Success!

Thankfully, that success is on a number of levels.  It is important to celebrate the little things in life...

1.) I managed to write two days in a row.

2.) I made it through the second week of classes

3.) I think some things might be shaping up and pulling together.

So, yesterday was again the day of limbo- no class (except for the two hour break I take to try to sort of pay attention to my sociology professor...), no direction (except my own).  Just me trying to get things DONE.  And there was a lot to get done!  Primarily, it was working on Vellum.  I had the wood from Home Depot (thank you, Kim!) to go ahead and start working, so I headed down to the shop pretty early... although first I had to deal with some rather inconvenient issues- I shall digress:

At Cal Poly, we obviously pay tuition, of which I pay about 2 times more than an in-state student, and college-based fees (or CBF's), which are used by the CAED (college of architecture and environmental design) to pay for classes, supplies, and extra odds and ends to supplement our education.  I served on the board that determined the uses of these funds for 3 years.  But, given the financial crisis in California, which is about to lead to a full-on implosion of the education system, we don't even have enough money to pay for our professors to teach necessary classes!  As a result, what were supposed to be support funds (the CBF's) are being used for salary- aka, not for supplementing our education.  The big problem with that is that CBF's had standing responsibilities to various college facilities, including our wood and metal shop.  Without money, the shop had two choices- to close, which would have devastated our already toned-down polytechnic education, or ask students for additional fees.  They chose the later, and now to use the shop, students must buy a $25 card that authorizes their use.  It is incredibly convoluted, and involves running all over campus with various paperwork and photo identification.  Ugh.  Dumb dumb dumb.  Who is in charge of the state budget???  We should send them back to business school!  Anyway, sorry.  Back to what I was saying:

So, after a little running around, I managed to become authorized, so I got access to the shop.  I had a few difficult things I wanted to sort out with my lamp/screen joint, so I sought help from the shop manager, Doug.  Primarily, I wanted to have the hinge joint be hidden, and this had to be done by recessing it using a router.  It took a little time to set up a jig so I could use a hand-router, but I eventually got it figured out.  It did a great job, allowing the hinge to sit level in the first piece of wood.  I then sanded a shallow recesses and glued the second piece of wood, which was cut at a 45 degree angle for the corner, over the top.  It looked perfect, and moves really well.  I'm proud of it.

After the shop, I worked on my research and infographics for the rest of the afternoon.  The reason behind all of this, is that in my talk with Jonathan, he looked at my structural diagram of a purification ritual as I understood it, and said that although he 'got' the first (isolation), second (catharsis), and fourth (reintroduction) steps in terms of architectural outcomes, he wasn't sure what the third step (mental, emotional, & spiritual healing) would look like.  It was unclear, and needed to be explored.  I agree, by the way.  That's where the research is going now, I hope. 

 

But anyway, he pointed out that I need to sort of narrate the process.  Explain, in words, pictures, and graphics, the who, what, where, and why.  He referenced a National Geographic article.  So- if I were to write a National Geographic article about my project, how would I do it?  Primarily, I need to sort out the images, because the words will come naturally. I'm planning a few things to try to accomplish this- one is a map that shows and describes various purification rituals and healing ceremonies (some for, and some not for soldiers) from around the world.  Another is a graphic that summarizes visually the relationship between mental health and various activities.  Finally, I want to explain the scale in which the problem exists.  It's hard to visualize what 2.2 million people (that's the number of soldiers who have or are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan from the United States) looks like!  They seem to be coming along, although slowly, quite nicely.


And one last thing- I am thinking that my 1 : 2 vellum model will be my object for the abstract show, and I can use it as the surface to mount my images and pictures.  There are 4 sides, and 4 steps in explaining the project: 1.) the problem, 2.) traditional knowledge & purification rituals, 3.) non-traditional healing methods, 4.) the application.  We will see how that develops.  It may not work out at all in the end.

Into Week 2...

So, this has gotten to the point of ridiculousness, as it's been more than a couple of days now since I wrote.  I will try to cover everything as in depth as possible... and to refrain from doing this in the future.  I know I become forgetful if I don't write SOON after something has happened.

Monday:

So, on Monday, I would say I spent a lot of time on research.  It has been a mixed affair- trying to find things that are even remotely related to what I want my project to deal with, and then trying to read them for content AND keep them all straight in my head.  The biggest aspect of this is that my bibliography has finally become annotated.  I knew that if, at some point, I didn't create little blurbs to remind myself of what an article was about, it was going to get nuts.  Already, titles are starting to sound eerily similar.  At least now, when I get lost, I can return to this for help. 

