Life of an Architect Podcast Ep. 148: Meetings are a Waste of Time

When you hear the word “focus” what comes to mind? Is it the ability to see clearly? Maybe you think of the ability to pay particular attention to the task at hand. Possibly the Ariana Grande song from 2015. Well, it’s definitely not that. What are we talking about again? Oh yeah, Welcome to EP 128: Focus.

The architectural theory of contextual architecture—often referred to as “contextualism”—asserts that built items should be in response to the literal and abstract components in the environment in which it is built. In 1988, Architect Philip Johnson and Mark Wigley denounced this philosophy, stating “contextualism has been used as an excuse for mediocrity, for a dumb servility to the familiar”, whereas Rem Koolhaas was more to the point and simply said, “F*!k context”.  Sound exciting? Welcome to episode 127: Context and Design.

It has been a long time since a bucket list was brought up on this show, but today’s the day. Almost four years to the day and 100 episodes later, Andrew and I are going to go through an architectural bucket list of people, places, and things. I don’t know what Andrew has in mind, but I’m feeling that my list will inspire you and change your life--or at the very least, get you to go look something up on the Internet. Welcome to episode 126: Architectural Bucket List Take 2. 

How do you define a great employee? The answer is most likely dependent on who is attempting to respond: the employee or the employer. Life of an Architect's Bob Borson, FAIA, and Andrew Hawkins, AIA, talk about the traits and characteristics of great employees.

You’re about to graduate from architecture school, or maybe you already have a job, and you’re just simply looking for a change. Going through the interviews in an architecture firm is just part of a sequence of activities toward getting a new job. There are some things that are worth knowing before you step into the room. Welcome to Life of an Architect Episode 123: Interviews Just Aren’t that Hard. 

Even though artificial intelligence can conceptually trace its roots back to the 1950s, the reality is AI and machine learning went mainstream not too long ago. As recently as November 2022, anyone with a computer and Internet access can dip their toes in the AI waters for not much more than the time needed to understand how to make it work. Unless you’ve had your head in the sand, you probably know this is a big deal. But what does this mean to the profession of architecture? Are we all going to be replaced? Are there any ethical considerations that we should start thinking about? Welcome to Life of an Architect episode 122: Architecture and Artificial Intelligence

When you think of a building – whatever scale or project type – the items that go into creating that building are most frequently associated with the materials that are selected that define the appearance of the building. Brick, glass, wood, and metal are all great choices. But the decision on what to clad your project in goes a long way toward deciding things beyond the appearance.

What are the top three deficiencies of the architectural profession? What is your best non-architecture source for creative inspiration? How does an architect deal with burnout? These questions (and more!) answered by Life of an Architect co-hosts Bob Borson, FAIA, and Andrew Hawkins, AIA, in Episode 120: Ask the Show – Spring 2023 Edition.