Essays + Lecture Photos

Essays &

Lectures

Writing and photographs by Charles Thornton

ESSAYS Reinhold Martin enjoys pointing out that architects do not build so much as draw, but is it not true that sometimes architects do not draw so much as persuade others what and how to draw? In our age of image obsession and split second attention spans, the ability to write has become a precious expression of rigorous thought. Writing not only has the power to lead others to the establishment of ideas and values, writing also forms ideas for one’s self through the slow process of committing words to paper. Never before has it been more important that we demand thought.

LECTURES What will I remember from graduate school? The design studios, sure, but what else? Avery hosts over 100 lectures, conversations, symposiums, and presentations from the forerunners of architectural and all of its adjacent disciplines.

The exposure to myriad presentations of critical thought and polemical discussions has fundamentally shifted my understanding of spatial practice. Included in this book are photographs I took while attending a majority of these events, and asking many questions.

REAL VIRTUAL REALITY METROPOLIS P R O F E S S O R E N R I Q U E WA L K E R

Calatrava is known for his engineering prowess,

bend and meet in filleted connections, but it is

so perhaps that is why one expects a certain ra-

unclear whether this is in response to the struc-

tional or pragmatic approach in his work. The

ture behind the surface or purely aesthetic. The

experience at the World Trade Center Transit

form looks like a hybrid stair-speed boat that is

Hub starts with an appealing synthesis of struc-

propelling into the hall.

tural logic and aesthetics, but then goes much

At the mezzanine, we find the fillet at the

further. Calatrava’s architecture creates a syn-

smallest scale by our feet. The glass guardrail

thetic sanctuary of imagination that suspends

base is covered by marble trim with a small fil-

reality by making touch visual, inverting gravity,

leted return where it meets the floor. If lateral

and disrupting our kinesthetic awareness.

forces were loaded on the guardrail, a filleted

On the exterior of the Transit Hub, two ar-

joint here would indeed be strategically located

rays of tapered steel members form wings that

to distribute stresses evenly to the floor. How-

dramatically cantilever over the site. The steel

ever, the marble base is a decorative cover,

spikes meet the vertical structure at smooth fil-

not a structural connection, which negates the

leted transitions, following clear structural log-

performative need of the fillet. Because of the

ic to make the strongest joint possible with the

uniform white marble, it almost appears that the

least amount of material. The wings, however,

base and floor are a continuous surface. It ap-

are purely sculptural forms. They serve to car-

pears as if they could have been milled out of

ry some downlights, but their main purpose is

one solid slab by the curved drill bit of a CNC

to draw our eyes upwards. The wings could be

machine, but this reasoning is disrupted by the

supported with efficient diagonal braces or eco-

presence of a seam running immediately next to

nomical gusset plate connections, but these el-

the fillet. The smooth marble base is even more

ements would interrupt the sensuous continuity

mystifying when one considers how satisfying

between the convex geometry of the vertical

it would be to touch, and then realizes that the

ribs and concave space under the wings that

handrail provided is an off-the-shelf stainless

one can imagine was sculpted by the hand of

steel tube.

some invisible giant.

One of the ways that the Transit Hub immerses

Once inside the Transit Hub, are enveloped

us is by engaging our sense of touch, but what

in a pristine white environment, there are many

is in a way bewildering is that it is only through

more rounded corners and filleted connections.

vision. The Transit hub has curves as sumptu-

The elliptically shaped main hall or Occulus,

ous as any building in New York City, but they

has a tall nave of slender white structural mem-

are consistently out of reach. The space under

bers and ribbons of glass, and at either end are

the wings of the Transit Hub is high above our

large pulpit-like staircases that cantilever over

heads, and then the finely detailed marble base

the space. The gypsum soffits of the stairs also

trim is down by our feet. The mezzanine railing

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Columbia GSAPP

itself coyly leans away from the edge leaving us

structure and the immersive visual phenomena

slightly unbalanced, and we are again denied

inside. The white structural members through-

something to grasp at the stairs on either end

out the project are tapered, modulated, and fil-

of the Occulus where one would expect a code

leted to such a degree that it seems implausible

required handrail along the path of travel.