We also, of course, had studio, but I wouldn't really think of this as separate from what I was doing before/after.  Sometimes we meet- we did briefly on Monday.  Sometimes, we just work.  And then, of course, Jonathan makes the rounds.  But, he really loves to dive into peoples projects, so it's slow going when you are on the list.  So, on this particular day, we met to finish up the last tiny bits of discussions about peoples project ideas, and then broke to work.  I was on the 'talk to Reich' list, but not near the top, so I didn't quite make it.  Which was fine.  I just worked instead.  Slowly plodding along.

Tuesday:

Again, a research-filled day, but what was nice was that real BOOKS started to become involved... well, sort of.  By books, I mean physical objects rather than digital articles, for example.  A compiled journal, The American West, was pulled out of storage, and a book through loan from San Fran, Moving a Nation to Care, came in the mail.  Yay!  So, a little pile is building.  I also did a little work on Vellum, putting together a 1/6 scale model.

Before I go on, since I promised to discuss this, here is my idea:  SOURCE, SCREEN, STAGE.  I have designed a floor lamp that (hopefully) will be able to serve three purposes.  First of all, a SOURCE of light, as a floor lamp.  The style was inspired by shoji screens and modern Japanese standing lanterns.  But there are also joints that allow the 4 sides to swing together, making a SCREEN to keep out light.  And, if the light is adjusted to a new location and then turned on, it can become a STAGE to draw attention and either work as a light box, a shadow-play space, or as a display.  The idea is that in my thesis design, the veterans need to heal through interpersonal and intrapersonal events.  This lamp displays how it is possible for one thing to be practical (source), meditative (screen)- this is like the way a shoji blocks some light and sound, but not all, allowing for thoughtfulness and opening-up, and playful (stage).  I'm still working out the details of the joinery, but I think it may be possible.  The biggest concerns seem to be structural, because it needs to be sturdy.  But Kim, who is an Architectural Engineering student, has been helping me bounce around ideas about how to make it work since the beginning of the design.  I think we might be getting somewhere!

The below images are of the study models.  First, the original idea, with the stylish but impractical swooping legs,  Then, onto the more recent design in the second.  Three and four are of the 1/6 model, which had no screen for simplicity.  But here you can see the open vs. closed state.

Wednesday:

Here, we had studio again.  I did more research, which is finally expanding, as I've found articles on the Indian Sweat Lodge, as well as the scientifically verifiable mental and physical benefits of yoga.  The direction of the research is pretty positive for me.

Aside from that, we met at Linnaea's in the morning, and Reich bought us pastries again (which is so, so nice! They are delicious).  And, we talked about out reading out of Zumthor's "Thinking Architecture".  It is very theoretical and beautiful in parts.  It takes a strong stand on ideas of physicality, reality, and regionalism.  And, I'm pretty much in tune with his ideas about all of this.  It was nice to have a discussion with 20 people about it though, because everyone has a slightly different take.

After, we headed back to studio, where we discussed the possibilities of field trip(s) this quarter.  Our timing is sort of difficult to work with, but there is a possibility that we might go to San Fran NEXT WEEKEND from Saturday night/Sunday morning until Monday evening.  Jonathan had a few places he thought would be helpful for people to see before they get too deep into Vellum.  We also might be able to find space to go to either Vancouver, Seattle, or Portland.  I'm excited!

Finally, studio time- and this time I did get to talk to Reich.  We discussed my research, my vellum, and my information and how to present it.  In terms of research, I think he was impressed that I had amassed as much as I had (I have a HUGE stack), and especially that I was willing to delve into the Journals of Psychiatry for information.  I was kind of surprised I did that too.  With the information and how to present it, he was particularly caught by an infographic I have hanging on the wall that I've been working on.  And actually, I think it's just vague enough to have caught several people's attention thus far.  It shows the percentage of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan who have died (black), sought treatment for PTSD (maroon), displayed PTSD symptoms (red) and suffered a significant trauma while deployed (pink).  The grey is people with none of the above.

He then gave me a suggestion to get a book called "Visual Display of Quantitative Information" by Edward Tufte, and to see if this might take me somewhere in terms of how I think to present my work.

Finally, we discussed my Vellum idea, I showed him my model, and explained why it related to what I want my project to be about.  I felt like he got it right away, and we then discussed the intricacies of putting the piece together, the joinery involved, and the possibilities of the material pallet.  He said it would be good for me to build it at a 1 to 4 scale to study how strong it will be before I build the entire thing, and I agree.  But honestly, I am most worried about making the joints work, so I decided a join prototype would be my best bet to begin with.  I bought wood at home depot for this last night.  He also told me that if I could get the scale model to work out, that would be the perfect object for the abstract show.  I'm thinking I will go with that idea- and use the lamp as the display for the other information.  But I think 1 : 4 is too small, so I might bump it up to 1 : 2.  I think I'll get a better study of the object that way anyway.

