#444 - MORRIS ADJMI, Founder and Principal of Morris Adjmi Architects
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by Morris Adjmi, founder and principal of Morris Adjmi Architects. The three discussed Morris’s childhood, architecture education and experiences; modern & historical architecture expressions; early career and working with Aldo Rossi; the Scholastic Building; Morris Adjmi office founding & operations; analog vs digital in architecture; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT MORRIS
As the founder and principal of MA, Morris Adjmi, FAIA is dedicated to understanding the history and complex forces that shape cities to create buildings that are contextual but unmistakably contemporary. Adjmi’s passion for contextual architecture was formed by the cast-iron French Quarter balconies and crumbling Creole cottages in his hometown of New Orleans and refined in New York and Milan during a 13-year collaboration with Pritzker Prize-winning architect, Aldo Rossi.
Morris established MA in 1997 following his collaboration with Rossi, and on that strong foundation, built a multidisciplinary design practice known for its thoughtful engagement with history, distinct interpretation of industrial forms, and creative expression of innovative materials. The resulting work has become a favorite of both forward-thinking developers and history-minded preservationists.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Morris' childhood & early education.
(06:29) Architecture education & experiences.
“Architecture is a great entry point if you're concerned about the environment, sustainability, or any of those issues. Through architecture, you can really make a difference by providing housing or helping to reduce our fossil fuel consumption. That is different from the idea of architects just creating beautiful things, which obviously we want to do as well.” (10:55)
(13:01) Institute for Architecture & Urban Studies.
(23:19) Continuity of modern & historical architecture.
“Every building wants to be the star and shout as loud as it can for attention. I think great cities are made of great buildings that can be background buildings. It doesn't mean that every building should be a background building, but there needs to be a balance and one where buildings can contribute to the overall average, but not necessarily overpower each other and vying for attention.” (25:27)
(30:51) Expressing architecture through primary elements.
(31:55) Scholastic Building.
“We changed the entire façade [of the Scholastic building], and it was approved on the same day we presented it at the hearing, which is not typical. It was a ten-story building that was filling a gap tooth between two very tall buildings. Those are the kinds of things that you learn working with a master that cannot be taught. The idea is that it's never too late to do the right thing, to do the right thing when you know something's not right, and to not accept mediocrity and really work to realize vision. I learned a tremendous amount from Aldo Rossi about architecture, certainly, but the most valuable lessons I learned from him were really about conviction, dealing with difficult situations or clients, and really sticking to your convictions.” (37:43)
(38:52) Early Career & Working with Aldo Rossi.
(44:13) Morris Adjmi office founding & operations.
(53:20) Analogue vs digital in architecture.
“Clients and the general public are much more connected to hand drawings or sketches than super photo-realistic renderings because I think the craft shows in a drawing. I think it depends on the client or the point of the presentation, but a lot of times you can show a sketch, watercolor, or whatever, and that evokes more of a feeling, a mood, and a direction than something that's totally worked out. It takes so much more time to get renderings right, and you can't get it right early.” (56:23)
(59:19) Projects that Morris would like to do.
(01:04:39) Translating design philosophy throughout the office.
(01:09:02) Morris' favorite building.
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#443 - AGING, ARCHITECTURE INFLUENCERS , TV SHOWS
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina have a casual chat about aging, architecture influencers, tv shows, and more. Enjoy!
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#442 - JASON SOMERS & STEVEN SOMERS, President & CEO of Crest Real Estate
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by Jason Somers and Steven Somers, President and CEO of Crest Real Estate. They discussed the process of wildfire home rebuild; qualifying rebuild regulations in LA; the site clearing process; building like-for-like; recreating neighborhood with unique character; fire-resistant home design; the Case Study 2.0 program; and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Crest Real Estate resources for wildfire rebuild.
(07:17) Process of wildfire home rebuild.
“It’s important to plan aggressively before the start of each project phase. It's unbelievable how often clients will rush ahead and then end up losing time from something that was missed, because there wasn't proper planning upfront. So, before the architect puts pen to paper, figuring out what is the zoning and building regulations enables you to design once and get it right from the outset. It's critical to do the due diligence upfront because if you then get into the plan check process and things were missed, there will be design changes that cost money and time.” (14:53)
(17:53) LA qualifying rebuild regulations.
“The most important thing to note in the mayor's original executive order regarding the rebuilding process [in the city of Los Angeles] is that she made it very clear that all fire rebuilds, regardless of whether you are under 110% or over 110%, will go through an expedited plan check review process. So regardless of the 110% threshold, if you are a fire rebuild project, you will get an expedited plan check review with the City of Los Angeles.” (21:20)
(31:22) Site clearing process.
(38:42) Building like for like.
“If you had a set of plans for a house that was built not that long ago and you want to rebuild the same thing, feel free to reuse that set of plans to build like for like. But generally, if you're staying under the 110% threshold, it's about the massing and staying within the bulk, volume, height, and location of the building. But you can change the style, the floor plans, the finishes, all of that completely. It can look like a completely different house. And if you're going above 110%, which is not such a big deal, you really don't have to worry about like for like at all.” (39:05)
(42:38) Recreating neighborhood with unique character.
“The key is variety. If you're going down the different blocks in these neighborhoods, it doesn't feel like a truly pre-planned track development with houses that are replicas of each other. There were some beautiful houses and there were some average houses, but it was part of a fabric of a community that evolved over time with different products that were out there. So, I think the key is having a variety of prefab, large-scale construction companies and individual homeowners to rebuild the neighborhood together. It really is all these things coming together to recreate a neighborhood with unique character overnight, which is not an easy thing to do.” (45:34)
(46:42) Fire resistant home design.
“They could have been foresight from the state and insurance companies to prevent a lot of [the wildfire spread]. There are certain houses that had fire hardened materials, exterior sprinkler systems, and vent covers that are existing amongst chaos and destruction all around them. The fires can still happen, but you need to make sure that it doesn't happen from the embers getting inside the house. We already spend all this money on improving the city, so it'd be nice to make exterior sprinkler systems and other fire prevention mechanisms a requirement.” (48:47)
(54:18) Case Study 2.0 program.
(01:04:48) Submitting to the Case Study 2.0 program.
“We've got this crisis of great architecture costing an exorbitant amount of money and limiting great architecture to such an elite few is a big problem. So, we've tasked these architects throughout the country and the world to create a prototype house that has efficiencies and replication ability to create scalability. The architects are working together to come up with ideas of things that can be utilized across all the different projects and design. The more people that get involved to implement these projects, the more scalability and efficient we can be in solving for factors like cost efficiency, fire hardening, health and wellness.” (56:07)
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#441 - WORKING WITH SALES REPS
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss working with sales reps of material and product suppliers. The two cover common challenges, communication, and how suppliers make their products and companies more appealing to architects and designers. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Issues with sales reps.
(09:18) Effect of good and bad sales reps.
“As much as the quality of the products matters, the service to sell that product also matters a lot. If it’s a great product, but the sales rep is not responsive, or you don't feel like you're being taken care of, you will also lose trust in the product. That's very important because maybe two years after the product is installed, the client might have questions about the product, and it's always good to be able to reach out to the rep if you need any support, maintenance, or advice on anything.” (11:25)
(12:28) Price transparency.