that each one would be custom fabricated out

The marble flooring presents the greatest

of costly and labor intensive steel-work, but the

tension between the haptic and visual. Marble

finely tapered points of the exterior wings also

is actually such a soft stone that it is prone to

seem to be unlikely candidates for cast in place

damage from any acidic liquids, and requires

concrete. Any signs of mechanical fasteners are

sealant and periodic refinishing for the lifetime

conspicuously absent, and the entire structure

of the building. While one of many durable and

is coated in a uniform white stippled skin of in-

appealing white ceramic products on the mar-

tumescent paint that makes it look more like the

ket could have been selected, instead we have

default V-ray rendering material than concrete

tens of thousands of square feet of opulent

or steel.

stone under our feet. At the low walls by the en-

Inside the real virtual-reality of the Occulus

trance of the Occulus, there is an opportunity to

the dematerialized structure feels weightless

engage this beautiful material, if one chooses to

because of its slender proportions, plastic ap-

reach over the plastic grips of the escalators or

pearance, and also because it is nearly impos-

metal hand rails provided for standard use. The

sible to read how the loads trace through the

building seems to be playing cat and mouse,

structure. The enormous ribs lean in towards

drawing us in with beautifully crafted materials

each other at the height of the nave-like Occu-

and forms, but keeping us at bay by denying any

lus where one would expect to see a stabilizing

haptic experience.

spine, but instead of solid structure, there is a

The Transit Hub is really an inhabitable ren-

thin ribbon of glass. Tracing the ribs down to the

dering that is only starting to fray at the corners

mezzanine, there is another surprise when one sees that the bottoms of the ribs don’t rest on the ground, but hang just below the level of the mezzanine before bending back upwards and disappearing into the thick network of structure.

At the lower hall leading to the PATH platforms, the white ribs continue to confound. The ground of the memorial above is supported by myriad low-slung white ribs that somehow span across the entire space. Some joints appear now where an undulating horizontal member passes under a perpendicular member that it is supporting or perhaps being supported by. The continuous

of the Occulus space. The rendering like expe-

beam is interrupted by a gap with an interlock-

rience is due in part to the noted absence of

ing circular disc, in the same plane made of the

touch, but also because of the dematerialized

same material. It becomes even less clear what

Essays & Lectures

Real Virtual Reality

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is structure, and what is not, as it appears that

lined with commercial vendors that will benefit

these forms are perhaps just cladding the con-

more from pass through traffic as opposed to

tinuous structure within, but their substantial

lingering occupation.

size and precisely tapered forms imply that they are the structural members themselves.

When people are present at the ground level of the Occulus, the dramatic effect of the

Throughout these spaces, the white marble

floor becomes more apparent. The white mar-

flooring is ostensibly a muted backdrop to the

ble acts as a giant reflector that bounces and

intricately interwoven structural ribs, but even in its supporting role, the floor contributes the un-real experience of the space. Within the elliptically shaped Occulus, the seamless cartesian grid of the flooring seems to exist on a virtual plane, one that could stretch out infinitely beyond the room. The relentlessly uniform pattern does not call attention to itself, but also makes

diffuses the light, eliminating shadows. People are lit from all directions, creating a washed out, magazine-ad like appearance. The surface of the floor is honed for a slightly matte finish, accentuating the soft and luminous quality of the space. Instead of seeing crisp reflections that would appear in a polished stone, the honed finish creates the impression of ethereal upit difficult to read any scale. Even the small per-

side-down ghosts, floating through the space.

functory caps to the bollard receiving holes

Indeed, everyone looks a bit lost, either gazing

are given special marble inlay so as to blend

up at the dizzying canopy above or looking at

in. The floor lacks any visual anchors on which

the room, or themselves, through their phones

we could rest our gaze. In a more literal sense,

as they take pictures.

