#411 - COMMUNICATING ARCHITECTURE TO CLIENTS
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss the topic of communication in architecture. The two covered architects’ process for onboarding clients; discussing contracts; communicating design options; following up with clients; reminding clients to take time in decision making; architecture as a service industry; issues stemming from poor communication; and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Introduction.
(02:47) Architects are not good at onboarding clients.
“You can't start a working relationship on a project without making sure that everybody is on the same page. If there is a misunderstanding then further down during the project, something will come up that was not clarified at the beginning. The issue usually relates to, “Were you going to provide me this service or was this in your contract?” Then you have to go back six months and explain what was in the contract. [Architects should] go through [the contract] page by page and make sure the client understands the role of the architect and what they will provide for the specific project if there are other professionals involved.” (03:25)
(16:44) Discussing contracts with clients.
“I do not want clients to sign a contract if they haven't read it. This [mentality] of, “It doesn't matter how or why they signed it,” is a problem because it means [the clients] are not informed. When an issue arises, they're probably going to assume something that is the opposite of what's in the contract. Versus had they been informed, they would recognize, “I think we talked about this before, it's in the contract.” (18:18)
(23:06) Communicating design options to clients.
“I don't think that there's ever a meeting where there isn’t the time to explain the thinking behind the solutions you propose. The reason why it's important is that it communicates the value of yourself and the profession through education. [The clients] should become educated about their project over time so when you get to a third of the way into the project, you have a foundation of shared knowledge. When you present the next stage to them, you both have a shorthand and [the client] gets it.” (28:11)
(35:27) Following up with clients.
“There is a tendency for architects to not follow up with clients and not to make them accountable for what they have to do. It's important to make clients understand that you are producing the work, but they also have decisions to make. They have to be timely and give feedback that is more than just, “I like it, or I don't like it,” because it's not very productive for the process. If you just wait to hear back from the client, you might never hear back. They don't know what they're supposed to get back to you with. They don't know when or how you need that answer. The decision-making process often causes issues and delays in projects. The client needs to be kept accountable, and [architects] have to be proactive about getting what they need from the client.” (35:48)
(47:36) Remind clients to take time making design decisions.
“It's also important to remind your client to take their time to think about design decisions. Sometimes you have clients who rush through the decision process thinking that it will help the project move faster. Every time that happens, it's never been great because they didn’t spend the time to think about the options. So, they’re constantly reconsidering the decision they’ve made, which is a problem for us because [it’s like] building a pyramid. Each stone gets approved, and we build on the next layer, the next layer, and the next layer. If you reconsider and change the first layer, the structure will crumble. So, making a decision too quickly does not help the process. The clients have to be confident; they have to take the time to think about it and consider the other options.” (47:42)
(53:32) Architects have a lot to lose in a project.
(55:11) Architecture is a service industry.
(57:39) Most issues on projects stem from communications.
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#407 - THE BEST PART ABOUT BEING AN ARCHITECT
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design share their favorite aspects of being an architect. They discussed ongoing learning opportunities; building something from nothing; architecture camaraderie; construction; appreciation for man-made and natural objects; technical drawings; when architecture projects are finished; and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:10) Favorites 1: Always Learning.
“One of the things that [ex-architects] find themselves needing out of their next career, is something that will allow them to learn new things consistently. Not many professions offer the kind of excitement from problem-solving like architecture. This is also one of the painful aspects of being an architect. Not everyone's built to enjoy problem-solving. Sometimes it is frustrating. It's almost like a perverse love-hate relationship.” (02:36)
(14:54) Favorites 2: Build something from nothing.
“Architects get to create miniature universes. Each project is its own universe. It has its unique language and details. There's a concept, a consistency in the design, aesthetics, or the language. The idea of architecture being a little world, which implies a level of detail and connectivity between all the parts and a sense of scale, is fascinating. [One of the best things is] when you're fortunate to have a project and client that allows you to approach it as if you're creating this new world, that’s hyper-exciting.” (22:51)
(25:35) Favorites 3: Architecture camaraderie.
(30:28) Favorites 4: Construction.
“There is something scary about construction sites. When you demolish a house, there is this feeling of, “Oh shit, there's no going back.” But at the same time, there is a very optimistic feeling of excitement because it's the birth of something new. It's also a game of patience because you have to be extremely patient to see it through. It’s like a Christmas gift that takes you a year to unwrap. It’s this elongated stressful process that is also very satisfying.” (30:59)
(44:14) Favorites 5: Appreciation for man-made and natural objects.
(47:45) Favorites 6: Technical Drawings.
“There's a limit to what an architect can do if they are not surrounded by good people. If I am trying to resolve a detail with the fabricator, and the fabricator is not good or trustworthy, I’m fighting with one arm tied behind my back. The fun part about architecture is when you find good peers and they're just as stoked as you are to be working on a project. It is so exciting because they're enthusiastic too.” (58:10)
(59:14) When architecture projects are finished.
“Architects need to step away from their project and finish it at some point. There’s a risk of architects getting too attached to their architecture, especially if it's their house. It’s like living in your brain with a constantly evolving, never-ending project. I think there are dangers and toxicity to that. I [would like] to have someone else design my house because I think, as an architect, it would be a very interesting experience to be a client.” (01:00:34)
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#399 - ARCHITECTURE OFFICES: ARE CONCEPTS NECESSARY?