So, that's it.  I feel like I'm going somewhere, but the destination is still so far down the road that I don't think I can slow down for a minute until I get there!

Weekend Number 1

Oh my, oh my.  So I wasn't kidding about being too tired to get around to writing on Sunday!  I thought about it on multiple occasions and just never got any umph behind me to go ahead and write down what had gone on.  I will be brief because it is already late, I am already tired, and I need to get to be if I'm going to get up and go back to studio in the morning!

So- Saturday I got up early and went to studio.  I hoped to only be there for a few hours, but a few hours turned into most of the day.  And when I finally came home, I just kept on working.  It's feeling compulsive, actually.  But I was at least productive.  I spend the vast majority of the time researching.  What is funny though is I felt like I was getting dead ends at every turn for most of the morning.  I went to the library a couple of times to look at 5 or so different books.  None of them were of any use.  Then finally, I decided to try the academic article database- and low and behold- treasure trove.  Although I am still looking high and low for articles about 'purification rituals' to supplement the vague knowledge I already have, I seem to be making headway on all fronts.

The 3 main areas of research are:

PTSD/Trauma & Veterans, Veteran Reintegration, Mental health for Veterans, etc
Non-traditional healing, Yoga, Meditation, etc
Tribal knowledge, Purification rituals, psychic healing

The three areas sometimes mix, sometimes don't.  At the moment, I have about 15-20 references in my growing bibliography.

I will add that one FUN part of the research was movie watching.  Reich suggested that I watch "Born on the Fourth of July" and "Coming Home".  I've only watched the first- but it was pretty intense.  I sat down with Cailin Friday night, expecting something not too crazy, not too tame.  But there was a lot of shooting, blood, violence, and anger.  All of which is understandable in the context of the Vietnam War.  And while it wasn't super pleasant, it was entertaining.  And I learned something.  As Reich said- Movies are serious.  They are condensed knowledge.  Yup.

On a completely different note, I am beginning to contemplate Vellum, the annual furniture show/competition in SLO that architecture students (especially thesis students) participate in.  I have some ideas that I'm pretty excited about, but are still being worked out from a structural/detail perspective.  I will give a few clues, although I'm too tired to go into details now.  I want to design a floor lamp, I want it to be transformative, and I want to base the aesthetics on Japanese lanterns.  That should get the juices going.

Oh, and as a last note- tally of hours for the week (week ONE, mind you): 46.5.  Oh man.

Days 4 & 5

So, I didn't at all mean for this to happen- but it is apparently getting to be a habit to only debrief once every two days.  Which is really unfortunate because a lot seems to be happening each day, and it would be better to get it all out while things are still fresh.  But I'll try to recover... and to find a few extra minutes to write between classes or before I pass out every night!

So- Day 4: Thursday.  Like Tuesday, I only have one class, which is fabulous because it provides this open-ended day to get done whatever needs to get done.  I went in pretty early so I could get to work on the 'artifact'- for lack of a better word- that Reich wanted to see for Friday.  I actually started it the night before, because my plan was to produce a poem and some watercolor abstract illustrations to go with it.  I love to write (clearly), but especially poetry.  I've been doing it since I was little.  And I thought that after the rather concise and rational abstract that I had produced for Wednesday (which, unfortunately, never got examined), I would dabble in a different realm entirely.  Because my project is meant to be two-sided.  Very rational, empirical, and based on in-depth research and documentation.  At the same time, it is about morality, spirituality, emotions, mental healing, and the poetry of life.  So, it was time to try to express myself with the other half of my brain.

The poem is written in 4 stanzas, no rhyming scheme, and no strong structure, although an observant reader will see a very minor scaffolding.  I wanted it to be both metaphorical and literal- describing emotional states, thoughts, images, as well as physical places.  Take a look:
 

The Phoenix Rises

There was a fire-

Somewhere beyond the imagination's

forever wind.

Beyond Dreams and nightmares,

Night and day.

-The hot burning embers

that they dare not say.

There was a fire

That he faced, stood before-

Naked

and Alone.

And no one heard his screams.

There is a moment-

That breath between

Life and Death.

like a shadow of a memory,

When everything ends

and something past it begins;

When you see the face again,

there is a moment

Of questions and fear

And memories, that

He can't deny and cannot accept.

But there is a cool breeze

Somewhere in the deep woods

Where all is forgotten,

Or at least, seen with new Eyes.

Raw and exposed- to himself-

but gentle, for the tree-music sighs,

Sings endlessly from the high-above

as the cool mountain breeze

Cleanses the face

And opens the heart

To the places he has been, again.