resting or inhabiting the expansive floor space

The Transit Hub is a visual spectacle above

of the Occulus is denied because there is no

ground which defies its gritty context with op-

seating provided, and no future plans to allow

ulence and imagination, and creates an immer-

seating to spill into this area. The space will be

sive virtual experience on the interior. The main

Essays & Lectures

Real Virtual Reality

Occulus hall floods our senses diffuse light

connections blend with continuity, and fixtures

from all directions, an inverted expression of

are integrated in between. The space was orig-

gravity, and an intricately modulated blending

inally intended to have skylights to the memori-

of structure and architectural space. However,

al above, which would have provided beautiful

as Michael Kimmelman aptly notes in his review

light, but if Calatrava’s goal was to transcend our

in the New York Times, the space is given away

reality, perhaps this space is more successful

all at once, and what we see immediately after

without them. It doesn’t lift us up to a new light

the impact of the central Occulus is where the

soaked and harmonious vision, but entombs

difficult realities of executing architecture come

us in this fantastical creature whose biological

in. At the corner spaces of the Occulus we

material appears to be stretching its tendrils

can see through the visual display to the more

into the ground.

ubiquitous haphazard nature of New York’s underground infrastructure. The purity of the elliptical interior is disrupted by oversized voids that lead to unconsidered access corridors and a mishmash of metal ceiling panels that are organized on a random diagonal because the radial geometry of the Occulus can’t be resolved with the surrounding context. The openings to service corridors aren’t formed by a modulation in the rhythm of the ribs, but instead by the pattern simply coming to a halt. Instead of the interlaced structural ribs of the either hall, at the corners we see enormous singular cross braces. The corners of the braces are filleted, but this weak effort to make the braces blend in only works to further undermine the suspension of reality experienced immediately before.

Incidentally, this left-over space of awkward geometry and unconsidered structural details is also where you find the accessible lift to the PATH platforms.

Past the irregular corners in the lower hall, the modulated ribs, with their peculiar unrevealing connections and interdependent organization most fully express Greg Lynn’s concept of intricacy, where continuous complexity denies any compositional reading. Here we are truly immersed in the inner organs of Calatrava’s creation, where ceiling meshes with structure,

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PUSHING OUT SPACE H I S TO RY O F V I S UA L I Z AT I O N PROFESSOR REINHOLD MARTIN

While working at an architecture office in LA,

to generate depth, ambiguity, and space.

a young and graphically talented intern once

In contemporary times “axonometry” can

made a un-knowingly perceptive comment

refer to one of multiple different sub-catego-

about the use of axonometry in school presen-

ries, and is often mistakenly used to refer to

tations, “There is something about using the

oblique projection. Oblique projection is also

an axon that makes it look like you know what

dimensionally accurate and produces drawings

you’re doing.” An exploration into the form of

of consistent scale because it employs paral-

axonometry shows that it is exactly these two

lel projection, but it bears less resemblance to

ideas of “looking” and “knowing” that are so es-

our perception of three-dimensional objects

sential and fundamental to why it has appeared

than true axonometry because the direction of

and reappeared so frequently throughout histo-

projection is not aligned to the direction of the

ry. With axonometry, more information can be

view. Oblique drawings use orthographic plans

precisely projected onto a single drawing plane

or elevations, with the perpendicular axes of the

in order to be seen in a single glance.

original drawing preserved at ninety degrees,

“Looking,” or in other words perceiving, and

and a third axes of space described by parallel

“knowing” are clearly expansive terms however

lines pulled from the corners or tangents of the

that cannot be reduced into simple definitions.

original drawing to visualize edges in space. This

The term “axonometry” actually refers to an array of different sub-categories, and multiple different methods exist for each of these. Typically axonometric brings to mind simplified diagrams of rectilinear forms viewed from above on a diagonal, but there is really a broad range between what could be called realistic representation and abstract. Certainly, axonometry itself has been employed for reductive ends.

