WSU A+CM Integrated Education Symposium

This lecture was directed more towards the Construction Management, Architecture and Engineer students, but I was able grasp some interesting information. The main focus was how DESIGN = CONSTRUCTION, vice versa. When you integrate and collaborate together you can create extraordinary results. Interaction is different when there's a higher number of people or lower so they prefer 12 or less for better communication.

One interesting quote that I heard was, "We don't start with a solution, but a goal." By doing so, there's no over cost for the client because they would be able to accomplish that goal.

Another interesting quote was, "Beauty is not something you tack on at the end, but mixing it in." What a genius!

Their construction of buildings are very HONEST! If a part is not needed, it will not be there. Materials are made the way it is already so might as well use it in the construction.

Olsen Kundig Architects

One of the greatest opportunities that I have been given was to job shadow Debbie Kennedy at Olsen Kundig Architects. It was a great experience to be able to see and feel what it's like to be in a big firm with so many talented and gifted group of people.

Here is a picture of how they organize their materials.

St. Ignacius

St. Ignacius is a beautiful church in Seattle, WA.

 

Here is a sketch of the exterior. I love how the pond gives a beautiful reflection onto the building. It adds a beautiful, natural texture/pattern.

The top is a sketch of the lobby and the bottom is a sketch of the main chapel.

The top is a sketch of a wall that pops out with lighting underneath with a beautiful glow. The bottom is a sketch of the stage.

Jim Olsen

Jim Olsen gave a beautiful message about the unification of architecture, art, and nature. He describes the beauty of nature and how much it fascinates him.

What inspired him to be an architect was the cabin he grew up in. One of the metaphors he used was how flowers contrast the background so that the bees can see them. As you can see in the sketch below, the same concept applies. The wood is laid out horizontally as the trees (nature) are the background.

One thing he said about nature that stood out to me was, "The thrill of risking something is to see something beautiful." We never know what there are in the woods, forests, etc. unless we take the chance to go and explore.

Some homes are inspired through art pieces, such as, the Red House. The cool thing about the way he used art in his designs were to frame a piece of nature through the window frames. By doing so, you can feel like your outside while you're inside. His famous quote from this lecture was,

"You can have the best art in the world, but you can never compete with nature."

Jim Olsen is one of the greatest speakers that I have heard about design. He has given me a new perspective of design through the nature of art.

Wheel Chair

For the wheel chair assignment, I partnered up with Megan Pharmer. By riding a wheelchair ourselves helped us understood what we needed to think about when designing.

Here is Megan trying to turn around to exit the small kitchen in ELB.

 

 

Here is Megan trying to find accessible pathways to a building in order to avoid going down a hill.

 

Here is Megan trying to reach for a library book.

Here is Megan facing sideways at the copy machine. It was hard for her to reach and set the book in the right position.

The bathroom outside of the Architecture library was wheelchair accessible. There were plenty of space for Megan to turn around and allowed her to be able to wash her hands.

After Megan's success, it was my turn to ride the wheel chair to the small cafe in Carpenter Hall.

Here is a picture taken from my view as I sat in the wheel chair.

Here I am at the Pick-up order.

While Megan and I were heading back, we came across a space in the parking lot that would not allow me to pass. It reminded me how important it is to have space in a parking lot for accessibility as well.

This water fountain was not wheel chair accessible.

Here I am, struggling to back up from a bathroom stall that was not accessible.

Here is a sketch and some notes that I took from my experience. I couldn't help myself but laugh how terrible it was inside a non-accessible bathroom. I've learned a little glimpse of what life is like to ride a wheel chair but it has really opened my eyes to see how important it is to make sure everywhere is accessible.

Habitat for Humanity

Habitat for Humanity is a great place to live in a brand new house, even with a low income. I had the opportunity to be a part of building that specific home. It was an eye opener for me to see what goes on inside the walls, such as, the electric wires, insallations, the structures of the woods, and lots of nails. I helped put the insallation in between the woods in the wall, and helped drilled in nails to the floor to help secure it. I also went around and hammered the nails to flatten it out. I didn't get the chance to take pictures, but from this experience, I have learned that building a home is not easy! It's definitely hard and dirty work, but I am very glad that I had this great experience during the construction work.