“It’s important for sales reps and the suppliers to be very good at providing detailed and accurate price transparency for materials if possible, or at least a ballpark figure. Giving blanket prices for building products is sometimes difficult because it can vary greatly depending on the quantity and construction details… but having a person who's willing to have that conversation openly and quickly is a huge benefit. Otherwise, we're in the dark.” (14:01)
(20:10) Acelab materials database.
“Acelab is a website that has a large library of materials and products. They have all types of building components that you can browse with a bunch of different parameters that you can adjust to search. It's also a good platform to browse if you're looking for more uncommon materials or things you have never used before, and you don't really know where to go for information. Google search is not really your friend because it can take you to random places in the world that's not even near you, that might not even be vetted by anybody you know.” (20:11)
(22:22) Accessible technical details.
(27:22) Materials sample.
(31:00) Materials supplier marketing.
(37:55) Communication between architects and collaborators.
“Being professional means being objective. The reason why architects are generally pretty good at being objective is that we go through architecture school, during which we give design presentations to a panel of people who provide critical feedback. So architects are trained pretty quickly in school to learn how to hear harsh criticisms, swallow them, and say, “Okay, I didn't enjoy that, but were they right? Yeah, they were kind of right about that thing. We have to improve it.” We are trained to do that. We build that thick skin and the ability to regulate our emotions.” (46:05)
“I like the design studio in school and in the office because I've always thought about it as being like a church in the sense that in this physical space that we're in, we have to be honest with each other and that's it. We're polite, but we have to be honest with each other. If someone proposes something and it's bad, we have to tell them it's not good and the reasons why we might go in a different direction. We can't afford to not have those frank conversations. We don't produce good designs if we don't do that. That is learned as an architect in the design studio in undergraduate school. You learn to think and work that way even if you're not happy about it.” (50:58)
(53:29) Product suppliers event.
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#440 - CHRISTINE WILLIAMSON, AIA, Assistant Professor of Architecture, Virginia Tech
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by Christine Williamson, AIA, Assistant Professor of Architecture, Virginia Tech. The three discussed Christine’s career in building science; what building science is; architecture consultant cases; identifying issues in buildings; fire-resilient roof design strategies; building code and fire-resistant design; retrofit fire prevention strategies; benefits of non-ventilated roof systems; Acelab & building materials; tradeoffs in design; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT CHRISTINE
Christine Williamson’s professional experience includes building-science consulting for the restoration of Belvedere Castle in New York City’s Central Park, forensic investigations of building failures at the air-traffic control tower of LAX, and the Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, among other projects. She offers new-construction risk-mitigation consulting for residential towers, mid-rise mixed-use buildings, and production homes, as well as some of the most extraordinary private residences in the world. She has worked across North America from the Canadian Arctic to the Caribbean.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Christine's Early Career.
(04:56) What is building science?
“The less you know, the more conservative you have to be with your designs. The more you know about the building science and context for understanding risks, the bolder you can be with your designs and depart from what you did previously.” (11:20)
(12:31) Christine’s client types.
(16:13) Architecture consultant cases.
(31:02) Identifying issues in buildings.
(33:48) Fire-resilient home design.
“There's one big misconception that to make our homes and buildings more resilient to fires, we can't build with materials that can burn. That is not true. We're quite good at using materials that can burn by themselves in ways that are resistant to these types of weather events.” (37:07)
(38:00) Fire-resistant roof design strategies.
“To deal with condensation issues in unvented roofs, we can] add a diffusion port at the apex of the roof where the ridge vent would be. Instead of using wood sheathing for the whole part of the roof, we cut out the sheathing at the roof apex and replaced it with something that's vapor-open and permits moisture to escape. We'll cut out a small portion of the wood and wrap it with building paper, like Tyvek. Now, we can insulate using moisture-sensitive insulation and permit drying to happen just at the apex without venting the whole roof. This is unbelievably helpful without the added cost of other alternatives.” (49:40)
(54:32) Building code and fire-resistant design.
(59:36) Retrofit fire prevention strategies.
(01:01:20) Benefits to a non-vented roof system.
“When the mechanical system is in the attic and the ducts leak, what happens is a certain amount of air is taken from the house to convert into cool air, but we don't put all that air back into the house because we lose some of it to the attic. If we take out more than we put back, negative pressure will be created in the house. So, more air will have to come in from the outside through defects in the building enclosure to replace the air that’s leaked into the attic. The uncontrolled outside air brings things like dust, smoke, and moisture, which could cause mold and health issues.” (01:03:23)
“Typically, it’s way better to condition the attics because it allows us to control the interior environment better. Sometimes people think, “I don't need to control things, man, I'm cool.” But it means that you can have a healthier environment by bringing in fresh, filtered air from a location you know about, rather than allowing polluted air to come in from who the heck knows where.” (01:04:47)
(01:07:56) Acelab, building materials, and fire resiliency.
(01:14:35) Tradeoffs in design.
“I tell people to hire an architect because you don't know what you don't know. You can have somebody who understands buildings professionally to be your advocate and help you make the best use of your resources. Architects can help you determine if something is worth investing in and reducing the house size to compensate, or if something is not important to you, they can reallocate that resource somewhere else. I think the people who have this idea that they have to negotiate against the professionals they hire miss out on the most important thing their architect and contractor can do for them, which is to get them more of what they want for less.” (01:21:11)
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#439 - REBUILDING HOMES IN THE PACIFIC PALISADES: Debunking Misconceptions
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss rebuilding houses in the Pacific Palisades. The two cover site cleanup, reusing existing foundations, different permitting methods (i.e. Eligible/Qualifying Rebuilds and Non-Eligible/Non-Qualifying Rebuilds), debunking misconceptions about permitting, obtaining plans of the previous home, site-planning, and utilizing an architect for project guidance from the beginning. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Site cleanup
(05:52) Should you reuse old foundations?
(12:42) Thinking big picture
(15:34) Permitting rebuilds in the City of Los Angeles & the Pacific Palisades
Eligible/Qualifying Rebuilds: Their benefits and why are not as advantageous as they may seem
Why is the phrase “Like for Liike” deceptive
Exemptions from CEQA and CCA
Rebuilding non-conforming structures
Expedited permitting processes
Non-Elligble/Non-Qualifying Rebuild
(28:24) The over-emphasis placed on permitting & obtaining plans of the previous home
(36:27) Utilizing an architect for project guidance
(40:36) The importance of site planning and not doing an eligible rebuild.
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#438 - HARRY STATTER, Founder of Frontline Wildfire Defense
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by Harry Statter, founder of Frontline Wildfire Defense. He offers his perspectives on landscape ecology; the natural fire regime; issues caused by overcontrolling fires; how and why Frontline was founded; Frontline software services and process; water management system; retrofit solutions and preparing for the next fire; rebuilding homes with long-term mindset; future development of Frontline; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT HARRY
Harry Statter is a wildfire ecologist and technologist, who has been at the forefront of wildfire mitigation efforts for more than two decades. He is the founder of Frontline Wildfire Defense, which provides digitally connected exterior sprinkler systems to protect homes and businesses from wildfires, as well as a free mobile app with live wildfire tracking and evacuation notifications. Harry is passionate about empowering people to protect their homes and communities in an era of increasingly severe weather events.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Early childhood & career.
