Recession

During this downturn in the economy, I have been desiging small, traditional houses that will meet the housing needs of the 21st century. Working with realtors, landscapers, builders, and financiers, I believe that a new style of development and infill will be the next wave of construction. Interested in how and what we are doing? Drop a line and let's get some ideas going.

Immediacy

Reading so many other blogs and news stories about what makes us feel good, I find them dominated by food, clothing, shopping, and technology items. These topics are great and we need and use them. The depth of time that is needed to create great design and construct comfortable homes is beyond the reach of the internet age attention span. How can we as architects, designers, planners ever hope to reach this level of attention for our profession in the digital age? I work with clients that respect the process of architecture. We create a homes improve and mesh the love of food, clothing, shopping, and technology. A great Kitchen and Dining Room to gather with family and friends. A warm and secure residence where our clothing and shopping purchases are properly stored and displayed. Integrating technology into dwellings allows us to seamlessly introduce the latest elements in a subtle or unnoticed manner. Television shows, magazines, and news stories can encapsulate the above concepts into the same amount of time or printed inches, but there is an enormous disparity in the true time of work involved. As a child, shows such as "This Old House" would take an entire season for a renovation or addition, over a dozen shows for the work to be completed, documented by the change of season on the show. Compared with "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," an entire house is razed and another constructed in an hour, condensed from only one week or less of work. The lackluster design results of the "EM:HE" only underscore our impatience for architecture of value. This immediacy is rewarding for the residents, the network sponsors, and the viewers, but cheapens our industry.

Citizen

To be a citizen in this country, we are called to volunteer. This is something unique and special to our country. Being involved in the Historic Commission is a small step, but the millions of us that don't give one hour a week to a cause are weakening our communities. The members of the board of Upper Uwchlan Township are so appreciative of me stepping up. That pat on the back encourages me to do more. I love the feeling of being involved brings to learn about the world around us and the big picture of what we can do while on this planet. Showing our children the time we dedicate to organizations will illuminate how we can be productive members of society and spur them to be involved in years to come.

Fables

While reading the Three Little Pigs, a parallel with contemporary building is readily apparent. Building quickly and without regard for the Big Bad Wolf of the economy, heating bills, or maintenance, we have ignored the lessons we preach to our children. Quality of construction and quantity of materials is what we are learning to change during this recession.

Historic Announcement

I am happy to announce that I am now going to be on the Historic Review Board for Upper Uwchlan Township. It is a small step, but this is the way to affect change in the built environment! I am excited to start on this committee next week and the challenges that await us in the new year.

Beatle Architecture?

As pop music has skewed away from Beatle-esque melodies and verse-verse-chorus styling to a mish-mash of dance, hip-hip, guest singers, and expensive production values, the same path has occurred for most home building in America. The bigger footprints, more details, more floors, more garage doors mentality has ruled for the last fifty years. Similarly to music, residential architecture has recently collapsed upon itself due to the over abundance of everything. More maintenance of the houses, larger utility bills, and bigger rooms to furnish has pushed homeowners beyond their means to support it. Similarly, music also has collapsed under this weight of excess every decade or so and reinvents itself.

Native American Architecture

When looking for "traditional" American house shapes, one that is easily forgotten is the longhouse. This simple gable-ended rectangular form is a touch stone for the simplicity that we have turned away in the design world. The simplicity of form allow for a respect for the Earth as observed by Native Americans. Reducing material consumption for both our homes and our lifestyles is fundamental to this lifestyle. In the digital age, we need less stuff. We should be doing more with our increased wealth, helping less fortunate, and tending to the planet. Can it be that after 500 plus years on this continent that the Europeans are beginning to respect the land and act in a "green" way that was practiced for centuries prior on this land?