From 16th century soldier-engineers in France, to contemporary artists and architects such as Peter Eisenman and Frank Stella, axonometry has been useful for its ability to flatten and re-

form of drawing has the longest history and can

duce. Other examples, from Choissy to Lissitzky

be found in ancient Chinese and Egyptian art

and others, show how axonometry can be used

before there was a mathematical description for

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Columbia GSAPP

it.1 Axonometric projection uses the same prin-

most notably, a reliance on parallel lines. They

cipal as Renaissance perspective in that rays are

diverge in myriad other ways. While axonom-

projected from points to a plane, but the rays

etry follows a logic of projection onto a single

are parallel as opposed to converging to a point

plane, oblique drawings can only be described

at the location of the observer. Included under

as projecting lines onto multiple planes which

axonometry, are the subcategories trimetric, dimetric, and isometric which are defined by whether there is a consistent angle between the plane of projection and either one, two, or all three axes of the object being projected.

are then conflated. The projection method developed to describe oblique drawings is actually a mathematical explanation for a drawing method that already had a long history of use.2 Axonometry and oblique representation share

The method to draw in true axonometric (with-

the characteristics of using a Cartesian system

out aid of a computer) is slower, has more steps,

of space, the ability to precisely scalable, and

and greater mental processing to execute, while

1

2 Ibid.

Peter J. Booker, “Axonometric Projection,� in A History of Engineering Drawing (London: Northgate Publishing, 1982), 212.

Essays & Lectures

Pushing Out Space

the oblique is extremely simple and direct. The

les de Medina Barba at that time, “an imperfec-

work put into creating an isometric drawing,

tion of a line could mean the loss of an army.”5

however, is rewarded by a more visually accu-

For offense, this flat, metric representation

rate representation of three-dimensional space,

was instrumental to the accurate depiction, and

with much less proportional distortion than

in turn conquering, of territories both near and

oblique drawing. Isometric drawings of objects,

far away from them. The removal of perspectiv-

with the inclusion of shadows to give clarity to

al depth allowed more information, more ter-

solid versus void can even come close to per-

ritory, to be gathered in a single drawing that

spectival drawings in their ability to mimic our

could be used for far reaching plans of attack.6

perception of space. What causes inattentive

The perspective form of the renaissance was

viewers to confuse axonometric and oblique

deemed unfit “because the foreshortening in-

drawings is perhaps the fact that they both have

volved would remove too much from the plans,

parallel lines.

whereas the entirety of these works lies in such

The axonometric method, while used pre-

plans and outlines as shall be called perspectiva

viously, wasn’t documented as a reproducible

soldatesca”7. There is a one to one relationship

technique until the 16th century in response to

here between sight and action. Because the flat

demands from geometric visualization, building

axonometric drawings of space can be visually

instruction documentation, and military strate-

dominated, so too can the conquering of this

gy.3 As is often the case, the pressure from the

space be more easily visualized.8

military demand was greatest and shows the

The realization of the incredible instrumental

most rapid development in the form of what

use of the flat, metric depiction of space for con-

came to be known as “cavalier perspective”.

quer is so profound that it stretches not across

The military needed a flat and dimensionally ac-

acres, but centuries. Jump forward to the New

curate representation of space for two reasons;

York in the late 1950’s, and we find this tech-

offense and defense.

nique implemented by the now famous “Five

In response to the need for defensive mea-

Architects”, and painter Frank Stella. I would like

sures, the work of architects shifted from the

to show that how the flatness of axonometry is

picturesque design of ideal buildings, to col-

not inherent, but instead only accentuated in ef-

laborating with the newly invented class of spe-

forts to dominate or control. I would also like to

cialists, soldier engineers to “building efficient

draw the connection between its role in work of

bulwarks in the defense of kingdoms and princi-

the artist Frank Stella and the “Five Architects”

palities.” As stated by nobleman Diego Gonza-

in the post-war period.

3 Masimo Scolari, “Elements for a History of Axonometry,” Architectural Design 5-6, no. 55 (1985): 74.

5 Ibid.

4

6

Massimo Scolari, “Soldierly Perspective,” in Oblique Drawing: A History of Anti-Perspective (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012), 298.

