Monday, December 28, 2009

The Art of Choosing: A Word of Advice, and Caution, for Architecture School Applicants

Design schools vary more than schools in other professions. In most law schools, contracts are taught the same way; anatomy teaching varies little from medical schools in one region to another; and accounting is taught according to nationally established guidelines.

But at professional design schools, while digital rendering may be taught similarly throughout the United States and Canada, structures courses emphasize different factors in San Francisco and Florida. Water penetration has different meanings in New Orleans and Minneapolis. Schools with engineering affiliations are distinct from schools with interior design or urban planning affiliations; and urban schools generally address community planning differently than rural schools. Then there are differences in personnel, geography, funding sources, histories, leadership, and student bodies.

(Complete article here)

Friday, December 11, 2009

Benjamin Vargas, FAIA, Selected as 2010 Recipient of the Whitney M. Young Jr. Award

WASHINGTON, DC.- The American Institute of Architects (AIA) have selected Benjamin Vargas, FAIA, as the 2010 recipient of the Whitney M. Young Jr. Award, given to an architect or architecturally oriented organization exemplifying the profession’s responsibility toward current social issues. Vargas, whose efforts to instill the value of diversity and inclusiveness into the AIA at a national, Institute-wide level, will be presented with the award at the 2010 AIA national convention in Miami.

Complete story here

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

DANCING ABOUT ARCHITECTURE: part 3

lecturesHAA is dedicated to creating a broader creative discourse through open and collaborative dialogue. The program includes lectures and discussions throughout the year that will consider important contemporary design issues associated with the urban environment.

The initial program for 2009 will be “Challenging Detroit: (Re)generating Urbanism.” This program will provide an important platform for consideration of innovative, multidisciplinary strategies designed to help the city not only create reinvestment and redevelopment, but also begin to regenerate the social, economic and environmental attributes that define it. Now, more than ever, we need to come together to understand how we can effectively participate in the thoughtful, creative regeneration of Detroit.

EVENT 04: Lecture
DANCING ABOUT ARCHITECTURE:
part 3
Craig Wilkens, Architect

Dr. Craig L. Wilkins has worked nationally and internationally as a designer, project architect, and urban designer. He currently serves as the director of the Detroit Community Design Center at the University of Michigan College of Architecture and Urban Planning. Dr. Wilkins has written and lectured widely on a variety of topics, from hip hop architecture to the prospects of globalization on African spaces. Dr. Wilkins’s work has culminated in his most recent publication, “The Aesthetics of Equity: Notes on race, space, architecture and music” which has been recognized with numerous awards, including the prestigious 2008 Montaigne Medal for Best New Writing.

December 15, 2009 @ 6pm
Johanson Charles Gallery
1345 Division
Eastern Market, Detroit

From http://www.roguehaa.com/

Friday, December 4, 2009

The Gensler African-American Internship and Scholarship

The Gensler African-American Internship and Scholarship
celebrates our firm's commitment to diversity through mentorship
and empowerment of the best emerging design talent. Top
African-American students of NAAB-accredited architecture
programs will be selected for a summer internship and academic
scholarship.
Submission Deadline: January 15, 2010.
For application materials, please visit www.gensler.com/scholarships
or email scholarship@gensler.com .