ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN – Page 6

PRESENTATION MODEL (click title for pics)

This is a ‘finished’ presentation model in styrene plastic. It was part of my masters thesis project (R&D FACILITY FOR INTERNATIONAL SUBMARINE ENGINEERING CO.) The reflective water is ‘wet-look’ bathroom tile. I built it in 3 weeks – very different time scale from a sketch model in foamcore and glue gun. I actually built it in foamcore originally (:-) and then got talked into doing a styrene model (:-( One important difference between finished and sketch models is that you need well developed design drawings for the finished presentation model. In contrast the plans are developed simultaneously with the sketch model, so the model and plan affect each other. Also, the styrene model is not ‘fun’ after the first one. The fun is in the exploratory and developmental aspects of the foamcore sketch model.

LAYOUT IDEAS FOR PORTFOLIO PAGES (Click title)

1 – Refer to the student work above. Try to be casual, but still somewhat planned in layout…try for the old “simultaneous loose-tight” feel. No one cares for completely careless work, nor for overly slick presentations. “ Too clever is dumb.” It is important to think in terms of ‘marketing’: Your objective is to present your level of preparedness and, most importantly, persuade a committee that you are a skilled, talented and committed candidate. It is not just to create a pretty portfolio. Here are some thoughts on how to get the most out of what you are presenting.

2 – Refer to the student work above. Always take pictures of yourself at work on pieces. Or re-enact it. (over-the-shoulder partial hand and head shots are best). Ask a friend. Crop and then combine with the full finished piece and a blow-up of a detail. This can create much more visual richness than a single documentary photo, because you are personalizing it, authenticating it as your own work, and adding an element of time by showing work as it progressed. Think about message: “I am green and growing, hard working, full of promise” is better than “ta-dah, am I not wonderful”. Also, with several pics there are more possibilities for layout.

3 – Refer to the student work above. Always include some type. A short explanation of the work, size and materials, what you were trying to do and what you learned by doing it. Don’t assume they understand what they see. Also, it shows you are thinking about what you are doing. Keep it short, 3-5 lines. Your audience is primarily visual. Even a poetry quote can work. Two or three type sizes are best (no more than 3). Headline, body copy, and caption – magazines know what they are doing. Look at design mags such as “Print” for exemplars. A hierarchy of type size creates a sort of status for the image and content.

4 – Pick the weakest piece. Ask a friend. Then delete it! This will instantly raise the level of the overall portfolio. Don’t be sentimental. Just let it go.

5 –Refer to the student work above. Line drawings can sometimes look better if you can combine several on a page or even try “inverting” , meaning black lines become white on dark background, like a negative. Try the same strategy as number 2 above if possible. Forgot to take process shots of yourself? Re-enact one. Look at art-books to see how line drawings can be handled. Line drawings can be combined with photos – You can even dial back a line drawing to 40% gray, blow up a detail, and slide it under your photos to relax, personalize or enliven your composition (see final example)..

Foamcore and Gluegun, a designer’s medium (Click Title)

Even though we use drawings, computer models, etc to design and visualize projects, there is nothing quite like a physical 3d model to turn design into a sculptural process. The trick is to keep it fast and simple. There are many types of card stock and glues, but the fastest and most versatile is still foamcore and hot gluegun (with bristol board for curvy stuff and blue or green plastic report covers from Staples for the window material . It is surprising how much you can do with simple materials. I teach an 8 session course in this at Emily Carr. It’s worth it to gain the methods and some good 3D samples for the portfolio. They don’t teach you how to do this in Arch school. They just expect you to figure it out by watching others. But if you have some know-how before you go, you get to sleep at night while your colleagues pull the all-nighters (:-) It is also very useful to many designers later in their career. You design things differently using a physical 3d model than you do by using any other medium. Many designs could not be conceived any other way.

Architecture and Environmental Design Portfolios

Many design schools are adding on-line examples of successful entrance portfolios. This is great, because many people are mystified by the requirement for a portfolio. BUT – Keep in mind that schools would be likely to show only the BEST examples, so don’t be too intimidated. By the same token it can be enlightening to look at the projects categories and get an idea of the breadth and depth that some of your competition can display. Also keep in mind that the portfolio is only one factor in your application. Try to include some space planning, graphics, and 3D work. Try to think outside the box – they are not looking for mechanical pieces. Be creative. Check the other entries I have included under ‘portfolios’. Read the prospectus of the school in question and try to discern their ‘values’, such as ‘sustainable design’. Also, google some phrases such as ‘ portfolios for admission to (univ name)…’ or

Examples of Successful Portfolios:

Check this link out: http://evds.ucalgary.ca/content/master-architecture-march-admissions

Wondering which university to apply to?

People often ask, “Which university should I go to?” Obviously this is a near impossible question to answer. Any information on a particular architecture program will be out of date, because they change many personnel year by year. A big-name visiting faculty member might just walk through the studio once or twice and give a lecture or two. Does this make it a better school? What affects your experience most is your studio colleagues and the day-to-day instructors/crits. Check out articles in ‘college confidential’ –

http://www.collegeconfidential.com/college_search/

Don’t forget to read the responses to it. You can agree or disagree – I am not advocating for one point of view or another – but the criteria discussed are interesting in themselves. Remember that US applicants to US universities have access to VERY significant US scholarship money that foreign students do not. Also, that site is primarily about US institutions. Canadian Universities are somewhat more ‘egalitarian’ toward Canadian students . But internationally, the Class System is alive and well, and , my perception, on the increase. I wonder if someone has done a similar analysis on Canadian institutions?