(03:31) Landscape Ecology.
(12:48) Natural Fire Regime.
“Historically, we think that we can control nature. It doesn’t make sense. I don’t think you could point to any natural process that has ever been controlled by humans...let alone one that is assisted by human management.” (13:37)
“We don’t have a great feedback loop for the damage of fire management policies. We think in terms of the number of fires put out and the number of acres protected. This concept is delusional, as those acres have depended on that fire to thrive in the first place.” (15:02)
(17:02) Issues caused by overcontrolling fires.
(23:41) How Frontline started.
“Embers cause 90% of structure ignitions during a fire. If it’s a hurricane-force wind, these embers can get lofted to a 24-mile radius. They land on the combustible surfaces of the structure or adjacent fuels and cause a small fire. There could be half a million to one million homes and businesses that burn simultaneously. There are way too many structures to protect than available firefighters on the ground.” (27:56)
(30:27) Motivation to create Frontline.
(35:24) Frontline software services & process.
(42:07) Water management & fire prevention system.
“You need very, very little water to avoid a fire. You need a lot of water to put a fire out.” (42:51)
(46:42) Frontline software system in public use.
(52:17) Retrofit fire prevention & preparing for the next fire.
“Architects need to understand that a self-defense mechanism is necessary because there’ll never be enough firefighters. The code renews every five years, but significant weather event happens once every three weeks. The climate is moving way faster than the code cycle is. We’ve got to be ahead of the building code.” (56:32)
(58:51) Insurance & Frontline system.
(01:00:47) Rebuilding homes with a long-term mindset.
(01:03:14) Future development of Frontline.
(01:04:05) Favorite place in Jackson Hole.
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#437 - DAVID’S THREE FAVORITE BUILDINGS
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss David’s 3 favorite buildings. The two touched on the Ronchamp Chapel; the emotional impact of architecture; Le Corbusier’s architecture; The Eiffel Tower; the difference between a building, sculpture, and monument; the Taliesin West Building; the Bird Nest; craftsmanship and experimentation in architecture; and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(01:29) 1st favorite: Ronchamp Chapel.
“I think one of the downsides of modern architects is that they become too confined to thinking that everything must have a geometric alignment… which is the result of being too calculated. The Ronchamp Chapel is not that. It feels and looks more like a sculpture. When I’m there, I just enjoy the raw visual experience of the building, the place, and all the moments and rooms…” (14:28)
(13:29) Emotional impact of architecture.
“The spiritual aspect of architecture and the emotions it helps people feel are the first baby steps an architect takes when they learn architecture. In those first exercises, students design spaces. You always call it a space, which suggests that it is divorced from any preconception about what a building is. It's just a space. You're not thinking about structure, sustainability, program, or budget. It's just the fundamentals. The funny thing is, as you go on as an architect, it becomes harder and harder to produce work that is expressive of those initial baby steps and early projects that we all did. It’s a struggle for architects to do work like that in their career.” (16:15)
(19:13) Le Corbusier's architecture.
“What I like about Le Corbusier's work is that he also thinks about his designs theoretically. The Unité d'Habitation, for example, is the concept of an urban ecosystem within a building and developing internal streets in the building; down to the cabinet detail, the handle, the hinges, and glass partitions between spaces.” (20:18)
(23:07) Why Ronchamp Chapel is David's favorite.
“Sometimes it feels like we are controlled and restrained by the tools we use. We have computers, keyboards, mice, and VR, all these peripheral things that get in the way. They're great tools, they make drawing construction documents and producing renderings a lot easier. But sometimes I feel like…it's just a bunch of string around my hands, and I want them to get away…Get away!” (28:17)
(29:50) David's 2nd favorite building: The Eiffel Tower
(46:29) Building vs Sculpture vs Monument.
(55:05) David's 3rd favorite building & bonus.
(58:51) Taliesin West building.
(01:04:33) Craftsmanship & Experimentation in architecture.
“The Ronchamp Chapel felt like it was crafted with somebody’s hands. It's the same thing with the work of Frank Lloyd Wright. It is about craftsmanship and making everything that the building needs to be. People are working with their hands, stones are being carved, little details are made from pieces of wood assembled, and a window is being cut around the shape of a vase. I think we've lost that.” (01:04:37)
“There are only so many minutes in a day. And if you have to spend X percentage of your time now dedicated toward troubleshooting stuff, working around, or learning these complex tools, it's time away from being able to think freely. Then, with the remaining time you have, do you feel emotionally, as an architect and creative, in a headspace to think, “Let me be free and think about crazy stuff now.” Or do you feel, “Okay, I only have half of my day now, and I need to complete some work.” (01:05:32)
(01:09:24) Bird's Nest building.
(01:16:09) David's other favorite buildings.
(01:17:53) Summary of favorite buildings.
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#436 - WALTER HOOD, Creative Director & Founder of HOOD Design Studio
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by Walter Hood, Creative Director & Founder of HOOD Design Studio. The three discussed Walter’s childhood and education; architecture and landscape architecture differences; experimenting with different career paths & evolution; Hood Design Studio practice; the influence of art education on landscape design career; embracing change and imperfection; architecture service in landscape firm; establishing culture and project consistency in a firm; artist vs architect; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT WALTER
Walter Hood, a multidisciplinary designer from Charlotte, NC, is globally recognized for his contributions in art, landscape architecture, urbanism, and research. Founding Hood Design Studio in Oakland, CA in 1992, he now leads as its creative director. His passion for landscape and urbanism emerges from its broad, democratic scope, allowing experiences beyond architectural constraints. Infusing African American cultural arts into his philosophy, he established a unique voice, reshaping spaces to reflect contemporary needs without erasing their history. A professor at UC Berkeley and former Harvard educator, Walter penned “Black Landscapes Matter” and has received accolades like the 2019 MacArthur Fellowship, the 2021 Architectural League’s President’s Medal award, 2023 WSJ Magazine Innovator in Design award, and the Vincent Scully Prize in 2024.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Walter's Studio.
(03:03) Walter's childhood & education.
(13:13) Difference in studying architecture and landscape architecture.
“Architecture was more rigorous in the precision of the making and more interested in the speculative ideas in design. Whereas landscape, particularly in Berkeley, was highly steeped in the sciences. Whether it's social sciences or natural sciences. This subjectivity didn't exist in the realm of landscape architecture as it did in architecture.” (16:27)
(19:00) Experimenting with different paths in early career.
“In the early part of my career, I tried everything. I didn't say, “This is what I want to do.” My students are very much, “I want to do this.” But I question them, “How do you know you want to do that?” I remember in Philadelphia, I left this landscape firm that I had been with for three and a half years, and then I immediately started working in an architecture firm. [My friends were perplexed as to why I would leave the landscape firm. It’s because I got bored.] Because of all these varied experiences, by the time I got into school, [I thought the career exploration] could wait. I knew that the diversity in the profession will always be there.” (19:19)
(20:52) Career as an evolving project.
