Archives: Contemporary Architects

Technological advances, in the design industry as well as those in seemingly unrelated industries, have a major impact on your competitive landscape. Let’s begin with an example directly related to the design and building world—the development of mass-producible structural steel, a material advance that forever changed how we design and what we design. Before the [...]

“I’ve got one word for you, Benjamin. Just one word. Plastics.” For this post, I’m revising this classic line from the 1967 film The Graduate. Today my one word for you is “materials.” New materials offer an amazing opportunity for competitive positioning. Jumping decades and genres, you may wonder (a la Tina Turner), “What’s ‘materials’ [...]

On November 16, I had the pleasure of leading a webinar on Competitive Intelligence co-sponsored by the AIA Practice Management Knowledge Community (AIA PMKC) and the Society of Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) Foundation. We had a great turn out — 625 registrants — many of who offered insightful and provocative questions concerning Competitive Intelligence and [...]

“You only have one chance to make a first impression.” More than ever, this old standard holds true. What’s different today, though, is that a first impression often comes not from a face-to-face encounter, but from a quick encounter with your web site. Your web site talks for you. Do you know what it’s saying? [...]

Architects, we have an unfortunate situation here. Actually, it has been going on for quite a while. Overall, architects’ web sites are embarrassingly wretched… particularly for a profession that should be at the top of the design pyramid. We have work to do. Here are five tips to get you thinking about how, with a [...]

As I drive through Cambridge every morning, I purposely chart a course by the Fogg Art Museum, or what remains of it during this considerable expansion. The massive “Transformation,” as Harvard describes it, will unite the three university art museums (the Fogg, the Busch-Reisinger, and the Sackler) while providing additional exhibition, study, and visitor spaces. [...]

Cool Spaces!, a new program proposed for PBS, promises a positive twist on the ubiquitous trend of reality TV. In lieu of poorly behaved 20- and 30-somethings á la MTV’s Jersey Shore, Cool Spaces! offers a glimpse into the “reality” we walk by everyday, often in distraction and without a second glance. The host, Stephen [...]

Over the past fifteen years I have come to the conclusion that, all too often, architectural notions of context focus on a project’s physical site and surroundings. I have no concrete proof for this, only anecdotal evidence and gut feeling supported by tidbits such as the following: In 1950, a young Robert Venturi declared that [...]

I am happy to announce that, after two+ years of research, writing, and editorial toil, Constructing a New Agenda: Architectural Theory 1993-2009 is now available. This anthology, published by Princeton Architectural Press, focuses on architectural developments since the early 1990s. Check it out and let me know what you think!

A recent Philadelphia Inquirer article by architectural critic Inga Saffron covered four firms in the City of Brotherly Love: KieranTimberlake, Erdy McHenry, Onion Flats, and Interface Studio Architects. Aside from their location, the connection between these designers lies in their emphasis on improving the process of construction, making it more cost effective and environmentally responsible. [...]