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss architecture concepts in the office. The two cover the importance of conceptual thinking, the lack of concepts in architecture offices, projects in architecture school vs in practice, the challenges of merging conceptual thinking and technical aspects in practice, and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Introduction.
(01:31) Importance of Concepts and Parti.
“Students [tend] to put too much pressure on finding the “best” concept. But really, the training in school isn't about who's going to come up with the “best” concept. Instead, [it] is about learning your conceptual thinking process. Because over 4 or 5 years in school, not every project [will] have a great concept or a great parti. [School] is more about practicing and developing skills.” (04:03)
(10:19) Why do most architecture offices lack a conceptual phase?
“Once you get into the real world, the actual practice of architecture, the conceptual phase gets inundated with a lot of other things. Because you're operating in the real realm, you cannot completely ignore everything until the next phase because those “real world things” are… just within you and you can't remove that knowledge from your head.” (10:38)
(26:28) External factors that reduce conceptual thinking in practice.
(32:05) Conceptual thinking helps articulate the design process.
“It’s unfortunately common for most offices to not think about concepts and even the ones that do, it's common for them to not explain it to the client because they think, “Well, the clients are not interested. As long as we get [the design] approved by the client, that's all that matters.”…Some architects will even develop a fake concept as a way to pitch it to the client because they know the client likes analogies, for example. I think you should give people a chance and explain your actual thinking…[If] we don't explain the concept, I think it's hard for us to make [clients] understand our value and how we work, and therefore how much time we need to create.” (34:18)
(38:43) Architects vs Contractors.
(43:45) Projects in school vs practice.
(52:19) Producing beautiful buildings.
(58:27) Architecture schools are either too conceptual or too pragmatic.
“[When students are pushed to use BIM software for their projects, they] are learning a very technical program but for only the conceptual phase. [It] makes no sense at all. Most BIM programs are designed for the CD [Construction Documentation] phase, which is multiple phases after the concept design.” (59:53)
(01:05:21) Students struggle to merge conceptual and technical in practice.
“The greater danger is the lack of interest graduates have [designing real buildings]. I’m happy to train somebody who has bits and pieces [of skill], but if they're not interested [in designing real buildings] because they've never been exposed to [the architecture practice], that's a huge risk [from an employer’s perspective]. Unless you've attempted to make a building at least a couple of times, you don't know if it's for you. That's one of the reasons why people don't end up doing architecture. Because they've realized, “Okay, well, practicing architecture isn't like school, and I don't want to do it.” So when I'm interviewing a student, I don't know if they will be good at designing a building. More fundamentally, are they even interested in that? I don’t know and they don’t know because they've never tried and they were never given an opportunity to.” (01:10:33)
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#391 - HOW TO GET INTO THE FLOW STATE OF DESIGNING ARCHITECTURE
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss getting into the ‘flow state’ while designing. The two cover strategies for focusing, learning architecture, music, the working environment, architecture school, and more. Enjoy!
TIMESTAMPS
(00:00) Introduction.
(02:30) Working with different media and suspending disbelief.
“Part of getting into the flow state is finding a way of working, or a specific media like painting or drawing that you have more dexterity in, and that allows the thinking to be more fluid.” (03:40)
“If you can find that space where you are feeling free to explore, question, and have fun without judging anything you are producing, that’s the ideal creative zone to get into, because you’re open to whatever is going to come to you. But that’s very difficult to get to in architecture when you are expected to deliver certain things which are always running the back of your mind and it’s hard to let go of that.” (04:35)
“Architecture and the act of designing architecture are responsive. You’re responding to site, culture, people, program, sun, wind, the technologies of our time, and the materials we have. One of the things that happens when students get stuck, it’s when they don’t have enough information [to respond to] or they have the wrong information.” (07:42)
(17:25) Music.
(23:42) Environment.
“Your environment does play a role in how much you can focus in the early years [as an architecture student] and I think that’s why everyone in school was so particular with things like lighting.”
(33:50) Allocating enough time and all-nighters.
“The reason why all-nighters are to be expected and are acceptable is because as a a student, you may not have a solid 3 hours in the middle of the week to work unless it is [late at night]. [When I was a student] I needed 5 hours to work [and get into the flow state]. The beauty of working late at night is that it’s quiet. There’s nothing else happening and the world is shut down. It does give you, especially if you’re learning design, that break… You can breathe and think, and not worry about the next class that starts 45 minutes from now.” (35:50)
(50:53) Having too much work when you’re a student.
(58:00) The frustrations of finding your flow state.
“One of the things that’s difficult to prepare for, but you have to be ready to go through, is just being very frustrated and lost. You don’t know what to do to figure the design out and no one will tell you. So you’re constantly trying all these methods of working based on what others are doing, what you see in the movies, what your teacher does, and nothing will work. The solution is resiliency. Just endure. Put in the time. There’s no other way around it other than putting in the time.” (58:00)
(01:09:00) My teacher threw my model in the garbage.
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#387 - PROS AND CONS OF WORKING FOR SMALL OR LARGE ARCHITECTURE OFFICES
SUMMARY
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss the benefits and negatives of working for small and large architecture offices as a young professional. The two share their own experiences and cover why working at different-sized offices can be beneficial. Enjoy!