Not to beat this dead horse a few more times, but modern isn't really a style, it's a category of styles. Wright invented the first residential modernist style and it's inspiration came in part from the Arts & Crafts movement. Folks like Neutra & Shindler came to America to work for Wright and then went to CA to begin the modernist American version of the International Style. They dropped the detail synonymous with the Prairie Style and the Arts & Crafts movement, creating a distinction between them. Many Architects consider Prairie to be a traditionalist style now as the term modern seems to be associated with purism and the lack of heavy detail, yet there are plenty of average Americans that see Prairie as the most God awful modern thing they ever saw, especially here in the SE.
Style is all about perception. I think one thing is for sure, we're in a style rut. We wouldn't be hearing from so many on this subject if we were satisfied with the direction Architecture is heading in now. We couldn't be more disconnected from the average person, so we go in one direction, while they go in another with neither meeting in the middle. We are out of touch because we think it's our job to force a design ideology on the public and it's not resonating. At what point do you wake up and realize that maybe something isn't working? A new style, new forms will more likely emerge and survive if we evolve together with the public rather than fight them. In short, we need to be designing a whole lot more housing at all levels of income and most of our business models are designed around millionaire and billionaire clients.
How much faster can you get mass quantities of Architecture on the ground than to design houses? What better way to encourage the public to engage in better design than to design the buildings they use everyday and fall in love with. I don't know anyone who has fallen in love with their bank, grocery store, or Exxon station, but I have seen people fall in love with the most God awful houses because there's no place like home. BTW-the busiest Architects I know right now are busy designing houses for regular people and builders. Housing is coming back all around the country, but it's not all new starts. There are many renovations happening and these projects are never in the stat sheets. I've given old worn out house face lifts and even sex changes. Builders are looking for better design and can't find Architects that can provide the basic drawings they need for a fair price. Remember, builders can build from a napkin sketch if needed. Jurisdictions are requiring more sophisticated drawings and some require ResCheck reports now. We are best suited to provide these services if we can just come down to reality and understand that houses don't need commercial grade sets of drawings. If we don't step in to fill this gap, someone else will.
If you're out of work, then there's nothing to lose. All you need is a computer with a drafting program. You don't even need a large format printer or an office for that matter. Start with some moonlighting if you're sick of the Architorture firms. I was like many of you for over a decade. I couldn't give up the regular check, but the best thing that ever happened to me was losing my consulting job in Jan 2009, when almost a million Americans lost jobs. What I didn't realize is how many clients become interested in you once they know you're available full time. If they know you're serious about you're business and their project isn't going to sit on the sideline because your full time job is more important, then they're much more comfortable to hire you. The work is out there and it's not that hard to find. Start with the builders and those jobs will lead to better ones.
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Eric Rawlings AIA
Owner
Rawlings Design, Inc.
Decatur GA
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Original Message:
Sent: 05-08-2012 07:47
From: John Richert
Subject: Residential design awards
What I don't understand in these discussions is why we architects fight so much. I love all styles of architecture when they are done well. I see good and bad both ways. Yes, bad traditional architecture is very pervasive in our society. But ... why do die hard modernists not understand that Modern is just another style. It is not inherently better, more progressive or more "moral". How the hell do you apply morality to a style of architecture anyway? The only way you can is if you ignore the fact that Modern is a style in the same way that Shingle or Prairie is a style.
At its best all architecture pushes spacial envelopes, explores light and responds uniquely to a specific clients needs/desires. The application of traditional details or modern details (or lack thereof) is just style. No style being inherently better than the other. We all wear our own style of clothing to fit our personal tastes ... we don't all need to wear the same style of house.
If we could all just grasp this simple fact, it would end a lot of confusion both within the industry and without.
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John Richert AIA
Owner
Crossroads Design, Inc.
Lake Forest IL
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