“Starting in the 90s, it was on the back of the post-modern movement. All those [architects and designers who are really successful now, such as Zaha Hadid,] were making paper architecture then. They didn't have projects, so they used design research as a way to figure out what their practice would be. Then, when that first commission happened, they already knew what to make and how to make it and just furthered those things. I think that's what many young designers don't see today. It took years to build the foundation for the firm. You had this culture, which I think has been abandoned to a certain degree. People think they just need to win [a prestigious design competition and then they will blow up versus thinking about how they want to practice.] There should be a period of cultivation in some way so that when you do get the project, there's a clarity to the work.” (27:19)
(28:48) Ease of access to information.
(31:46) When Walter started his practice.
(36:22) Influence of art education on landscape design career.
“Make a decision, then see what you get. We're constantly fiddling to the last minute in architecture and landscape architecture. Compared to when making a piece of art, you make a decision, and you just do it. It's revelatory. I worked on ten paintings for a show last year and it was the first time I've ever done paintings. A guy was coming to pick the paintings up on Monday. It was the Friday before and my paint needed to dry so I had to stop. In architecture, after the building is completed, you go there with a checklist of things to fix. Five years later, you’re still going back and trying to fix things. In art, once the work goes, it's gone. It's done. There's a beauty to that and it's really hard to get that to happen in the studio because everybody's constantly trying to get it right. That idea of getting it right is a little bit too much.” (36:55)
(38:39) Embracing change and imperfection.
“We should be thinking about how people should be living today. It is not, “We need more social housing. We need more of this...” But we should be thinking about [how we should live in a constantly evolving world]. You don't see people discussing, “Maybe we should be living more collectively. Maybe we should live on smaller footprints, more individually, etc.” Even in landscape design, I'm less interested in form now. I'm more interested in the question, “How can I create this thing that people can go into versus something people look at?” It's almost like we're not teaching that anymore as ways to begin a design. Just these very simple logics of how we exist in space. Instead, we are defaulting that we have to live in this Cartesian world.” (44:03)
(50:02) Adding architecture service to landscape firm.
(53:29) Walter's firm.
(01:01:53) Artist vs Architect.
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#435 - DESIGNING FIRE-RESISTANT HOMES IN LOS ANGELES
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss strategies for creating a fire-resistant home. The two cover what causes wildfires to spread, the 3-layer approach to fire-resistant design, materials, roof design, deck design, window types, framing, insulation, the Pacific Palisades, active fire-suppressant systems, landscaping, and site-planning. Enjoy!
FAME is offering complimentary Project Starter Services to anyone rebuilding their home due to the recent wildfires in Los Angeles. info@famearchitects.com
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Helping Los Angelenos rebuild
(02:12) How wildfires spread in neighborhoods and their impact on design
(07:37) A holistic approach to fire-resilient design
“When creating a house that is fire-resistant, it’s not just about the house. There are three layers to the design: the house itself, the 10’ perimeter around the house, and then everything beyond that which is the rest of the property. Each of these layers needs to be thought about in creating a fire-resistant home, and they each protect each other.”
(08:23) House design: Materials to use and avoid
“The modern McDonald’s farmhouse style has plagued California, and I detest it greatly, but one of the benefits of that style is that it calls for a metal standing-seam roof which will do a much better job of deflecting embers and not catching on fire compared to, some of the houses in the Pacific Palisades that had wood shingle roofs. Those wood roofs are cool looking and have that old rustic feel, but it’s a box of tinder.”
“Modern farmhouses do have the metal roof, but [creating a fire-resistant home] is a combination of strategies. If you have a metal roof but you’re siding is still combustible, your house is not fully protected. It would be like going out in a rainstorm with an umbrella, but you’re wearing underwear… you’re going to get wet.”
“I was in the Palisades a few weeks ago and seeing it in person is not the same as seeing it on TV… it’s horrific. The things that are still standing are the elements made of concrete and masonry. All of the solid concrete retaining walls are still there. Concrete has its sustainability issues regarding its production, but once it’s there, it is ultra-resilient to fire.”
(20:23) House design: Windows to use and avoid, and sprinklers
(24:42) House design: Fully closed facade design. Roofs and decks.
“Old houses often have a pitched roof with an attic. These attic spaces will naturally get incredibly hot so you have to have a vent at a low point and at a high point for air to circulate. However, these old vents are just holes in the building to welcome embers into the house. The best solution is to have a roof that doesn’t have vents and is fully closed.”
(32:36) 10’ Perimeter Design: Creating Firebreaks
Landscaping is a very important part of creating a fire-resistant home, but it requires maintenance. So even if you create a fire-resistant property, if things are not maintained correctly, some of these strategies don’t work anymore.
(39:40) The larger property: Vegetation and water features
(42:30) Thinking neighborhood-wide and the limitation of fire-resistant design principles.
“Having 5’ tall fences around properties would help with fire-resilency and privacy but in terms of the experience of the neighborhood, it’s kind of sad. That sense of community, and the pleasantness that comes with it, is gone because everyone is shielded.”
“What makes a home a great home for the people living in it and the neighborhood is not determined just by fire resiliency. These strategies are just one of a hundred things that have to be considered in the design of a home”.
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#434 - MATT RISINGER, Founder of the Build Show
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by Matt Risinger, Founder of the Build Show, and CEO & Chief Builder at Risinger Build. The three discussed the LA Wildfires; disaster prevention strategies; new construction materials; how mat became a builder; hiring good builders; the importance of a stable home; convincing clients to try new products; getting better at sales; the Build Show & Risinger Build’s evolution; project NDA; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT MATT
Matt started learning about construction by working summers working on houses for elderly people who owned their homes but couldn’t afford to maintain them. He got a BS in Industrial Management from Grove City College and worked for one of the National Production Builders (NVR Ryan Homes) in DC after college. His 7 years with that mega builder was fun, but the fast-paced building it did not satisfy his desire for “Craftsmanship” and Building Science. Matt’s passion for building science led him to create a Building Better blog and start positing educational YouTube videos short videos.
With the increasing popularity of his videos, Matt launched Build Productions in 2018 is now approaching 1M followers across his social channels. Build Productions’ expert network continues to grow along with the audience.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Texas & LA Wildfires.
(04:32) Houses that survived the Los Angeles fires.
(07:03) Disaster prevention.
“If a client sells their house after two years, builders are still on the hook for at least another ten years legally for the house. The house could be 10 years old with three owners, but if there's a problem, they don’t have a previous relationship with us. If they think, “Oh, this builder is absolutely horrible. I'm going to sue them.” I'm hosed. I'm in trouble. We need to make sure that clients are doing the best thing for the house, which is the right thing for them and is consequently, the right thing for you as the architect and the builder. When it comes to health, durability, longevity, and resilience, those things need to be baked into the process no matter what we build.” (08:16)
(09:33) Fire Rated Plywood.
(14:20) New construction products & Fire Prevention Strategy.