7

Scolari. “Elements for a History” 74

4 Ibid.

8 Ibid.

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Essays & Lectures

The Black paintings of Frank Stella are heralded in art history as a disruptive leap forward

Pushing Out Space

Frank Stella’s paintings resisted any empathetic or psychological reading.10

towards minimalism because of how they coun-

The influence of parallel projection can be

teracted the work of abstract expressionism.

found early on in Stella’s career (high school),

The paintings present patterns of thick black

but the Black paintings represent the true pin-

lines on unprimed canvas, leaving thin white

nacle of his endeavor. In his painting, Still Life,

lines as the negative spaces. The brushstrokes

done as a student at Andover, we see the top

run parallel to the edges of the canvases and

of the table drawn essentially in cavalier’s per-

emphasize the physical presence of the paint-

spective. Or perhaps elevational oblique would

ing surface opposed to the traditional treatment

be more accurate, as we also see the objects

of a painting as a pictorial window into another

on the table represented with absolute flat

world. Following the abstract expressionism of

frontality. The daubs of paint, distributed with

the 1930’s and 40’s, Stella’s reductionist and

equanimity across the surface of the canvas

mechanistic painting style was in sharp contrast

also create a uniformity between background

to the identity and emotion driven work of his

and foreground, further flattening the space.

predecessors. Even though the expressionists

The flatness of the painting can’t be attribut-

worked with the materiality of the painting as

ed to the parallel lines or frontal orientation

opposed to symbolic or representational form,

alone. Other examples show how a uniform-

one could argue that the gestures were symbols

ly depicted paraline construction can portray

of emotions, and indexes of individuals, while

convincing spatiality.

9

10

9

William S. Rubin, Frank Stella (New York: Museum of Modern Art, 1970), 12-15. See Rubin’s text for a more in depth discussion of the influence of Jasper John’s parallel line paintings, and argument that Stella emphasized the flat surface of painting, but not necessarily the artwork’s “objectness”, which complicates his work’s relationship with minimalism.

The resistance to a psychological reading is evident in the statements that accompanied the paintings as much as in the work. As the ghostwriter for Stella’s artist statement in the exhibit Sixteen Americans, the artist Carl Andre wrote, “Frank Stella is not interested in expression or sensitivity. He is interested in the necessities of painting. Symbols are counters passed among people. Frank Stella’s painting is not symbolic.” Sidney Guberman, Frank Stella: An Illustrated Biography (New York: Rizzoli International, 1995), 44.

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Charles Vincent Thornton

Stella was unknowingly picking up a lineage of axonometry, and continuing a trajectory of the medium that had developed from descriptive to reductive. In the late nineteenth century, Auguste Choisy created an unparalleled body of work showing the potential of isometric projection across a broad spectrum of realist to abstract. In his early drawings, Choisy displayed a virtuoso ability to draw complex forms and mechanisms, and used shading, materiality, and detail to give his drawings depth and legibility.

As he became more prolific, Choisy retained the practice of precisely depicting complex geometry, but shed the materiality and tectonic nature of his drawings so they became abstract diagrams that divorced the volumetric appearances from physical mass.11 When Van Doesburg and Lissitzky picked up axonometry, they left the materiality and mass behind, but continued to develop the volumetric spatiality of the form.

In particular, they took advantage of the possible misreading of positive and negative space to further liberate vision with multiple, simultaneous viewpoints.12 Stella’s early still life returns to the older project to flatten visual information that was initiated by French military engineers in the 16th century, but married this with a new agenda to reduce the conceptual practice of art so

11

Tierry Mandoul, “From Rationality to Utopia: August Choisy and Axonometric Projection,” in Perspective Projections, and Design: Technologies of Architectural Representation, ed. Mario Carpo and Rederique Lemerle (New York: Routledge, 2007), 158.

12 Yve-Alain Bois, “Metamorphosis of Axonometry,” Daidalos, no. 1 (1981): 58.

Columbia GSAPP

Essays & Lectures

Pushing Out Space

that it could similarly be brought under control.

In describing the moment of epiphany in his still life, Stella says, “I started dreaming of a big black-and-white Franz Kline. I wanted to make abstract paintings, paintings with just paint...I did not see anything that reminded me of Seurat, just as the slides of Seurat paintings that I had seen had not reminded me of anything other than a reductive static scheme of things I might have seen. That was it, my fingers tapped the equation on the countertop: static scheme plus daubs of pigment equal a still-life painting.