There is a fire-

A log on the life-hearth.

That phoenix that parts and

Reappears to show us again

that we are Resilient.

Long silent moments of calm

As flickering light-shows play on the wall.

Meditative existence- the

Clean quiet of long ago,

Recaptured in the stillness

Of the singing

Of the deep woods.

Yup.  I wrote another poem, not for studio consumption, just as a free-flow of ideas.  I find that through poetry, especially in my least-structured formats, I find out things that I am thinking and feeling that I was previously unaware of.  I thought I'd give it a shot and take a look at my inner-most emotions related to the topic at hand.  Below:

They

I wondered- once-

What it was, to be a soldier.

To see another life

Drop out of eyes, with

Your own eyes.

To not ask the questions

I cannot get out of my mind.

To hold a gun.

To fire.

To sit alone, at night, and wonder

Was I right?

I have met them- some-

Although I never asked them

How would I?

Only guessed it from their eyes.

Some tired, many worn.

But bright, and still so much

Alive.

I do not know them

And I judge them.

How can I?

They faced demons I never will.

And survived.

I do not know them,

Nor perceive I do.

But I often wonder

What their pain is,

Where they hide it,

What nagging question

Still baffles them at night.

Do they own it?

Do they hate it?

What do they live with?

I can't say it's my favorite poem.  But it addresses some of the issues I think I have to try to face, which I'm guessing might be an up-hill battle at times.  But I'll try.  We'll see what I can get.

As for the watercolors, I attempted 4, two were images, two were textures.  In the end, I wasn't really happy with the textures, so they were scrapped for the presentation.  But, of course, I did the paintings in my watercolor sketchbook, which contains all of my watercolors from Denmark.  And, because the paper can handle it, I double-side my paintings.  So, it was necessary to scan the images to my computer and then re-print them separately to  preserve the older paintings.  To be honest, I edited the images slightly with Photoshop, trying to crisp colors and and so forth.  But I will admit (or rationalize, you have to decide for yourself) that the final, re-printed images looked very similar to the originals. Okay, maybe a little different.  But that's my prerogative, right?

I then found an old piece of off-white board, and lettered the entire poem on a sheet of it.  It took forever.  Like, perhaps an hour.  Which for lettering, feels like an eternity.  My hand hurt so badly at the end.

Day 5, then, was presentation time.  I did come in early (again) but that was more as a result of me wanting to get other things done.  Specifically, research.  I am slowly amassing a small library of references.  But more on that some other time.

Anyway, we met at 1, which is customary, but actually didn't start class until around 2:30 because of basic chores for studio that needed to be accomplished.  Primarily, Reich wanted to get our group meeting table assembled for a mix of old metal desk frames, scrape wood from the shop, and store-bought MDF.  It took a few power tools and a little time to do.

After, we all sat around the brand-new table and looked over each others artifacts.  There were more traditional abstracts, with diagrams, images, and text, some VERY compelling images of various things, a few objects, and a few more abstract things, such as mine.  A nice array, which led to plenty more 'this applies to everyone' discussions.  One really important thing he told us was that the best abstract show entries typically have three dimensions- text, image, object.  So, we need to make sure we can work in all three dimensions.  And, when he talked about my little artifact, he talked about the need to strike a balance in the abstract between the raw, emotional power of something like a poem or a watercolor painting, and the rational, clear expression of a diagram, or a block of text.  Absolutely.  It's just how to bring them together.

I would like to happily note, for my own sake at least, the he commented on my watercolors.  He said that they were beautiful, and that he like my technique. I guess Ceci back in Copenhagen taught me well!I know it's dumb to get excited about something like that, but a boost in personal pride is quite the necessity sometimes.  Especially at the end of a rather arduous week.  More tomorrow- if I get out of bed to type it!

Days 2 & 3

I'm sorry for the delay... I really do intent to find at least enough time to write a post every day.  But of course, the best laid plans... (and more homework than expected, moving things out of storage, and exhaustion sometimes get the best of me.)

So, let me try to get caught back up, in the order in which things occurred.  As noted in the last post, we were asked to create a 100-word abstract for our project- at least, as we see it now- along with an illustration of some sort.  We also had advanced notice that besides the 4 short documents, were are expected to read Thinking Architecture by Peter Zumthor.  So, that is what I spent Tuesday doing (aside from a little work for my TA job, and attending *sigh* my sociology class).  The Zumthor I am only about a third of the way through at the moment, but I find it a very good read- he has a good tone (although what I'm reading is a translation from the original German, so who really knows who to give credit to) and his ideas are far reaching and right up my alley.