“The very wise architect [who built the house that survived the Palisades Fire] decided to use unventilated metal roofs without overhangs, a combination of stucco for the walls, and a wood-looking fiber cement on the front of the house. The concrete fence was also [a wise decision]. A perimeter fencing that stops embers is a big deal for people who have a fire next door. If you can stop those ambers from coming through your fence when the wind is blowing, whether it's by putting a metal fence that has an ember screening or going to the expense of a concrete fence, that's really going to help prevent your property from igniting.” (20:03)
(22:48) How Matt became a builder.
“The national mold crisis is what really drove me to realize we need to pay attention to how we build houses. If we just build them without thinking and there are leaks in a modern house, those leaks turn into mold, rot, and other problems. People who spend $250,000 on their dream homes suddenly start living in nightmares. They're looking at me as the builder like, “You crushed my dreams. You're the worst person ever. We're going to sue the pants off you.” So here I am, this 30-year-old builder who loved my job six months ago, and now all these people hate me and think I'm the worst person in the world because their kids are going to die of mold poisoning. I just can't build the way we've always built. I need to figure out what it is that makes a well-built house a healthy house, a house that's not going to have problems or molds.” (28:49)
(31:32) Hiring good builders.
“How do you find a good builder? I really think that homeowners and architects really need to visit job sites under construction. It's really hard to evaluate based on pretty pictures, whether the builder is good or not. By visiting sites under construction, that's where you can really see their quality. We need to be better at interviewing and doing our own research. I think it's interesting how over the years, people have stopped calling for reference checks. For anybody who's thinking about hiring builders, you want to get a reference from three people within the last 1 to 2 years that build a house with them. Get the customer’s numbers and ask for their experience. If there are at least three excellent experiences, then you know the builders are reliable.” (34:48)
(39:23) Builders repeating designs.
(44:44) LA Fires & Importance of a stable home.
(47:57) Convincing clients to try new products.
“We're not going to sell a Passive House by telling people that you're going to save the whales. We're going to sell passive houses because people want a comfortable, resilient, durable, and well-built house that has healthy air for their children. That's why they're going to buy a passive house. So, we need to bring the rubber to the road where it really matters and talk about the things that matter to the clients. Part of that is also figuring out what does matter for them and sometimes it may not matter to them until you ask them.” (53:28)
(55:43) Communicating with clients & getting better at sales.
“Builders and architects both need to be better at sales. A big part of being a good salesperson is being a good listener and really understanding what people are saying, what motivates them, and what drives them. I think that in the building industry, we get caught up in this, “What's it going to cost to build?” And that's the only thing we hear. As a result, we start competing on price and it's a race to the bottom. We need to get rid of that race to the bottom mentality and go right to what's important to the client as a homeowner and really listen. Then frankly, we should utilize some good sales skills to secure the project.” (56:54)
(58:38) Success of the Build Show.
(01:05:43) Design build & Project NDA.
(01:12:35) The Build Show & Risinger Build evolution.
(01:19:47) Matt's favorite buildings.
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#433 - FALLING BEHIND IN ARCHITECTURE SCHOOL
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design answer a question from a listener with regards to feeling behind peers as a student. The two discussed imposter syndrome and feeling behind; collective learning; time management methods; success, consistency and proactiveness; challenges of teaching and learning architecture; software learning tips; choosing areas to focus and prioritize; hierarchy of deliverables; and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Introduction.
(01:18) Completing assignment requirements and sacrificing design exploration.
(12:43) Not completing assignments.
(22:38) Struggling with too many ideas.
“One truth with any creative project is the clarity of the statement. If you can summarize a project into one sentence. What is it doing? How is it doing it? The project can be very complex, confusing, ugly, or monstrous… It could be anything, but it needs to have clarity. As one matures, the work tends to become clearer because partly you're not forcing things. When you're younger, you have all these ideas you want to get out on paper…because you're excited and you want to get it out there. But you can't force it. If it doesn't belong in that project, don't shove it in the project.” (31:14)
(32:39) Not trusting teachers.
(37:59) Not asking enough questions.
“When I first started [working in architecture], I strongly felt that I needed to pretend like I knew more than I did to secure a position where I got paid enough money. I was always afraid that if I showed [my lack of knowledge], I was potentially going to be let go or not be hired. When it comes to a feast or famine mindset, because your best hope is to make $38,000 a year, you do everything you can to get that and then hold on to it. It was a survival mechanism that I should not have used, but it was a survival mechanism. I was afraid and thought, “I can't ask that.” It's a mistake because, of course, you're only like 22. You don't know anything.” (39:58)
(43:52) External distractions.
(50:06) Advocating for yourself as a young professional.
“As a young professional, you might feel like you don't deserve things because you're young and inexperienced. [It’s hard to] advocate for yourself, ask for a raise, or ask for things you think would improve your learning experience and career. I feel like the first few years I was taking the back seat. I thought, “I can’t ask for that. I started a year ago. I'm just a young designer. I can’t ask for a raise. I can’t ask for more responsibility.” Then at some point, you see someone else in the office who did it, who started maybe after you and they got [the things you were afraid to ask for]. Then you're pissed off because you understand that if you don't ask for stuff, it's never going to come to you. Then your perspective changes.” (50:20)
(52:26) Not committing to an office.
(56:39) Everyone has their shortcomings and talents.
(59:43) The perfectionist mindset.
(01:08:12) Getting stuck in the design process.
(01:11:42) Complying with client demands.
“Sometimes architects comply with clients’ demands too much. I think that pushing back is something that we don't often do as a profession. For example, saying, “I need more time.” One of the biggest failures for anyone who is dedicated to this profession is the failure to never turn off your brain, and never allow enough breathing room for the machine to restart, reset, and work at full capacity. Pushing yourself to exhaustion is too common.” (01:11:45)
(01:14:51) Explaining architecture to non-architects.
“You have to choose your words and structure them in a manner that makes sense for the audience. Always. However, it's a mistake to only create the presentation from the audience’s perspective. I think it's important to talk about elements that are important to the project, even if the audience might not understand it. Of course, you should try to explain it and not write it off as being incomprehensible. But we get into dangerous territory if we reverse it too much. You can't close the gap between architects and non-architects if you change the language too much and remove portions of the design presentation.” (01:20:23)
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#432 - JOHN MARX, Founding Design Principal & Chief Artistic Officer of Form4 Architecture
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by John Marx, AIA, founding design principal and Chief Artistic Officer of Form4 Architecture. The three discussed John’s childhood and early career; architect’s relevance in society; gender in architecture; logical thinking, empathy & humanity; loveable architecture; teaching & learning beautiful architecture; AI and architecture; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT JOHN
John grew up in the Midwest and evolved from studying fine arts into architecture. He co-founded Form4 in SF in 1998. The firm won 2017 American Prize for Architecture and is best known for designing tech spaces for many of Silicon Valley’s big names.
John continues to paint and write poetry, which he feels elevates his architectural design sensibilities (you might have a copy of his Etudes book). He’s a long-time Burner whose most recent installation, Museum of No Spectators, was exhibited at Burning Man the past two years. John is a multi-time exhibitor at the Venice Biennale. He lectured at Berkeley in the early 2020s on designing for cyberspace, predating the Metaverse label, and recently published a series on the topic and AI in Arch Daily. John’s most recent book, Towards Abundance, discusses gender roles and identities.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) John's childhood.