Problem solved.” 13

Really, the outline of the whole development towards the Black paintings can be found in this quote; the desire for abstraction, an irreverent blindness towards the nuances of a Seurat painting, attention towards “reduction,” and most clearly, an arrogantly calculating assessment of an entire cultural endeavor.

1 + 1 = 2. Got it.

Once Stella was set on this course, he pursued it without deviation to arrive at the Black paintings. Stella’s friend and biographer, Stanley Guberman, writes, “he was in the process of thinking of paintings which would put an effective end to Abstract Expressionism”14. At the same time, Richard Meier was hanging around the scene and using Stella’s studio in the eve-

13 Guberman, 14.

14 Ibid., 42.

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nings; important to note considering the paral-

figure/ground relationship of the black and white

lels to the project “Five Architects” which I will

lines, but this too is under the control of Stella’s

elaborate on later. In lectures at Pratt in 1960,

reductionism. In what has now become an oft

Stella describes how he executed the appear-

told episode of the Black paintings’ narrative,

ance of flatness. The most obvious factor was

the art critic Emily Genauer called Stella’s paint-

his decision to reduce the palette to one color

ings “unspeakably boring” and described them

and one value. He also cited the even applica-

as “huge black canvases lined with white pin-

tion of paint in consistent thickness over the

stripes” in The Herald Tribune. Stella responded

entire canvas. Variations in brush strokes would

to the paper with a clever letter ghostwritten by

have created the illusion of depth visually, and

his Andover classmate and fellow artist, Hollis

also implied the depth of the artist as a roman-

Frampton, that clarified, “my paintings are what

ticized figure. Stella also commented on the

I do, not what I omit. In fact, I paint black stripes

importance of symmetry, and, most notably,

about 2½ inches wide. Therefore, the unpainted

the use of uniform parallel black lines, “the solu-

white spaces between them are not the stripes,

tion I arrived at forces illusionistic space out of

but what you call the ‘background.’”17 Stella is

the painting at constant intervals by using a

able to eliminate ambiguity again, in the black

regulated pattern.”16

ink of the newspaper press.

15

The stark parallel lines of Stella’s Black paint-

In comparison to Stella, other artists both

ings still reference the spatiality of axonometric

before and after the Black paintings exploit-

predecessors, but they negate the representation of space by avoiding ambiguous interpretation. The ninety-degree corners of the lines appear to describe an object, but the absence of any intersections or diagonals leave the last step of transforming a two-dimensional surface into a representation of space incomplete. Surely, Stella could have painted the surface solid black, but this might allow the viewer’s imagination to read an infinite void. The “solution” Stella arrives at seems to more of a constant process than a completed one. The space is certainly

ed the ambiguity that can be achieved with

being forced out, but it is also still there, regis-

lines in space. Albers’ Structural Composition,

tered by the repetitive measure of white lines.

which closely preceded the Black paintings in

One possibly ambiguous inversion is the

15 Rubin, 12–13.

16 Guberman, 46.

1956, fully exploited the ambiguous perception

17 Harry Cooper and Megan R. Luke, “Frank Stella 1958,” ed. Harvard University Art Museums (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006), 27.

Essays & Lectures

Pushing Out Space

of space, presenting corners and edges that

aggeration, be said to constitute a New York

float in a space on the canvas, describing mul-

school.”19 The five architects were Peter Eisen-

tiple volumes simultaneously.18 House by John

man, Michael Graves, Charles Gwathmey, John

Thornton (1967) was completed after the Black

Hejduk, and Richard Meier.

paintings and emphasizes the surface of the

Eisenman led the charge of creating a the-

painting but also creates spatial ambiguity

oretical framework, and was also instigator of

within the lines. The negative space around a box-like object is rendered with thick paint on top of a washy underpainting, giving flat materi-

ality to what would typically be empty void, and putting space into the very thickness of lines.

