If you've got an extra hour and a half on your hands, watch the following documentary:
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I'm really enjoying our Design Visualization class. It seems a little abstract at the moment, but I like the direction of the conversation. We watched the first part of the documentary above in class - it discusses the accessibility of technology and how we have created a world where just about anyone can produce music and movies that were only made possible in complex (and expensive) studios just decades ago. This comes at a cost; now that anyone can upload a high "quality" video to YouTube or create a decent mix on GarageBand, everyone is doing it. And in doing this, we're creating a lot of "noise" that's making the music and film industry quite interesting.
The documentary claimed that filmmakers such as Scorsese or Spielberg wouldn't be able to navigate the amount of noise in today's culture. That they wouldn't have "made it". The concept of "making it" is very intriguing to me, because it's one of the things that drives a lot of what I do. That being said, I have no earthly idea what "making it" entails - is it a certain pay grade? walking into the corner office in a skyscraper on the first day of a new promotion? garnering national attention for a building, in whatever capacity? I spend a lot of time fantasizing about "making it" but I haven't really figured out my aims in switching career paths. Don't get me wrong - I know I made the right choice in starting architecture school, but I'm just trying to reflect and make sense of it all.
I think about architects like Daniel Burnham (forgive me, I just finished Devil in the White City by Erik Larson). I know it explained his history in the book, but I don't understand how one really gets to the point of being entrusted with the design of a World's Fair. I'd like to think that good people skills puts one person ahead of the next, but is that really what it takes? That and a splash of creativity, I guess. Ultimately, most architecture programs run the same gamut of courses and internships and studios, so our training should rank us about the same, theoretically. So then, do I just need to be a smooth talker to work my way to the top? One has to wonder how these people found their way into the history books, and how many people just as talented didn't "make it" because of mere circumstances? Movies and the media fantasizes our American dream enough to make us all believe that we can "make it" (depending on your definition, of course).
Another part of me likes to think that just smarts and skills allow you to "make it". In this sense, even if I didn't "make it", I could rationalize continuing the chase for success (I'm somewhat naively optimistic at times - though I don't regret it).
Til next time, I'll keep chasing it.
Press Pause Play
I'm really enjoying our Design Visualization class. It seems a little abstract at the moment, but I like the direction of the conversation. We watched the first part of the documentary above in class - it discusses the accessibility of technology and how we have created a world where just about anyone can produce music and movies that were only made possible in complex (and expensive) studios just decades ago. This comes at a cost; now that anyone can upload a high "quality" video to YouTube or create a decent mix on GarageBand, everyone is doing it. And in doing this, we're creating a lot of "noise" that's making the music and film industry quite interesting.
The documentary claimed that filmmakers such as Scorsese or Spielberg wouldn't be able to navigate the amount of noise in today's culture. That they wouldn't have "made it". The concept of "making it" is very intriguing to me, because it's one of the things that drives a lot of what I do. That being said, I have no earthly idea what "making it" entails - is it a certain pay grade? walking into the corner office in a skyscraper on the first day of a new promotion? garnering national attention for a building, in whatever capacity? I spend a lot of time fantasizing about "making it" but I haven't really figured out my aims in switching career paths. Don't get me wrong - I know I made the right choice in starting architecture school, but I'm just trying to reflect and make sense of it all.
I think about architects like Daniel Burnham (forgive me, I just finished Devil in the White City by Erik Larson). I know it explained his history in the book, but I don't understand how one really gets to the point of being entrusted with the design of a World's Fair. I'd like to think that good people skills puts one person ahead of the next, but is that really what it takes? That and a splash of creativity, I guess. Ultimately, most architecture programs run the same gamut of courses and internships and studios, so our training should rank us about the same, theoretically. So then, do I just need to be a smooth talker to work my way to the top? One has to wonder how these people found their way into the history books, and how many people just as talented didn't "make it" because of mere circumstances? Movies and the media fantasizes our American dream enough to make us all believe that we can "make it" (depending on your definition, of course).
Another part of me likes to think that just smarts and skills allow you to "make it". In this sense, even if I didn't "make it", I could rationalize continuing the chase for success (I'm somewhat naively optimistic at times - though I don't regret it).
Til next time, I'll keep chasing it.