The abstract took a surprisingly long time to narrow down.  Which seems ridiculous for 100 words, because, as you might be able to tell, I can write 100 words in about zero seconds flat.  But that is perhaps the biggest problem.  I have been thinking about this idea, or some version of it, for pretty much my entire college career.  I have quite a few opinions and thoughts about it, so how do I find a way to be succinct?  After brainstorming in my sketchbook (which is right now full of way more notes than sketches!), I delivered an abstract of about 180 words, and then very selectively cut out words, sentences, ideas... and then started changing vocabulary to get exactly the correct number.  I actually think I ended one under.  This is a true accomplishment for me.  Okay, so without further ado, take a look at this short, concise, abstract: 

My project will be focused on how architecture and nature can bring about mental and spiritual health.  A perfect client for this type of design is veterans of war, who frequently return with wounds that only they feel, which never receive proper attention.  Most cultures have a “cleansing ritual” for returning warriors, which re-initiates them into everyday life. American society has no equivalent. My project will serve this purpose- a retreat, situated deep into nature, connected to the land, and sustainable on all fronts, which invites people to meditate on their experiences, face their demons, and open themselves up to heal.

So- there you go.  I don't know if I can do much more to explain what I want than that.  Really.  That's which it took so long!

I also did a pretty quick ink on paper sketch to accompany it, because 100 words on a page is pretty blank.  It was (if you are like, cough cough, someone I know, and don't get it) a view of an aspen grove and pine trees.  It came with the caption, "My most spiritual and epiphanous moments have been found in the Colorado mountains, with the deep green pine, and golden aspen. A healing force continues to draw me there."  Here is the sketch:

And here is the overall composition of the abstract:

And that does it for Day 2.  Except of course, a general note of appreciation for Cailin, who helped me move various things lying around our house into studio, which was quite a lot of work because this stuff was HEAVY.  I really should try to sell off all my plaster of paris... or at least use it!

Day 3 is my very, very long day, which starts at 9 for theory seminar, hiccups for an hour of lunch, and then meets again for normal studio- that is, 1 - 6.  And although it was a long day, I try to look on the bright side.

1.)  I didn't have to be there until 10.  I say this because Reich teachers both of the aforementioned classes as well as ANOTHER class from 7 - 10.  10?!?  I've actually taken the class- EDES 406, which is really late at night, but a good class overall.  It's for the sustainability minor, and a pretty good survey of a bunch of topics.  I learned quite a lot actually.  Anyway, I wouldn't like to have such a long day- even once a week.

2.)  I didn't have to run from theory to another class during the lunch hour (12-1), and then onto studio.  A girl in our class had to do this, and it seemed really stressful!

3.) We didn't have theory in studio!  This is wonderful, for a number of reasons, primarily that we didn't have to be in studio.  Not that it isn't beautiful.  It is.  But we are going to be spending a LOT of time there, so we might as well enjoy some other place, right?  Plus, where we went was Linnaea's., which is one of my favorite places in this town.  It reminds me of home.  And the coffee is very tasty.

Anyway, so overall, I think it ended up being positive.  It was also pretty laid back.  I mean, how can it not be when you spend the first three hours at a cafe chatting?  Granted, it was structured chatting- and about on-topic stuff, but that doesn't make it any less interesting to me.  Since we were discussing the readings from before, it was a really thoughtful conversation between 21 people sitting around a hodge-podge of back-patio tables.

After the reading discussion, we moved on to the abstracts- sort of.  No one used the abstracts, but rather just casually presented their ideas to the class.  Which probably suited a lot of people better, because I don't think everyone has a clear direction yet of exactly what they want.  We didn't get through everyone, because every proposal brought up a new set of things to discuss, but the things I did get to hear were really interesting- a collaborative campus for Disney, a study of how film can inform architecture, guerrilla architecture/art installations, and a modern Roman bath, among others.  It means we have quite a breadth of objectives and insights, which can make for the best environments for learning.

As far as the 'discussion' surrounding my project, I worry it got a little side-tracked, because another student (very thoughtfully, I will note) suggested a possible location for a veteran-related project in LA, where the VA owns a large site off of the 405, but has no idea of what it actually wants to do there.  This has very little to do with what I actually want to achieve, in several ways, but it is a new way of looking at the situation.  However, it caused a discussion related to magnitude and scope, suggesting that my project might need to be toned-down to make it manageable.  At the moment I am more concerned with being misunderstood than that my project is too big.  I imagined it as something small, discreet, and intimate.  I can't imagine really healing on a big institutionalized campus.  But I guess it is something to keep track of.

