numb to the fact that a $1.19 duplex receptacle will cost you about $250 to install in the world of commercial construction. If that same receptacle is installed as the result of a change, then you are probably looking at about $500 instead of $250. It seems pretty crazy, right? Well, that's how business is done in the world of construction and Architecture. Now obviously, you are not paying $500 for an outlet. You are paying about $10 for the outlet and about $490 for Construction Supervisors, Administrators, Insurance, Overhead, and Profit. And the bigger the project, the more Overhead and Expenses get built into the costs.

So if you buy a home, then what are you really paying for? Are you paying for the cumulative cost of goods and services in the house, or are you paying for an arbitrary price based on intangible factors? To put it another way, if you buy a house that was built in 1969 at an original cost of $14,000, then where is the justification for a price tag of $450,000? Some would say that the appreciation is based on the price adjusted for current inflation. Some would say that you are paying for the dirt and the locational factors. I say that if you are buying a house that someone else has built, then you are likely OVERPAYING (obviously this would not apply to Foreclosures). If you don't believe me, take a look at your home owner's insurance policy and look at the listed 'replacement cost' for your house. Chances are that the replacement cost is well below what you would sell your house for. Which brings me to my point. If you pay a premium to buy a house that someone else has built, then why not build your own house?

Let's examine this question a little more closely. When you purchase an existing home, you are not paying for the sum of the parts. You are paying to purchase the completed item which is usually greater than the sum of the parts. This is because there is alot of time and labor that have gone into the construction and maintenance (and maybe even renovation) and the Owner wants to be compensated for that beyond the cost of the materials. You should know that location doesn't factor into this comparison because the dirt is the dirt whether you buy or build. The land costs should be the same regardless.

Now let's talk about building your own home. You find a nice lot in a neighborhood that you like and you find an eager young Architect to help you out. Let's just say for argument's sake that you find an Architect who is keen on designing you a great place for about $20,000. Younger Architects will likely take on challenging commissions like this if the project presents a good design opportunity because they can usually lead to bigger and better commissions if they do their job well. So your Architect works with you on the Design and finds some creative ways to save you some money (Architects are very good at this; trust me) . After a few months, the Architect helps you get some bids from some contractors and you examine the costs.

In this scenario, you are shown the value of each trade line by line, like a menu. You can see where each dollar is going and you can choose how much or how little you want to allocate to each area. For example, if those solid maple kitchen cabinets are too much, then you can go to particle board bases with solid wood fronts. The bottom line is that you have more control over the costs and you are only paying for the actual goods and services required for the construction of your house. Also, if you are obsessed with value, you can also oversee all of the work yourself (get rid of those GC fees) and even perform some of the work if you are handy (things like painting and tiling are always pretty straight forward). At the end of the day, you will end up with a house that is probably more valuable than what you paid and will also have something unique as opposed to a cookie cutter builder's house.

So if you have the time (and the stomach) for a unique experience I suggest building your own place. Not only will you be able to say that you helped in creating your own home, you will have invested your money in something that can only appreciate. And that's just good business.

Even a Garbage Can Wants to Be Something

2009-07-20T22:39:00.004-04:00

As you may have suspected, my wife and I are partial to supporting companies that produce well designed items. As my wife has officially entered the 'nesting' phase of her pregnancy, she continues to diligently seek out baby products that are 'green', modern, and functional. This has lead to conversations about Scandinavian baby bouncers, 600 thread count baby sheets and strollers that require the processing of loan applications. But the latest request even has me questioning the value of great design. Yes people, my wife has requested that we purchase a VIPP Stainless Steel Pedal Bin for the containment of diapers.

Now, I had never heard of a VIPP Bin, nor did I know (or want to know) how much this thing costs. She assured me that it would hermetically seal in the diaper odors and unlike a normal plastic diaper genie, it would not absorb any of the smell. This was due to a very high grade stainless steel construction, which has been done by hand since its invention (somewhere in the middle of the 20th century). My wife then went on to very passionately tell me the story of the family that invented this bin and how it was a great icon of modern design that was originally intended to hold hair clippings from a beauty shop. She also threw in that we would have this trash can forever since it can stick around long after the diapers have gone. With all of this information in hand, my wife assured me that this can was a bargain even at double the price (given its pedigree and all).

When I could no longer stand the suspense, she then told me how much this lovely can would cost us. An affordable luxury at $324.

Now, I am a very pragmatic person. I will certainly support design when the design warrants it. But somehow, I could not get my head around a $300 trash bin. So, when my wife and I are at an impasse, we did what we often do. We struck a deal. The deal was (is) that we would get together a pile of items to sell on EBAY and if we could raise the money from the sale of random unwanted items, we would buy it. If not, we would stick with the ever affordable, Diaper Genie. I felt that if the Gods of Design wanted us to have this bin, then they could surely find someone to cough up good money for our old watches, luggage, books, and costume jewelry. I guess we'll see how it ends up, but let this be a lesson to you all. When designed well, even a Garbage Bin can be Something.