(11:06) Early career.
(13:48) Architecture profession relevance in society.
(19:08) Gender in Architecture.
“One of the greatest curses or insults in architecture appears to be confessing that something's arbitrary. But I think that's the sweet spot. It's the quirky, arbitrary aspects of architecture that people love [and remember]. Linear, logical, verbal. That thought process is not going to permit you to do something expressive, creative, quirky, and human. It’s the multidimensional, intuitive visual creative process that opens that door.” (27:25)
(29:13) What's the world we want to live in?
“They [some architects] say, “We're problem solvers. We look at things rationally and objectively. This subjective thing that you're introducing here is inappropriate for modern architecture. Why are you talking about superficiality like the word beauty, when the world is on fire, and we have climate change issues? We need to talk about carbon, carbon, carbon.” My response to that is: “The most sustainable things in life are those things you will not throw away because you love them too much.” That reintroduces the word love.” (31:18)
(38:25) When did architecture shift to logical thinking?
“International style modernism, which was the basis of minimalism, is a reductive process. When I look at the reductive process, I think, “Okay, well, that's fine. Get to the essence of architecture.” But there's a certain point where every time you go through a layer of reduction and remove something, you're taking humanity out of the design. You get this machine that in the end, is an acquired taste. It's either poetic or it's really boring. Unfortunately, the problem is that not many architects are talented enough to design poetic minimalism. It's really hard.” (40:49)
(46:38) Loveable architecture.
(51:23) Teaching & learning beautiful architecture.
(56:06) Architecture shifts between logic and empathy.
(01:05:20) How to teach beauty.
(01:08:06) AI and Architecture.
“Are we moving towards the way I'm advocating for, which is design from the heart; or are we going to give it all up and let A.I. do it? My fear is we're going to give it all up and let A.I. do it because we've abandoned the heart already. A.I. is not going to steal your job as a designer. You've already given it up by not creating emotionally resonant designs for people, which it has no problem doing. A.I. loves to pander to the population, which architects refuse to do. If you tell it to make things lovable, it'll go there. It won’t say, “We don't do lovable in architecture.” (01:11:22)
(01:13:13) John's favorite building.
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#431 - LOS ANGELES FIRES
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design have a casual conversation about the recent Los Angeeles fires, covering city infrastructure, the challenges of rebuilding, and neighborhood demographics. Future episodes discussing specific fire-related topics in greater detail will be released over the next few months. Enjoy!
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#430 - SARA BRONIN, Professor of Cornell University and Author of Key to the City
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by Sara Bronin, Professor of Cornell University; Founder of National Zoning Atlas; and Author of Key to the City: How Zoning Shapes Our World; the three discussed Sara’s childhood & education; her early career; Key to the City book; legalities and authorities of zoning codes; negative effects of zoning codes; National Zoning Atlas; improving zoning regulations; architecture education’s impact on zoning perspective; affordable housing and gentrification; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT SARA
Sara C. Bronin is a Mexican-American architect, attorney, Cornell University professor, and policymaker whose interdisciplinary work focuses on how law and policy can foster more equitable, sustainable, well-designed, and connected places. She is the author of Key to the City: How Zoning Shapes Our World, and she founded and directs the National Zoning Atlas, which aims to digitize, demystify, and democratize information about zoning in the United States.
Bronin is one of the foremost American scholars in property, land use, zoning, and historic preservation law, having co-authored two treatises, four books, and dozens of articles. She has been a reformer and change-maker in public roles at the local, state, and federal levels. She holds a J.D. from Yale Law School (Harry S Truman Scholarship), M.Sc. from the University of Oxford (Rhodes Scholarship), and B.Architecture and B.A. in Plan II from the University of Texas. A seventh-generation Texan, Sara is a native Houstonian.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Sara's childhood home & education.
(06:41) Why Sara studied law.
(08:47) Early career.
(12:12) Zoning codes and ‘Key to The City’.
“Zoning codes are written in a totally inaccessible way. The zoning codes are 150 pages long and filled with jargon. They are inconsistent internally, so there might be cross-references that don't make sense or definitions that contradict each other. Overall, they're not written so people can understand and engage with them. They're written like any dense legal text that’s only for experts to access. I think that's why people feel disconnected or not even interested in zoning codes. Once you open your town’s zoning code and there are 230 pages with 50 chapters, you’ll be like, ‘Forget it.’ So what I'm trying to do in the book [Key to the City] is to try and show the key ideas, the words people might look for, and trying to give people an entry point to engage with their city’s codes.” (14:17)
(17:25) How the zoning codes are written and decided.
(19:04) Negative effects of zoning codes.
(22:06) Who should oversee zoning regulation approvals?
“The only way to make changes in your community is to raise your hand and be there in the trenches. The interesting thing happening in communities around the country [US] is that it’s shifting away from largely exclusionary zoning. For example, zoning regulations with minimum lot sizes and single-family requirements have been designed to exclude people. You're seeing the ‘Yes in my backyard’ movement. For the first time, people are showing up to testify in favor of new housing, promoting bike infrastructure, or other provisions that might make a code more environmentally sustainable. It starts with the one person or a couple of people that are showing up at the meetings, raising their hands, writing the blog posts, encouraging their friends to show up, and keeping that momentum going.” (22:57)
(26:26) National Zoning Atlas.
“A third of the codes reviewed by the zoning code and geospatial partnership had discrepancies between the map and the text. We've always identified extinct districts or districts that used to exist in the text and then got erased but they are still on the map. We've also always logged unmapped districts or things that are in the text but aren't mapped. But what we haven't logged was serious discrepancies. For example, the districts on the code are named ‘Commercial One, Commercial Two, and Commercial Three,’ but the only thing you see on the map is ‘Commercial District.’ So, what's one, two, and three? What rules apply? [It’s a serious problem when there’s no correlation between the map and the code.] That can cause serious legal issues. People think, “Oh, zoning, we can't touch it. It's sacred.” But it's not that sacred and it can also be wrong.” (31:37)
(34:25) Zoning codes increasing complexity.
(40:44) Improving zoning regulations.
(44:02) Architecture education’s impact on zoning perspective.
(47:17) Implementing elusive qualities of delight and beauty.
“There is no substitution for architectural and aesthetic education. We should have that in our schools so that everybody can benefit from a more educated populace in art, just like how we educate for science and math. Architecture and design are all fundamental things that we should know about and have some training or understanding of, and we don't.” (47:48)
(50:33) Positive changes to zoning codes.
(54:30) Zoning code effect on affordable housing and gentrification.
“The best way to keep housing affordable is to create more. The research shows that across the board, anybody who says otherwise is not factually correct. In New York City, there has been a huge amount of new housing constructed. Without that new development, you would have more pressures in other neighborhoods and rents would have risen or house prices would have risen faster than if you did not have those homes to relieve some of the pressure. So, in general, a zoning code that allows more housing will be a zoning code that allows a more affordable city.” (55:12)
(57:42) Sara's favorite city.