He also mentioned (and I'm trying not to get too flustered about this, because he was really speaking to everyone about all of this) making sure that the project- something that makes people care about your work.  And to specify- not just the social good of the project (healing veterans) but the design itself (a retreat that heals).  So I don't know.  I think I have a hook.  Right?  Right?  I think so, even if I'm feeling really uncertain about myself at the moment.  I still believe in it.

He tried to give us some advice about how to further what we are working on.  What was really funny was that when he turned to my project, he sort of stumbled for something to tell me.  In the end, he addressed the issue of the 'ritual cleansing' and researching exactly what that is or could be.  He said (and please, please, let it be his dry humor, not a serious question), "what does it entail?  I'm imagining de-lousing and showers and such..."  Oh good lord!  I hope not!  I will clarify- a ritual cleansing is a metaphor.  I mean, there are ritual cleansings which are, in fact, some form of bathing.  But that isn't what I'm suggesting.  I mean it more as an analogy.  In fact, the American version of this, before the airplane became standard transport, was the re-entry process that took months, and allowed soldiers to commiserate and mourn as a group- almost like a casual, continuous group-therapy session.  And- it ended in a re-entry process by the rest of society, which included deep pride in the sacrifice of soldiers, which was outwardly shown through events like parades.

However, I DO think that actual, non-metaphorical rituals could be helpful in understanding what it is I'm suggesting, and what has actually served to heal soldiers and communities in the past and present.  So, here are a few things I found:

"Every warrior society has a "purification ritual" to help returning warriors deal with their "blood guilt" and to reassure them that what they did in combat was "good." Features of the ritual are a "group therapy" session and a ceremony embracing the veteran back into the tribe. Modern Western rituals traditionally involve long periods while marching or sailing home, parades, monuments, and unconditional acceptance from society and family."  -Lieutenant Colonel Dave Grossman

"War poisons the spirit and warriors return tainted. This is why, among many traditional cultures, including Native American, Zulu, Buddhist and ancient Israeli, returning warriors were put through significant rituals of purification before re-entering their families and communities. Traditional cultures recognized that unpurified warriors could, in fact, be dangerous. This helps explain why suicide, homicide and other destructive acts are common among veterans."  -Edward Tick, Ph. D.

I think, in context of a global ritual archetype then, it is appropriate to ask why we no longer have one in American culture.  And how it could be reintroduced (even in the form of a small-scale initiative like a mountain retreat) in order to help recreate the balance that allows soldiers to come back into society as incorporated members of it.

And lastly, on a much less stately note, we spent a good hour to hour and a half re-arranging our desks yesterday.  It was incredibly necessary, because everyone has to like where they are, since we are stuck this way for the next 9 months.  But it took a long, long time.  In the end, I got to keep my near-window seat, and am sharing a sort of nook space with Danielle- the one contemplating the Disney collaborative campus.  I think we are going to have a lot of fun in our little corner, from what I can tell so far!

Studio: Day 1

Yesterday afternoon we had our first studio meeting.  Before I dive into the very long, thoughtful conversation/lecture we had, let me talk about the space itself.  Our studio is on the 4th floor, the top of the Architecture Building.  Our studio is deep, and especially given that we haven't put anything in it yet, feels very spacious.  The back wall is composed completely of windows, and opens up onto a HUGE balcony, which the two other studios (we are sandwiched between them) on the floor also have access to.  We are apparently still in limbo about how to set up the desks exactly, and it is especially important that we find a good arrangement because budget cuts have left us with 20 students instead of 18.  But- I got a location in the room (even if the desk orientations will change) that I am happy with.  One row in from the windows- not too close to get the glare, but close enough to have ample, delicious daylight on my space.  It also has a wonderful view, being that high up, of the hills all around us.

As to the studio meeting itself, I found it really helpful.  I gathered that other students were entertained/enthralled as well, because when I would catch myself looking up at them, many people had an unconscious smile on their face, and everyone was actually listening to what Reich had to say.  A few of the gems of wisdom he threw out us:

"Your real work is also here and now", which referred to the fact that at this point, a lot of students are just ready to get out and go get "real work" in the 'real world".  But we are in a really privileged place in our lives, where we are able to devote one solid year to becoming an expert on one thing, and trying to express that knowledge, and expand the field.  It is really amazing that we get to choose- not only the project, but also the speed and direction at/in which we progress.  An opportunity like this probably won't ever come our way again!

"Art is very long and life is very short", to which he pulled (out of his bag of tricks) a set of scrolls, one for each of us, which turned out to be a calendar of the entire year, from the first day of class to graduation day.  It is a surprisingly small scroll when you really think about how fast each day is going to go.  He said that in this process, time will probably be our biggest enemy, so we need to try to do a little bit every day, and most importantly, be honest with ourselves about how much work we do.  Because the three biggest things that people commit fraud over are money, sex, and time.  He advised us (although it's optional) to keep track everyday of what we did for the project and how much time we spent on it.  A really good idea, but I will admit- the whole thing is a little overwhelming.

