Architecture Through My Eyes

The past few weeks of school for me have had a heavy emphasis on design technology. I, along with the other second-year students, am taking a design technology class. Everything we are learning in the class is completely new, which makes it challenging yet exciting. It's difficult to create a building in a program when you don't even know how to scroll yet. About 2 weeks ago, we were assigned a project in the software SketchUp. This software, as I said, was brand new to us, and I had a hard time. A very hard time. I got very lost in our first lesson and just kind of never caught up. As a result, I put off the project until about 4 days before the due date. This may seem like a good chunk of time, but trust me, it's not enough. Nonetheless, by sacrificing some sleep and most of my sanity, I finished the assignment on time. It wasn't my best work, and I know I could've done better if I'd had more time, but it was done. I definitely learned a lot and improved immen...

 This week I reflected on one of the course objectives for my online English class. The objective is as follows: " Communicate effectively in a variety of contexts and genres, using variety of communications skills. To achieve this outcome, you will practice writing most found in business and professional writing settings. Common writing includes memos, proposals, instructional writing, and resumes/cover letters, among others." Before I began this class, I had very little professional writing experience. I'd written a pretty poor resume and some average cover letters, but that's all. Though I'm only about halfway through the semester, it's clear I've learned a lot about professional writing.  As the course objective states, I have learned how to communicate more effectively in a variety of professional ways. I've learned to write a polished resume and cover letter, how to practice good netiquette, and how to communicate with my peers effectively. These...

 Zaha Hadid Architects just released their designs for hydrogen refueling stations for recreational boats.  These are the first of their kind and are to be installed in 25 Italian marinas. The stations convert green hydrogen into sustainable fuel. To continue this sustainable theme, the stations are built using a modular system that can be adapted to different areas to respond to specific local needs. They are also fully recyclable and able to be assembled on site, reducing construction waste.  This article really excited me because the design itself is elegant and unique without being distracting. Upon reading more, I was blown away by the innovative care they took to make these stations as sustainable as possible. A fully recyclable building? Incredible. These kinds of designs make me excited for a future that I will hopefully get to contribute to. 

I'm about a month into my fourth semester in architecture school, and it's crazy to think about all of the things I've learned already. We just wrapped up the first portion of our second project called Collecting Experiences. Our assignment was to work with a partner to analyze downtown Fargo, communicate our analysis through presentation boards, and decide what kind of form our site needed. We looked at all kinds of topics like environment, vehicular and pedestrian circulation, and landmarks. Here's one of the boards I created:  We gave a presentation on our findings too, which went well. A big thing I've learned as an architecture student is how to give a good presentation. There's way more presenting than I had expected.  My other classes are also going well, though they've increased in intensity. I learned the software AutoCAD, which was frustrating and time consuming, but I improved so much. Ilve also learned lots about contemporary architecture and the...