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#429 - MARINA’S 3 FAVORITE BUILDINGS
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss Marina’s 3 favorite buildings. They touched on Farnsworth House’s radical design; building code and modern architecture; Frank Lloyd Wright’s work; the Pompidou Centre; beauty in architecture; architecture juxtaposition; buildings in winter; and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(01:50) Marina's First Favorite Building.
“Why isn't more mid-century style development happening in Los Angeles, for example? These houses are so cool. A lot of people in California love them. They were built simply as a post and beam structure. Why don't we have more spec houses like that? It's because they're more expensive than the spec houses being built now because of how construction has evolved. A lot of mid-century houses do not meet today's criteria for building codes. The amount of glass in [the Farnsworth House] would be considered very expensive if you were to do it today and you'd have to have railings everywhere, which would destroy the look of this building. It would be completely different. It's easy for us all to romanticize older architecture but there's the reality that you couldn't do this now because it wouldn't be allowed.” (13:38)
(15:11) Building Code and Modern Architecture.
(18:51) Farnsworth House radical design
“What makes architecture, architecture? We have to enclose space to keep the elements out, so we're protected from the rain and the cold, but beyond that, the function of the home, aside from the core, comes from only the furniture. That's why I find it so strange when people want to divorce furniture and interior program from architecture… The idea that these are separate things or different professions is a very narrow-minded view of what architecture is.” (23:43)
(25:56) Marina's 2nd favorite building.
“Frank Lloyd Wright’s projects have an edge to them because he's trying things that don't quite work for construction reasons or sometimes even design reasons. They're a little bit sloppy. The relationship between two different components is filled with friction but that’s okay. [An analogy is] In music, you can play a piece perfectly, or you can play it with a bit of an edge, where things get a little bit out of control because you’re trying something. That's what we should be doing in architecture. In Frank Lloyd Wright's work, that's what it's exciting to me. I think that's also what made him well-known. If you just do things that are expected, nobody's going to care. You're not pushing anything anywhere.” (34:48)
(48:13) Marina's 3rd favorite building.
(59:43) Beauty in Architecture.
“There’s always been [this perception] in the society where anything industrial or utilitarian is not beautiful. People think that a building has to be of a certain genre [or style] in order for it to be beautiful. Why is that? I think what makes architects different from the general public is we understand that beauty can be found across different genres. When you are dealing with clients, oftentimes they are victims of those preconceptions. ” (01:02:25)
(01:11:19) Architecture juxtaposition.
(01:19:03) Buildings in Winter.
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#428 - GEORGINA WILSON, Founder & Principal of Georgina Wilson Associates
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design Georgina Wilson, Founder and Principal of Georgina Wilson Associates. The three discussed Georgina’s childhood and education; her early career and the start of the architecture firm; why she started her own office; the ‘Ask an Architect’ social media; reoccurring issues in floor plan design; educating the public about good design; Architects connecting and communicating with the general public; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT GEORGINA
Georgina Wilson is the founder and principal of Georgina Wilson Associates, bringing with her over 20 years’ of experience designing award-winning homes and commercial spaces. As the creative director and principal architect Georgina’s designs offer both beauty and practicality, with each project facilitated by her talented team, under her expert instruction.
Georgina takes great pride in translating the all-important client/designer conversation into spaces and structures that are illustrative of the way each of her clients want to uniquely live, work, and play.
Having won a number of prestigious architecture design awards as well as acting as a judge for architecture and design awards programs, Georgina’s reputation is highly regarded by peers and happy clients alike.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Georgina's early childhood & education.
(13:39) Georgina's architecture education experience.
(25:38) Why Georgina started her office.
(30:12) When the office gained traction.
(36:09) ‘Ask an Architect’ Social Media.
“With so many houses being built without the benefit of good design advice, I feel like it’s a waste of money and resources. I guess that's where it [Ask an Architect] started. I also witnessed most of my architecture colleagues scrambling to serve the top 0.1% of the population. It’s all about, “Oh, I'm working on a $30 million build.” And that's regarded as successful. So, I see the whole architecture industry scrambling to service that 1%, but what I'm interested in is servicing the rest of the population. There are a lot of people who are looking to build but they can’t hire architects.” (41:15)
(45:06) How ‘Ask an Architect’ Works.
(50:34) Architects who don't know how to design floor plans.
(52:37) Reoccurring Issues in Floor Plans.
“A configuration of an ensuite and a walk-in wardrobe, but neither of the spaces work as they're meant to. For example, the bathroom is too small to be functional. The walk-in wardrobe gives you less storage than a cupboard and the bedroom is compromised as a result. Yet someone is walking around and stamping these plans with this same pattern. The walk-in wardrobe that’s meant to be a demonstration of luxury, I don't understand that.” (53:00)
(57:03) Workload of ‘Ask an Architect’.
(01:05:21) Educating the public about good design.
(01:13:02) Architects communicating to the public about good design.
“I've noticed there seems to be quite a lot of negativities towards architects generally around my [social media] account, and I was just asking people, why is that? It's interesting to get thousands of responses to that question. A lot of architects are awkward, maybe it's because they're shy, but there were a lot of comments about how architects don't communicate well. I know it's a very challenging thing to be able to communicate effectively in that architect-client relationship, even for people who love to talk. That was just a massive theme that came through from the ‘normies’.” (01:16:24)
“A lot of architects think it's important to impress their peers because that's how they win the awards, and that's how they perceive that they're going to move up that value ladder. But it creates a whole culture of architects talking with architect language and just not being very relatable to ordinary people who ultimately are the ones that want their homes built. I mean, there are different types of architects, so maybe they work in commercial spaces and that might be completely different. But in residential design, I think it's very important to be able to communicate with normal people.” (01:18:32)
(01:21:29) Georgina's favorite building.
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#427 - KID’S GLUE, LUNCHABLES, GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY, AND THE PETERSON AUTOMOTIVE MUSEUM
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina have a casual chat about kid's glue, Lunchables, and visiting the Griffith Observatory and the Peterson Automotive Museum. Enjoy!
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#426 - NOAH WALKER, President & Owner of Walker Workshop
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design are joined by Noah Walker, President & Owner of Walker Workshop. The three discussed Noah’s childhood and education; his early career; the Oak Pass project; Walker Workshop timeline; maintaining design integrity in design-build; benefits of design-build projects as an architecture-focused firm; mixing architects with construction specialists; Walker Workshop’s design process; clients' response to design-build model; challenges in growing a firm; and more. Enjoy!
ABOUT NOAH
Noah Walker, AIA, is an American Architect and the founder of Walker Workshop, a Los Angeles-based company renowned for creating modern structures that are warmly minimal and deeply rooted in the context of their location. One of Walker’s first projects, Oak Pass House, gained international acclaim, including winning “Home of the Year” in 2016 and inclusion in the ArchDaily 100, a list of the 100 most important works of Architecture in the United States. He was a finalist for HGTV’s Fresh Faces of Design in 2017 and, most recently, named one of “the Esteemed 10 International Design Visionaries” by est Magazine. His work is featured in Dwell, AD, est., The Local Project, and The Los Angeles Times. Walker received a Master's in Architecture from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Arts in the Growth and Structure of Cities from Haverford College in Philadelphia, PA. He has over twenty years of global experience in high-end residential projects, with a specific focus on design-build methods of project delivery. Noah is both a Registered Architect and a licensed general contractor in the state of California.