A pause for Julius Shulman

2009-07-16T23:27:00.004-04:00

If you have never heard of Julius Shulman, you have likely seen at least one of his photographs in your lifetime. His most famous shot features one of the Case Study Houses hanging off the edge of a cliff in Los Angeles. The house is by Pierre Koenig and it is immortalized in Shulman's black and white photograph where a pair of ladies are sitting on the sofa seemingly suspended over the lights of the city below. The amazing thing is that the shot never really happened like that. Shulman made the shot from two different shots: one of the city below and one of the house. In the days before Photoshop, you had to see the shot you wanted in your head and then capture what you needed to make it.

Shulman was famous for the capture. He earned the nickname 'One Shot Shulman', often getting what he needed in only one take. I was reading a short obituary on the LA Times web site and they had about 20 pictures or so spanning Shulman's career. I was taken by one picture in particular of Shulman setting up a shot on the front lawn of a ranch house. He is standing there positioning his camera at the proper angle for his shot and he's got all of these plants set up around his lens. There are at least three potted plants and another huge branch strapped to a wooden bracket. The thing that struck me was that Shulman was creating an artificial view to better frame the building. Having seen literally hundreds of his photographs, it never struck me that what I was looking at was constructed. It always seemed organic. I guess that was what Shulman excelled at. He saw the shot and did what he needed to do to create it.

It is likely that in a few news cycles no one will be talking about Julius Shulman. Fortunately, he has left us with a remarkable portfolio of work to reflect upon for years to come. What will always stay with me is the purity of how he saw the world through Architecture. His photos made every place look special or important. Trust me, it's not easy to do. As we look at our generic landscapes of big box stores and chain restaurants, I wonder whether or not we have lost that lens that makes places special. I certainly hope not.

Thank you Mr. Shulman for memorializing so many great places and memories. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then you are certainly one of the most prolific authors in history.

Why Design Matters - Part II

2009-07-15T12:50:00.004-04:00

As I write this, I am reminded of something I saw on EBAY this morning. A 1992 Ferrari F40 was selling for $619,000 with many models above $500,000. And these are USED! I thought that was a fitting intro for my thoughts today about the value of Design. In my last post I discussed why a house that is considered is not only worth more, but it also makes you feel better. Today I want to discuss how great Design can be the Blueprint for a successful business transaction. Whether that transaction is selling your house or staring a company, Design Matters.

Let's take a look at the Ferrari once more. Now, I would never buy a Ferrari, because to me, a car is just about getting from A to B. But I can certainly look at a Ferrari and recognize that it has been designed both a vehicle and a work of art. Anytime I have been in my car and pulled up near a car of this magnitude, whoever I am with always says something like "Hey, check that car out!". Now I would suspect that most people couldn't tell a Ferrari from a Lamborghini from a Lotus, but I have never been in the car when someone was excited to see a Toyota Camry or a Chevy Malibu. This is because the Design of those vehicles is driven by cost and ability to be mass produced. My point here is that when producing great Design is the driver, the result is usually something that is elevated beyond function alone. It is this elevation that often justifies the higher price tag than something that just serves the purpose.

Let's switch gears to another company that understands this: Apple. By putting Design first, they have carved out a product line that is more than twice as expensive as their respective competitors. Yet despite the big Recession, consumers are actually buying more Apple products this year than last. Does that make sense? Absolutely. Apple offers each customer the ability to be on the cutting edge of both technology and Design. While other stocks have lost up to 90% of their value, their stock is actually holding its value. I could talk about many other companies that embody these virtues, but I will save that for another day. The only thing I will say is that next time you are waiting in a really long line for a Burrito or a Mini Cooper, ask yourself what it is about the product that makes you want it. You will find that the answer to that question is in the details. All of the details of whatever it is that you want, have been considered and thought about. Do you know who thinks about these details? Designers.

I will end today with some thoughts about your house. If you are one of the people who has been affected by the unprecedented destruction of personal wealth in the last 24 months (i.e. the value of your house has fallen significantly) then I will give you this advice. Consider the details of your house. Does your huge walk in closet have a cheap wire shelf around it's perimeter? Is your study just a room called a study, or does it have well constructed milllwork built in to the space? Does your living space have wall to wall nylon carpeting that not only traps germs and allergens, but also makes you sicker? Ask yourself why your house is better or worse than your neighbors house. Is your house a cookie cutter model or has it been designed to serve the needs of living? I can tell you that the latter types sell MUCH faster. Design Matters.

Why Design Matters - Part I

2009-07-14T09:58:00.003-04:00

I don't know how many people have gotten tired about hearing about the crisis in the housing market, but I certainly have. The destruction of personal wealth, the larger recession, and the overall joblessness of the entire country have all been attributed to the burst of the great housing bubble. Although I could talk about the 'bubble' for days, I will try to keep my opinions down to a minimum and just offer these two words in response to all the doomsday prognosticators: Design Matters.

