Programming for Architects

I have slowly come to the realize, especially this year, that my lack of knowledge about how software works puts seriously limitations on what I am able to create. Architecture is becoming increasingly reliant on computers. While it does open up a tremendous range of opportunities for design, it also warps ones ability to design because of limitations on skill and understanding of the software itself.

Frustrations with design software happens frequently and often inexplicably. I find anger building while sitting in front of an inanimate screen, forming a hatred so deep that a thousand digital deaths would not quell wildfire that burns in my irises. Yet, I have no one to be angry at but myself. AutoCAD does not begin the day with the sole purpose of destroying my fleeting happiness with life, it hums to life (frustratingly slow of course) and opens itself to record and aid in my design goals. For AutoCAD does not think, it just does, and anything that goes "wrong" is probably entirely my own fault.

So why have I decided that life cannot go on without learning the computer's perspective? Simple answer is that I have a lot of free time on my hands. Free time, once a luxury seen between the end of studio Friday and dragging my hungover face in on Sunday afternoon, has become abundant. Between sessions of Teamfortress and DOTA (neither of which are very helpful to increasing my worth to the world) I've somewhat disciplined myself to learn in small spurts that hopefully over the course of this year yields some results.

The long answer is that I don't want to be limited by what I know how to do.  Scripting and parametrics are something I've always wanted to do, not because it is cool and I can change how many louvres there are with a number slider, but because it opens up the possibility of layering increasingly complex elements into my design. The learning curve has been tremendous because of my lack of knowledge of post algebra math and basic computer logic. Now having the unrestrained free time to push over the barrier, I've realized that it is not as simple as watching tutorials and getting it. It seems to require a reset in my frame of mind and an unfamiliar approach to problem solving. I could easily spend another four years of my life in school to achieve the level of mastery required. So what I'm left with is trying to break the surface of a vast ocean of knowledge that is completely overwhelming.

Well, here's to hoping for breakthroughs.

Olympic Dreams in Landscape Architecture

Victoria park, London, the site of great Olympic celebration, ruined by an over cautious state and uncooperative nature of the London weather. Part of the difficulty in hosting the Olympics in a large international city is the issue of finding enough space to place all the things required for a successful event. This years Olympics will not be seen as a failure, but it has failed, perhaps by no fault of the organizing party, to create an Olympic atmosphere.

For me, London eerily lacks the constant noise and excitement of this once in four years spectacle. This world scale event seems to have not injected anything into a city with already so much going on. The Olympics is reduced to a hiccup in a routine. 

This is the first Olympics to be available at a high quality over the internet. The BBC does an incredible job with streaming radio and video coverage. Coverage so good, that it's better than the flickering screens in these event parks. With the London weather being what it is, it is much more preferable to be at home, cold beer in hand, watching whichever and whatever event one's heart desires. 

The difficulty of creating this event space is absolute lack of need for the place itself. Between home TV and the internet, the only reason to see the games is to see it in person. There is no true incentive to go to a damp crowdless park, have to go through airport style security, and buy nine pound beers. Technology has become so good at connecting us to the events themselves that event spaces that don't host the competitions themselves are no longer necessary in a nation where everyone's phone is a portal to the games. 

Bonus Olympics fireworks

Everything to Say

It is sometimes easy to forget that architecture is the most primitive
and universal language. The primal need for shelter evolved into the
complex system of schools of thought, arguments in theory, and a
general audacity in our view of what architecture is and what we
create in this world.

The Little Blue House on Royal Street

 On the way from Kings Cross station to Camden town, there is a peculiar building in the midst of row after row of British town houses. It is easy to miss if you aren't looking for it, but when you do, its hard not to take a moment and stare at the blue marble facade. This hidden gem is apparently the new offices of the British architecture office Patel Taylor. Although not listed at their own website, other internet listings seem to point it to them.

Doing some heavy overtime at work, but the "Shard" by Renzo Piano opens tonight in London with a laser show. Check it out at the link below! It starts nowish...

http://the-shard.com/inauguration/

Whats odd is that the interior is not open... so they are just having a laser show for the completion of the top.

Mind Blowing Game Changer - The Canon Mixed Reality System

via Cannon.com

Virtual reality systems have been around for quite a few years, but Canon's Mixed Reality (MR) system takes it to a whole new level. Targeted at industrial design, the MR system allows users to view and interact with computer generated models in life scale 3D. While the demo (found here) only shows people awkwardly interacting with car parts using what looks like a plastic spider, the implications of what this tool means for architectural design is pretty incredible.

Architectural design has always been tied down to an imagined reality, where a constant awareness of scalar differences is key to interpreting what is drawn. Drawings, models, renderings all show a perceived reality that one can only grasp through imagination. The full scale implications of building can only be fully appreciated after completion. Representation is important because it assists in bridging that gap. 3D computer modeling has become integral not only as the nexus from which other representative forms are generated, but more importantly as a versatile tool to quickly preview our every design whim. With it, architecture has become quicker, bigger, and more complex.

MR technology is the first step in what I believe to be the next leap in architecture design. As processors continue to evolve in line with Moore's law, it won't be long until visualization becomes less an issue of computing power, but more about what operating framework from which design occurs. MR presents the opportunity to immerse ourselves in our visions, to look at designs through lenses previously unavailable. It allows for incredible scalar transitions. Imagine looking at an animated master plan hundreds of blocks in area on your meeting room table, playing around with buildings and roads like lego blocks. Then transitioning to standing in a room within that plan, looking out your window as CG cars stream by below, making sure your vision remains intact at all scales.

It can also be used to playout some Godzilla fantasies, if that's more up your alley.

Rawrchitecture, Rawrbooted

It has been close to a year since we've last posted anything. This is a notice that we are still alive, and perhaps more of a motivator for me to continue posting. As a class, we have completed the first leg of our architectural journey. Graduation was in May and we are now about to be spread all over America and spilling over a little to Europe. Alex will be in New York and I will be in London for this coming year. These are the two places worth mentioning since we are the only two write for this sparsely populated blog.

For me, the notion of a reboot applies to more than just this blog. It is starting new in a different country and an unfamiliar place, save only for a common language. I first experienced this last night, when lugging the bare requirements of my year around from Heathrow airport via tube to Kings Cross. Then finding the apartment I had found online and secured over Skype in the midst of London's drunkest young people with no way of contacting anyone.

I hope this experience will be mild compared to what this year will have in store for me. I want to realign the focus of this blog into something more personal, an authentic look through our eyes into the experiences brought on by our good fortune being students of architecture. Look forward to posts revisiting experiences in the past four years we've been too preoccupied to post, updates on what we are going through this year, and perhaps a few passionate ramblings brought about by a few too many beers.