Cultivating the field for design

Genius, Flash of Inspiration, Masterstroke - these are rarely the routes to great architecture, but are persistent notions. They harken to an imagined narrative, Starchitects of the past and present, and embody for us what it means to be creative. Yet they do nothing to nurture creativity or harness its potential.

How it is

The term 'Architect' has been co-opted to describe everyone from a software designer to an evil mastermind. Common complaints among Architects are that people do not understand what we do, people do not value what we do, and we are unable to do our best work because of the realities of practice.

How it was

Master builder, trusted advisor, licensed design professional, paid consultant - gradually the regard for Architects and the Architect’s work has eroded. Yet study the history of the world and we may understand the built environment as a record of the development of civilization, the most direct translation of our values into physical form.

From ancient times to modern day, we designate special places with important sites and build them from sturdy materials. We preserve places of historical significance or cultural meaning for our posterity and ourselves. We attempt to capture the spirit of our times and our hopes for the future. There is tremendous legacy and meaning in Architecture.

How it could be

The culture around design can be positive, engaging and meaningful; inclusive rather than exclusive. We need a professional community in which we readily exchange knowledge, and instinctively collaborate; where we mentor, challenge, and encourage each other to be better practitioners. We need to seek out more opportunities to share our experiences, creative process and thinking so that we may make what we do more transparent to more people. We need to apply ourselves to traditional and non-traditional 'projects' alike so that, instead of a shrinking definition of Architecture and the Architect's work, we would have increasing relevance and demand.

As an Oaklander for over a decade, the current state of my city is a source of both pride and anxiety.

As an Architect, I believe that the city we build and build upon is a representation of us. The territory created by our streets, open spaces, homes, businesses and civic buildings presents us with a landscape charged with potential; potential to have real places of meaning, authentic places that are not solely based upon transplanted precedents, environments that can support and indeed hinder how or how well we choose to live.

Local pride

What’s not to love? Home prices and rents that are still “affordable” by Bay Area standards, the sweet spot in terms of weather between the fog and chilly summers in San Francisco or the seasonal extremes of heat and cold further east, and a thriving food and arts scene- the list of Oakland’s ‘draws’ goes on. On the one hand, the Town [finally!] looks attractive to new development. On the other, the fits and starts of the past [thankfully!} have sheltered and preserved some of our distinctive buildings and neighborhoods. It’s an exciting time for me to live in Oakland, both witnessing and participating in its maturation as a city as an architect and as a citizen.

Anxiety by the bay

Is new development making Oakland less Oakland? Why do we continue to have a bad rap? Historically, why- when Oakland has been the hub of our regional public transportation and freeway systems- hasn’t more of everything happened here? For those considering to invest here, is it still a gamble based on potential ROI, crime, foot traffic, or other factors? If we build it, will they come? Will people still shop, do business, and recreate elsewhere if given the choice? Choices are being made about the future of our city, and the results are already materializing. As I look around I have reasons both to celebrate and worry.