"All of this work is in progress."  This was something that reminds me a lot of a professor I hadearlier on told us- don't let your work become too precious.  It's okay to have notes, words, thoughts, etc, on the work.  It's also okay to do things that aren't perfect.  They can be fixed, and they can be changed.  A drawing, a sentence, and idea is not a commitment, but it is a step (one way or the other) towards progress.

"You want to have a take, and don't suck."  This I guess, came from a sports commentator, and although it's kind of funny, it makes sense.  Have a take- take a stand, believe something, make it matter to you PERSONALLY.  Otherwise, what's the point?  Don't suck- actually care that you do it right, and that you give/get the most out of it that you can.  That's kind of the goal, right?

So, quite a few things to think about.  This is a commitment- big time.  This is going to be my life, my statement about what I want to do with myself.  This is my chance to take a stand, and have a 'point of view' about the profession and what I bring to it.  I'm excited, but also nervous.

Finally, he assigned us readings to have done for Wednesday, when we will meet for our theory seminar at Linnea's- a cafe downtown.  I went through them last night, taking notes and trying to relate the information in them to my project in some meaningful way.  They were a wide variety of topics, which I like, and not primarily about architecture, which I also like.  I think that theory should be based in a world that doesn't revolve solely on architecture for its foundation.  One of the papers talked about Spinoza, who argued that Descartes was wrong- the body and mind are not separate entities, but dynamically and intrinsically linked.  Another was about modern societies slow move away from reality into man-made novelty as pseudo-reality.  Another was phenomenological poetry, and the last about how skateboarders experience space in an entirely different way that the typical bystander. Kind of a little something for everyone.  I liked it.  Lots of questions, lots of topics to explore, and lots of influences to look to.  Hopefully they can weigh in to the design I begin to develop.

Also for tomorrow: a (speculative) 100-word abstract about our studio project, as well as an accompanying illustration.  I currently have that in the works.

First Week Back

As I don't start school until the 19th (aka- TODAY) you may be wondering what thesis related information I can possibly have to write about.  I will be honest- I don't have any.  But, like I said in the last post, I do have an idea about what it is that I want to do.  And what I want to do is deeply rooted in my beliefs, emotions, and spiritual grounding (is that enough of a tease?).  Because of this, I don't feel that only STUDIO or only ARCHITECTURE or only DESIGN is relevant to my project.  I feel like all of my feelings, thoughts, ideologies, actions, and happenings relate to how I view the world, and how I frame my project.  I don't intend this blog to be full of intimate secrets, but I think that as a record of my progress, it needs to address how I got to wherever it is I'm going.  I can't speak for any other designers' 'process', but I know that often mine has much more to do with how I interact with the world around me, and how I interact with it than aesthetics or theory.  This post then (and perhaps more in the future) is not going to address architecture at all. It is what it is.

So, in case you don't know- I spent my fourth year of college in Denmark.  That tiny little country where practically everyone that isn't Danish thinks the inhabitants speak Dutch.  They don't.  That's the Netherlands.  Anyway, it was a wonderful experience, and I am more than willing to tell you about it anytime you like.  But, it was a very weird hiccup in an otherwise fluid education.  Therefore, returning to the SLO life has been a little bit difficult.  Downtown has changed, campus has changed, people have changed. 

But I won't lie, it's been a good week.  I drove out from Colorado with my friend, and fellow Cal Poly Arch student, Kayla, on the 10th, and it took us 2 days (18 hours on the road) to get San Luis Obispo.  In spite of the length, we had a fairly fun drive, which was mostly un-noteworthy- in this case, a good thing.  We stayed the night at a hotel in St. George, Utah, ate dinner at a surprisingly good Hawaiian restaurant, and listened to podcasts of NPR's "Wait, Wait, Don't tell Me!" as we went through the desert.

I got to SLO in the early afternoon, just in time to help Kim, my roommate, and her parents move all of our stuff (well, most of it) out of storage and into our tiny bedroom.  In fairness, the bedroom is actually a very good size.  But neither of us had planned to share a bedroom ever again after our stay in the dorms freshman year (we were roommates then too!), and have both graduated to full-sized beds.  So, between them, we have about 2 feet of space.  And not a lot else.  Which, considering studio will be a home-away-from-home, should be just fine.