Now while this may be apparent to some, it is clearly not a phrase that most people have adopted. The bulk of residential development and construction in this country is done by people who have limited Architectural or Design experience and replicate typical 'models' driven by the short list of consumer's 'wants'. This has led to many developments of large homes (often called McMansions) where quantity clearly trumps quality. If you don't believe me, you can go find such developments and see that the material on the front of the house is usually abandoned for the other three sides. You can see the use of lesser quality materials without even going inside; windows with false mullions (I love the look of a good snap on plastic mullion) vinyl siding, asphalt shingle roofing, and in some cases, fake stone veneer. Although these houses are often in the 'Colonial' style, I'm sure the Colonists would laugh at our abuse of the term. In a recent issue of Dwell Magazine, the editor referred to this type of construction as 'historical fiction' (brilliant).

Without going in to further detail, I can tell you that it was no surprise to me that these types of homes have recently lost a good portion of their value. I want to talk a little bit about this, as it touches many areas that affect most people's lives. These areas include happiness, spirituality, and wealth.

First, let's talk about happiness. Modern Homes that have been Designed, provide for a wealth of activities and use the house as a functional tool to assist you in your life. Remember that old image of the ironing board that folds down from the wall and goes away when you are done with it? That was easy and out of the way. I have never seen a McMansion with a built in ironing board. I think this is because the builder wants to give the illusion that the Masters of the house don't have to do any work in their castle. Well, I don't know who's going to clean that huge window in the two story entry foyer, but I can assure you it's not going to be the builder. In contrast, Modern Homes are typically built to a human scale and Designed to be easier to maintain. Compact floor plans that have clear circulation patterns and better materials are much easier to clean and use than their Merchant Builder counterparts. There is a whole movement about this called 'The Not So Big House', started by an Architect named Sara Susanka. There is also a great book from the fifties called "The Guide to Easier Living" by Russell and Mary Wright. I don't know about you, but if I could Design myself a house that would reduce housework and provide a richer living experience, it would certainly make me happier.

The next area I want to touch on is Spirituality. Without getting into a religious discussion, let's just say that Spirituality is however you connect with the forces of Nature or the Universe (whatever you consider them to be). Personally, I feel very strongly that there is a grand design to our environment and I want to live in a place that connects me to it. I think a house should respect and reflect its site, take advantage of natural light and wind, and be constructed in a way that does not disrespect the earth. Having a home like this will not only make you feel better about being in it, but it will also reduce your costs to heat, cool, and illuminate said dwelling. Which leads us to our final topic: Wealth.

Nothing makes me madder than watching economists talk about the housing bubble as though it were the product of economic forces. Wrong! The housing bubble is the product of bad housing that people overpaid for. Florence Knoll said that "Good Design is Good Business". I think Apple would agree with statement all day long. So here's the deal: if you want your house to be worth more money or if you want to start a company that is successful: Invest in Design. Whether that means bringing in an Architect or Designer to improve your space or hiring a Graphic Designer to make you a great web site and Identity system, the rules are the same: Design Matters. Still not convinced? In my next post, I will show you a number of examples of how smart companies use Design to build great products and HUGE fortunes.

Design and Architecture

2009-07-09T12:53:00.003-04:00

As I mentioned in my last post, anything can be designed. In my opinion, the words Design and Architecture mean the same thing. It has been a long standing misnomer that the word 'Architecture' has to do only with the work of Architects, but in fact many of the greatest 'Architects' were actually 'Designers'. The easiest (and best) example of this would be Frank Lloyd Wright. Now while I admire his work in Buildings, his collective portfolio is far more impressive when you consider the breadth of his influence. Whether you are talking about the furniture he designed or his graphic arts influence (from fonts to rendering style) no one can deny that his perspective on the world extended beyond the bricks and wood of his structures. Today, we have separate occupations for graphic designers, industrial designers, textile designers and pretty much any other kind of designer you can think of. However, it has always been my experience that the best designers (and architects) are the ones who look beyond the specific thing they are designing to how it will apply to the greater whole of the world.

Further evidence of the symmetry between 'Design' and 'Architecture' has to do with the tools that are used to employ both. These tools include things like composition, scale, texture, harmony, and detail. Now while these words are very common in Design, they are also common to other areas such as Art and Music. This is why Michelangelo could paint the Sistine Chapel and design the Campodoglio. Almost every creative discipline is linked through these common tools. Of course, there are those who seem to be born with an innate understanding of Design and there are those who work at it tirelessly. I think the verdict is still out on whether or not you can learn to be a great Designer. We will leave that conversation for another day.

For now, let us go forward with the understanding that Design is in everything and that anyone can create a work of Architecture and that the two terms are not exclusive. Once you understand this, you can literally create anything.

Intro to Life and Architecture

2009-07-07T17:02:00.003-04:00

The term 'Architecture' has alot of different meanings today. Most people would say that it relates to the design of buildings. Although not incorrect, Architecture actually relates to the design of everything. Just as you can design a house, you can also design a meal, a political campaign or a Halloween costume. For our purposes, we will focus on the discussion of everyday topics with the intent of designing a better lifestyle and hopefully passing along some good wisdom in the process. Also, if you have any suggestions for topics, or questions about a certain area, please do not hesitate to drop me a line.