I personally know that well-healed Asian Students desperately try for the Ivy League. I also can attest that I have seen many times how an Ivy League school on the resume can blast open career doors. Once you get through the door, it’s up to you and there may be various jealousies at play. If all other things in your nature are equal, starting higher up the ladder can affect how high and how fast you eventually rise. (Remember, I said ‘all other things being equal’). I think the phrase is “like being born on third base”.

Consider this little story– Early in my work life, I worked for an otherwise fairly average architect who had many years earlier gone to an Ivy League university. One day, he got a phone call from an alumnus: “Hey man! How ya’ doin’ these days? This year I’m editor for (insert name of very famous/prestigious architecture magazine). Have you got any projects you’d like to publish?” Result … a 10 page spread.

I am sometimes asked to supply a reference for applicants to various universities. Most of the schools ask if I went to university and to what level, etc. Harvard wanted to know if I went to Harvard.

If you are crazy for success but the Ivy-League Bachelor’s degree won’t work for your budget, then consider this route – Any Canadian University for your undergrad (get good grades, minimize drinking/partying, work on references!) -least cost for school and accommodations if you are Canadian. Then go for a masters degree, perhaps someplace more famous. Consider and compare a few bios -Abe Lincoln, George Bush, Obama. WHAT you know and WHO you know matter a lot. But WHO YOU ARE still trumps everything. Sorry, no clear answer to the question.

On “Career Success”: Ask yourself how you can improve your score on the following and also how the university you go to might affect it – Here are a famous movie mogul’s five factors for success:

1- TIMING (awareness of current events) –

2- LUCK (make many tries and remember: “Luck favors the prepared”) –

3- WHO YOU KNOW (Networking – Picasso networked, VanGogh did not) –

4- PERSEVERANCE (It’s the most important Character Trait for success) –

5- TALENT (continually polish your skills and they become talent)

DOODLEPLAN, Design Dwg. Orthographic Exercise 1 OF 2

Please note: Some video tutorials are exclusive to students currently enrolled in courses at Emily Carr. If you are already logged in but you cannot access this content, if may be because you do not have the required membership level. Please contact Tony if you are interested in a course.

DOODLEPLAN, Design Dwg. Orthographic Exercise 2 OF 2

Thinking of Going to Art School? (Tap-click title)

I wrote this to someone wanting advice for a young prospective art student. I am not involved in the portfolio process at ECUAD. I was a portfolio adjudicator in another university design program for quite a few years and now just teach in continuing studies. All this advice is totally non-official, just personal observation:

It is getting increasingly more competitive to get into any university. Many local studio-art programs (the “Art Schools”) have been disappearing. Art-based high schools, private lessons, foreign students, all supply impressive applicants. Portfolios often show diligence in copy-work and observation, love of detail and craftsmanship. These are all good things, but I would suggest there should be more representation in some of the following areas in a portfolio – colour; capacity for loose free expression; 3d work (eg abstract sculpture or clay modeling, perhaps human figure or similar); variety of subject matter (abstract, landscape, face/figure, still-life; evidence of creativity (creative solutions to a problem, making something out of nothing, ideally making something no one has ever seen); other art forms, such as video/editing, music, dance or other performance, creative writing. Don’t be intimidated by official portfolio requirements, but DO take it seriously. Many of these requirements can be addressed through continuing studies courses which will produce items for a portfolio. You can also get a certificate in various art forms through continuing studies (please don’t see this as a commercial for CS). This is what I would recommend for my own family members. Also, google: ‘Emily Carr Portfolio” to find important information and examples. This blog has info on portfolios for applying to post-grad architecture schools. It might offer you some other ideas about portfolios, even though it’s for design.

Important point – Emily Carr is now a “university” of art. This means it has academically trained instructors and requirements similar to any university. This also means that a student is required to take and do well in various fairly rigorous academic studies, such as history and theory. I have feedback on this from several 1^st and 2nd year students who were somewhat surprised to find that they spend significant parts of their week doing academic university work, reading in the library and writing essays.

Let’s not disregard the commercial schools. They are “businesses” which is not entirely a bad thing. They can cost in the $tens of thousands range for a one year program, but they can lead to good networking and potentially a job, particularly in the animation industry, for a focused individual. I know one person who studied in San Francisco for a year and has been working for many years in animation, largely due to the contacts he made in that year. Last week I met with a manager-friend in a 160 person animation and computer effects operation doing post production work on sci-fi shows who said his first choice for a new hire would be a commercial college one-year grad. For him, degrees don’t count (by the way -he has degrees) – It’s all about the “demo reel”.

Networking – Treat this seriously – Who you know and meet is so important to a career – Consider Van Gogh and Picasso, both of course premiere artists. Van Gogh – no network – seldom sold a piece in his lifetime and died in obscurity. Picasso – big network – lived well and prospered!

Final points – For a young person who is about to set out on a very long and potentially expensive journey. Give serious and realistic thought to your future career goals – don’t just follow an illusion: To become a practicing studio artist, consider taking many targeted Continuing Studies courses (taught by practicing artists (and for galleries it’s all about the work). If the aim is to become an academic or arts administrator, then a university BFA plus an MFA may be needed (all taught by academics). To clarify a young person’s aptitudes and goals I always urge them to take the Career Planning one day special at UBC Continuing studies – It is first rate. I have recommended this for my own nephews and other young people. I did something similar myself long ago. Anyone who would not pay $380 to get the very best intelligence on a future career choice is liable to be sleep-walking into making a costly mistake. http://cstudies.ubc.ca/a/Course/Career-Testing-Package/LC303/