There and Not There

How does one represent the imagination? How can the dialectic between object and non-object become depicted as a singular image? How can the cultural import of drift relate to the literal and strategic deployment of military jargon? These are the some of the essential questions that Perry Kulper investigates within his image created for the David’s Island competition. The answers to these questions drive the process of the image and ultimately become more than the image. The understanding of this process is more important than the image, as it remains solely the manifestation of the conceptual connection between object and non-object, or there and not there.

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Little City in the Big Suburb

East on Memorial Drive, past the Juvenile Detention Center but before Stone Mountain is Dekalb County’s smallest town. Pine Lake began as a small planned community of summer retreats in the 1930’s. When the city was incorporated in 1937, it was still far enough from Atlanta to be considered a vacation spot. As Dekalb’s infrastructure grew and the car gained popularity, some Atlantans began to turn their vacation homes on the lake into permanent homes.

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inquiry: on the shoulders of giants

In moments of doubt and loss of direction, a friend of mine would turn to the bracelet that he wears on his wrist with an engraving that reads W.W.A.D: What would Aalto do?

At times we have difficulties in engaging architectural problems, addressing site context, and making design decisions, among other things. To help frame our thinking and gain a better perspective on certain matters, we may turn to fellow students, teachers, architects, and others, past and present, for cognitive precedents.

Who do you turn to for guidance when lost in thought or design process?

Are there any architects whom you invoke when tackling a particular issue?

Who comes to mind? Please leave a comment.

Phoenix Flies 2010

During the month of  March, the Atlanta Preservation Center sponsors Phoenix Flies. Tours of various historic landmarks, such as Grant Park, Oakland Cemetery and Ivy Hall, will be conducted throughout the city. The event is meant to promote preservation in Atlanta and to educate the public about the importance of saving our city’s heritage. For more information, visit http://www.phoenixflies.org/index.php

Life After Graduation

In the mist of the bad recession, students have had to re-prioritize their goals to accommodate the increasing rate of unemployment.  Students have changed their programs in graduate school, find work in other places, or continue their education in the same field.  Unemployment is hitting hard in the architectural world.  Students are continuing their education, because they cannot find an internship or a job as an architect.

I’m a soon to be a graduate of architecture from Georgia Tech.  I will be getting my bachelor degree on May 8^th.  My plans have changed constantly; Plan A became Plan B then it became Plan C.  With each plan change, I feel that I am getting further and further away from architecture. I wanted to know how other people handle the same situation, so I decided to ask my fellow classmates from studio what their plans were when they graduated.  I asked them each two simple questions:

1. What are your plans after you graduate?
2. How have your plans changed since your freshman year to your senior year?

These are their answers….

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Steps for extracting topo from ArcGIS

Ever needed to get topo for your site but not know where to get it? Well the answer is here, below. Included in this post is a list of 12 steps and a screen captured video that walks you through getting Atlanta topo off the ArcGIS site and into Rhino or CAD. Enjoy. //