Being as this is my first blog, much
like many of my other peers, I will share with you how exactly I got myself
into this thing we call “Architecture.” I have always been a curious
individual, I’ve always wanted to know how things work, what makes them work
and how it all stays together. From a young age, I would always like to take
things apart (generally my toys) and see what’s going on inside them, I just
wanted to look at it, really try and get an understanding of its inner
workings. I always found myself, in big cities especially, looking at all the
skyscrapers and really wondering how they were able to stay up. I had a serious
fascination as to how seemingly tiny structural members (although at the time,
the nomenclature would’ve been more along the lines of “that pipe thing” or
something like that) could hold up such an immense object, a very cool object
at that. As I would look upon these buildings, I would notice that they aren’t
just buildings, they’re works of art, big metal and glass works of art.
As a kid I always found myself
wanting to draw, whether it was my favorite cartoon characters, my dogs or some
random spot in my house; I always found that I was actually quite good at it.
As I grew older, I began taking art classes, which really allowed me the
opportunity to improve my skills all while making clay sculptures, painting,
sketching, etc. From 6th grade through junior year of high school I
was in at least one art class a year.
In the summer after my junior year, I took a trip across the pond to
Italy in France, where I went to locations such as: Florence, Venice, Nice, Cannes
and Paris. All sites which house spectacular pieces of architecture from various
points throughout history. Being able to walk through the streets of these
cities made me realize how timeless architecture can truly be. The trip as a
whole made me realize how much I really enjoy architecture while still leaving
me curious as to how these structures worked to stay intact as well as how the
designers formulated their ideas into a cohesive design.
After the trip, I decided to enroll
in an architecture class that was newly being offered at my school for my
senior year. In the class we were tasked with designing a residence for a
family using some light programming in the process, nothing like an actual
program. However, the class offered me a glimpse into the design process as
well as being able to have a pretty free reign over my design, which in the
early stages of education, I believe is a good idea. I was also required to
shadow an architect for the class, which I did and there was where I really was
able to start to see all the work that goes into getting a project done, from
the initial/final design, compiling document sets, interior design, etc.
After the class, I was certain that
architecture would be something I would want to study in college; however, some
may not know that SIU was not actually my first choice. I was planning on going
to Kentucky, but there was a lapse in communication/paperwork which kept me
from enrolling in the architecture program, so I made the decision to come to
good ol’ Carbondale for my undergraduate degree and I haven’t looked back
since. I have learned more here than I thought I would’ve ever learned coming
into the program. So here I am now, about ready to close out my educational
career as a graduate student (scary, I know) working towards my masters of
architecture and eventually moving on into the cold, rough and tumble place
they call the job market and/or real life (or so thing like that).
Joke of the week:
What time does Sean Connery get to
Wimbledon?
Tennish.
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