We are so detached from the roots of modernism’s early days that none of us know how to talk about it. Is it the same as (you know what), “I know it when I see it?” The conversation cannot escape confirmation bias – whoever brings it up wants an agreement to their point. It doesn’t ..read more

It’s been over a year. It might be another. Today’s post is sharing a response to a struggling student honestly looking for answers to how one designs. How are historic works of architecture conceived? I have an answer. I have no answers. I’ve been an architect for approaching thirty years. Here is my response. “I’ve ..read more

I don’t know much about art, but I know what I like. No, I do not like that phrase, nor subscribe to its tenets. Nevertheless, if we wish to have autonomy as citizens of this country or this planet and ascribe value in the objects we possess, we must not submit to the artificial value ..read more

Theory and abstraction are not the same. I’ll scratch the surface. When I started architecture school in 1986, the first two core classes of Kent State University’s curriculum in those days were Theory of Architecture I and II. Second year greeted us with Theory III and IV. Most classes had Roman numerals IV, V, and ..read more

What am I thinking about today? Details – not just literal architectural details, but I’m thinking about how we as architects imagine and plan for multiple events, components and at times relationships coming together – beautifully. It does not just happen. For the most part, we spend our time on the literal details. This is ..read more