Have you ever considered what function the background on your computer’s desktop serves? I doubt it. Many people treat their desktop’s background as an expensive picture frame that displays imagery of their family or maybe a sports car that they will never ever be able to afford, but why not ask the desktop what it wants to be? It seems that the background of your computer’s desktop is an opportunity that architects have not yet capitalized on. In fact, I do not know of any profession that has thought about using the background of their computer’s desktop as anything other than a picture frame. This article discusses ten ways that you can make your desktop function for you. … continue reading Rethinking the Function of the Architect’s Desktop

So, you want to be an Architect? The process of becoming an architect has become overly complicated since the days of Peter Keating and Howard Roark, but it is not impossible, yet. I have focused the last year of my life on obtaining my professional license, and may be deemed a licensed architect sometime this month, but instead of keeping my experiences to myself, I thought that I would pass along the lessons that I have learned during the past year in hopes that it will help other interns navigate this murky process.

One of the most difficult things about the architectural licensing process is that the road to becoming an architect is fragmented. … continue reading An Intern’s Guide to Becoming an Architect, Lesson #1: NCARB & IDP

It has been awhile since I have attacked my favorite moving target, NCARB, partly because I have been very busy trying to beat NCARB at their own game, and also in part because I have been very busy at work. I have taken what will hopefully be my last ARE, and during this whole process I have run into many obstacles, which is nothing new for ARE candidates attempting to complete this ridiculous process of graduating from intern architect to licensed architect. The reason that I refer to the process as ridiculous is for reasons different than many of my peers. I agree that it is silly that one has to know what riprap is(something I saw on a practice exam somewhere) … continue reading NCARB Sabotaging the ARE with Errors, Omissions & Quiet Corrections

Rape space is a term that I first encountered while in attendance at the University of Cincinnati’s undergraduate architecture program.  The term rape space was spoken by faculty members with the same frequency as other designer-ly words such as form and hierarchy.  If you have not yet guessed, a rape space is a bad thing, and no student ever wants to be credited with creating a rape space or hearing that phrase during a critique.  The exact origin of this term remains unknown to me, and I am unsure if this term has populated the architectural vocabulary of other respected architectural education programs. … continue reading Rape Space #1: Orlando Public Library

DesignIntelligence proves every year that they are the architectural community’s greatest oxymoron with the publication of their highly suspect and highly controversial ranking of accredited undergraduate and graduate architectural programs in the country. If you have had any doubts about the credibility of DesignIntelligence’s yearly ranking of architectural programs, you are really going to love this. I received an email from a friend a couple of days ago regarding the announcement of the new 2009 Design Futures Council Fellows. I did not care at first, because I did not even know what the Design Futures Council was. … continue reading 2009 Design Futures Council Fellows Named

The only reason that you are going to read this article is because you wanted to eat the image to the left, and because every day you have the same disappointed expression as this poor bastard to my left.  Why does he look so disappointed?  Because its another day of eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.  You don’t have to go through life treating lunch like a chore or getting fat eating out at restaurants that are killing you with tasteless food. Be the cool kid in the office with the brown bag that rocks. … continue reading Chickpeas, Tomato & Feta Salad

Disney World in Orlando, Florida is for many reasons worthy of architectural study. While walking through the parks one can study how the environment has been designed to handle large masses of people and apply these principles to plaza or park designs.  One could also study how the signage has been designed to communicate to anyone regardless of the language they speak, and apply these principles to way-finding design in hospitals.  Or one could simply appreciate the reality of fantasy that Disney has managed to create, which after all is very similar to the reality that we as architects attempt to create every single day. … continue reading © Architecture Copyright Infringement

If you are an ARE candidate and have taken an ARE exam then you are somewhat familiar with the grading criteria or lack there of on the exams. For those of you who have not had the pleasure of studying and testing for these exams do not worry you will be trapped in The Matrix soon enough. The only difference is that there is no blue or red pill available for you to find the truth.  To think of it, NCARB has a lot in common with the blockbuster movie The Matrix.  This may make a fun spoof article, but that is for another time. … continue reading *The Importance Of The Asterisk

I was studying for my final ARE this past weekend and the general procedure in our household is that I study in the living room, while watching television with my wife. I have been able to study while watching television for years, seriously, but I found myself unable to focus when I heard the title for a new A&E television series. Keyshawn Johnson: Tackling Design, I shit you not.   Here is the press release from A&E to prove it.  Let’s just ignore the fact that I was watching A&E for a minute and focus on the topic at hand. Keyshawn Johnson has a full on design team armed with a pair of Chuck Taylor’s and a stack of design books ready to tackle design. … continue reading Keyshawn Johnson: Tackling Design