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Noah's education and early career.
(13:50) Oak Pass project.
(22:19) Timeline of Walker Workshop.
“I think one of the great joys of doing what we do in architecture is the level of inventiveness we can bring to every project. We try to create a unique, magical quality that is hopefully different on every project. If I start doing projects that are cookie-cutter copies of the previous one, I would be a little disappointed in myself. Part of the joy of architecture is finding something that's really special and uniquely tailored to all of those constraints we deal with. One thing that makes the profession so interesting and rewarding is the level of limitation and constraint that you have to navigate to create something that is hopefully a work of art. It's that sort of navigation that can be fun. It can be exhausting, but it’s a joy when you get it right.” (28:01)
(29:17) Maintaining design integrity in Design-Build.
(32:59) Benefits of design-build projects as an architecture-focused firm.
“I want to design like we're going to have to build the thing. It creates an ethic about making and construction. Even with our design-only projects, we think, “Oh, maybe we will build this. Let's figure it out in a way that we could execute [it in construction].” With architects that aren't as connected to [construction], there is a gap between what they envision and what has to happen to create the project. A lot of translations take place and sometimes it's an impossible road. It's great for the office to be grounded in the fact that we're still making things and constructing. It’s important for the office's philosophy or identity and I don't want to give it up. I think the projects we've built can stand on their own and are beautiful, magical homes. There's a sense of reward when you show up and not only did you design the place, but you also created it.” (33:38)
(43:09) Future plans for Walker Workshop.
“The level of creative dilution that happens as you become a bigger firm can be pronounced to the point where it doesn't feel like it's the same product anymore. For me, that probably taps out at around 30 people…When the architecture firm’s brand is based on a person, there's a lot of strain on me oftentimes because I have to be at every client meeting. For example, if I'm not there or it looks like I've passed the project off to another person in the office, sometimes I get a phone call saying, “Oh, we hired you...” The dilution of the principle’s time and the scaling of that is [tricky to navigate]. It becomes a trap when you start to brand yourself based on a personality or a name versus a more generic way of working.” (43:45)
(45:22) Design Process of Walker Workshop.
“I often say that the design process is like a spiral and the goal is in the middle, but it's never a direct path to that solution. You can see it there, but you're not going straight towards it. You're moving around it and hopefully, you’ll find it eventually. But it's a process of macro-level decisions in the beginning and constant refinement as the project develops.” (48:13)
(52:51) Clients' response to design-build model.
(55:21) The Architecture team’s influence on the design-build portion of the office.
(58:55) Challenges in growth and evolution of Walker Workshop.
“For younger architects, the benefit of being in the office has been notable. Being around your peers and listening to them talk; picking up on a phone conversation; or talking to somebody next to you about details; there's so much more learning and progress happening when people are together in a hive mind versus at home. It's easy for somebody to become lost at home, and you may not hear from them for days. It's like, “Well, are you still working? What's going on?” Even just walking to the conference room, I might see something on somebody's monitor, and it gives me a chance to stop and say hi, or help them make appropriate corrections promptly. Whereas when they’re working at home, I might not be able to drop in as easily. It makes the process more efficient.” (01:04:50)
(01:12:05) Noah's favorite building.
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#425 - WHAT MAKES A BUILDING BEAUTIFUL?
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss beauty in architecture. The two cover formulas for beauty in architecture; symmetry vs beauty; teaching beauty; style vs beauty; music and architecture; lighting; materials and textures; project context; movement; what makes a building beautiful; favorite beautiful buildings; and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Beauty in Architecture.
“When you learn how to design architecture, you get to a point where you don't actively think, “I will design this building by employing the principles of hierarchy and unity. Those are my two principles for this building.” Things like hierarchy and unity are more like subconscious tools [rather than rules]. It’s a skill set that naturally occurs when you're designing… when you produce a drawing you can critique from these lenses almost subconsciously and you don't think about the principles. You just feel it and if something doesn't feel right about the design, and you could trace that feeling back to one of these principles.” (02:43)
(05:23) Formulas for beauty in architecture.
“Previously, there were prescribed rules you should follow. You could design the building by following a route. If you follow and adhere to these steps or rules, the design is therefore beautiful, like following an equation. However, in contemporary architecture, there is distinction between rules versus principles and toolsets. Ideas like proportion, scale, hierarchy, balance, order, unity, and symmetry, are tools. They are not rules to follow. No one's telling me that the column has to be x-height; it has to be this wide with a line here and here; if I have this color then I have to have that color; this material has to be paired with that material. There's none of that.” (09:41)
(13:09) Symmetry vs Beauty.
“Symmetry, the golden section, and the rule of thirds…. These are probably the three most common principles that are often talked about in architecture school, but very briefly. I feel like they're mostly talked about by people, who don't know how to design, as a way to shortcut the design process. Design is a tricky process in which there are a lot of unknowns and iterations. I think it's natural for people who don't know how to do that to want to find something they can latch on to to give them security. So they think, “If I employ the principle of symmetry, then maybe it will get me a third of the way to a beautiful design.” Some clients also think, “What about their rule of thirds? What about the golden section? The Fibonacci curved? Can we do those? Will that make it beautiful?” Honestly, I think it's just an attempt for people to try to deconstruct and make sense of something they might not understand.” (14:09)
(19:05) Can beauty be taught?
“With students and clients, sometimes their notions of beauty are too strongly tied to their personal preferences which are based on things they've seen and liked which becomes categorized in their brain as beautiful vs ugly. They then use those references as a way to judge other things. I'm not saying it's wrong, but it's a very limited way to create and understand architecture. People who have more exposure to the arts have a heightened sense of what makes a design feel beautiful and works even if it's not their cup of tea. That's a more productive and interesting conversation. The idea of liking something versus it being beautiful are completely separate things.” (22:17)
(27:17) Style vs Beauty.
(29:36) Music and Architecture.
(40:34) Lighting and beauty in architecture.
(49:03) Materials and textures for beauty.
(51:35) Project context and beauty.
“Something else that makes architecture beautiful is the context. How many of those architecture projects being published are beautiful because it’s the context that’s beautiful versus the building itself that’s beautiful? I'm not saying that the projects are not beautiful, a lot of them are, but many are just okay. They're just made beautiful because there is an amazing natural open landscape in the background. It's a little bit of a trick, which also indicates that you could have a context that might not look like much, but still produce a beautiful building because of the way they intersect and interact.” (51:36)
“Cultural context is very important because different cultures have different standards for what is considered aesthetically pleasing. Cultural differences also explain the function of a building and what people feel comfortable with. People live very differently in different places. What we perceive and think of as a house in Western countries is different from Eastern countries. What's fascinating is that, probably because of the internet, there's been a flattening of aesthetics across the world in terms of contemporary and modern architecture. So, you'll see similar palettes and styles being employed from one place to the next, or a similar kind of thinking, which can be productive, but it can also be very dangerous.” (55:36)
(58:01) Movement and beauty.
(01:03:10) What makes a building beautiful?
(01:08:08) Favorite beautiful building.