The apartment we live in, with my other Architecture compatriot, Cailin, and her fiance, TJ, is very nice from the inside, not so nice from the outside, and incredibly conveniently located.  We are only a few blocks from downtown (Kim and I lament that we now have far too easy access to Bali's, the frozen yogurt shop), and a 10 minute bike ride from campus.  I've made the ride twice now- not too bad.  The hills, at least, aren't too steep.  Also in the house, I forgot to mention, are two cats, Tibby & Casper.  TJ and Cailin have had them for a couple of years now, and they are super sweet, if a little skiddish.  They are funny though, because they are exact opposites of one another.  Tibby, the girl, is white, slender, graceful, and incredibly curious.  Once she knows that its safe to check a situation out, you know she will.  She also gets into EVERYTHING, including the potted plants, to dig dirt out, all over the sofa.  Casper, the boy, is black (looks like he is dressed in a tuxedo), small and thick, and very quiet.  He is a constant watcher.  He is funny too, because he hasn't at all gotten used to Kim and I.  He is very hard to pet, because until you touch him and he realizes how much he likes it, he thinks you might be attacking him.

Other than getting settled, which did take quite a lot of time, as well as trips to the grocery store, Ross, Bev-Mo, Art's Cyclery, and the storage unit, Kim and I have been trying hard to get the last drops of excitement out of SLO before she leaves at the end of the fall quarter.  So- we have gone on several morning runs, hiked Bishops, and visited the Special Collections Office at the Cal Poly library, where we looked at postcards and pictures of Cal Poly from 100-50 years ago.  Which was, as you can imagine, quite funny.

We also had a brief run in (with Cailin and TJ) with Farmer's Market.  In case you don't know about the SLO Farmer's Market, it is one of the most well known farmer's markets around.  It started in the early 80's, and has been going on almost every Thursday night since.  There is TONS of fresh produce, which the Central Coast is especially good for, as well as food vendors, my favorite being the tri-tip barbeque.  The reason our trip was brief is that the first Thursday before classes starts, WOW participants and WOW leaders converge on downtown in costume, making the market much more crowded than normal.  WOW, of course, stands for "Week of Welcome", which is a week (not anymore) when older students help orient incoming freshmen to campus, campus life, SLO, and all of the outlying areas where there are things to do.  Anyway, it was a mess, so we were in and out of there with our produce, and then straight home to cook a delicious family meal.

But the week came to a rapid end, and I realized that school was going to start, whether I wanted it to or not.  So here we are, Monday- 10 minutes before I have a meeting, 1 hour before I start my last first day of studio EVER.  I hope that there will be more time for adventures once this all gets going.  But I don't know.  I have no way of knowing.  Who knows what this year has in store for me!

INTRODUCTIONS

So, to start this all off, for those of your who don't know me (I can't imagine why you would be reading this if you don't know me, but the internet is a strange place...) my name is Tiffany.  I am an architecture student, pursuing a Bachelors of Architecture at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.  A BArch is a 5 year, professional degree, meaning that no higher education is necessary to enter into the field, and it typically culminates in a year-long thesis project.  At Cal Poly, these thesis projects correspond to an actual thesis paper (in the form of a magazine) which, of course, is a research-based attempt to answer some new or pressing question within the field.  The project then, is the physical manifestation or application of this research.  As of Monday, September 19th, I begin my final year at Cal Poly, and therefore, my thesis.

This blog, for me, will hopefully function as a sounding board (whether anyone is listening or not) for ideas, problems, and research.  I have learned more and more over time that I am not the only person in the world who knows things.  In fact, I probably know very little.  So, contributions (in the form of tactful, tasteful, and helpful comments please!) are always welcome.  The blog will also, more than likely, be changing gradually over time.  From the title (which is so uninspired at the moment) to the typeface, to the images and all the other details, I will be tweaking things as I go along.  Largely, this is due to the fact that I don't know the direction the project will be taking at the moment.  That will evolve over time, and therefore manipulate how I present myself and my work in this venue.

The reason, if you want to know, that I choose not the speculate too much on the nature of my project is that, as of now, we don't really know what we will be doing.  I have ideas, of course, but a thesis is a collaborative effort between a student and a professor.  Having not met with my professor yet, I can't say what will happen.  The process of being assigned a professor was rather stressful (involving applications and priority lists without much promise of success), and really just resolved itself less than a week ago.  There are 9 studios of about 18 students each, which we stay together with (for the first time in our college career) for the entire year.  I was assigned Jonathan Reich, and am really happy about it.  He gives excellent, thoughtful reviews at crits, and seems willing to give students freedom to explore and express themselves through their work.  I have had him a professor twice before, for my minor classes in Sustainable Environments, but never for studio.  I'm looking forward to whatever surprises the year brings.