Only Stella’s Black paintings resisted creating ambiguous space with such consistency. The

the ensuing media spectacle discussion be-

way that the artwork, and written statements

tween the Five Architects, also referred to as

around the paintings, justified themselves with

the “Whites” and an oppositional group of archi-

irreverent interior logic would become a model

tects deemed the “Grays.” His work also shares

for others.

the most in common with how Stella’s paintings

In 1969 MOMA’s department of Architecture

of measured objectivity pushes out ambiguous

and Design hosted a meeting of CASE (Confer-

space. The premise of the project was based

ence of Architects for the Study of the Environ-

on the fact that Eisenman felt there was a lack

ment), and exhibited the work of five architects

of serious discourse on architecture, and that

who, as Arthur Drexler puts it in his introducto-

the profession was being weighed down with

ry text for the work, “may, with only a little ex-

a one-dimensional discussion of social issues

18 Yve, 57.

19 “Five Architects: Eisenman, Graves, Gwathmey, Hejduk, Meier,” ed. Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.: Wittenborn, 1972), 1.

19

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that hindered the potential for explorations into

burg. Since oblique drawing, described in

form and concept.

terms of projection, requires the extra step of

To discuss Eisenman at all, it is difficult not

rotating the projection plane to be perpendicu-

to get entangled in the rigorous and complex

lar to view, it is even less representative of our

arguments that he constructs. I will attempt

perception of space.

here to discuss Eisenman’s diagrams them-

The key factor in the legibility of the drawings

selves and the premises of his arguments with-

is the fact that they are so dense. Myriad sol-

out diving into the content of his texts. While the

ids and voids are packed into the self-imposed

drawings of the “Whites” have been critiqued

boundaries of the boxes. Eisenman’s drawings

many times for lacking legibility, Eisenman’s

don’t use measured projection in the service

drawings in particular do not owe this shortcom-

of imagined space as Monge had intended.20

ing to the (+/-) inversion often found in axono-

Instead, the drawings are dominated by a

metric drawings. One cause that is associated

repetitive exaggeration of the influence of their

with paraline drawings, however, is the diffi-

own form. Eisenman asserts that the overlap-

culty of seeing where the ground plane is. The

ping patterns and confusion of structure and

diagrams amplify this difficulty by excluding

infill enable the inhabitant to unconsciously

architectural details and site information that

perceive what he calls “deep structure”. But from

might give the viewer bearings, an important

a purely visual assessment, one mostly sees

point to Eisenman’s agenda to divorce architec-

a cacophony of edges. In a re-assessment of

ture from context. The volumetric appearance

the show published 25 years later, Steven Hurtt

is also hard to read because the drawings are

acknowledges this with humble honesty, while

done in oblique, not true axonometric projection.

giving Eisenman’s motivation the benefit of the

Eisenman can’t take the full blame for this

doubt; “Offered in the spirit of both scientific

however, since it seems the 120 degree iso-

process and scientific proof, their complexi-

metric rhombus was traded in for the ease of

ty is nevertheless baffling.”21 As is the case for

the 90 degree rectangle of oblique projection

Eisenman’s textual arguments, which at times

somewhere between Choissy and van Does-

harbor unresolvable contradictions22 or mis-

20 Bernhard Schneider, “Perspective Refers to the Viewer, Axonometry Refers to the Object,” Daidalos, no. 1 (1981): 81.

21

G.W. Gorman, P. Eisenman, and Museum of Modern Art, Five Architects Twenty Years Later: Eisenman, Graves, Gwathmey, Hejduk, Meier (University of Maryland, 1972), 6.

22 Schneider, 86-88. Schneider shows that there is an inherent contradiction in Eisenman’s argument for axonometric architecture. The argument is based on an analogy to forced perspective, but axonometry is not a visual phenomenon (except for the draftsman) and therefore cannot create a perceived distortion for the occupant.

Essays & Lectures

Pushing Out Space

guided assumptions23 under a convincing

The Black paintings were revolutionary in

array of rational steps, Eisenman’s diagrams

the way they confronted the art scene with a

show there is a fine line between complexity

stark reality of the painting surface they were

and confusion. The difficulty of seeing through

gazing into. By 1982, the one of the paintings,

this mass of edges is only exacerbated by the

Reichstag, tied the record auction price for

fact that there are no line weights to distin-

an artwork by a living American artist.24 As

guishing between air-backed edges of surfac-

a young artist, Stella had felt that one of the

es, and contiguous seams between planes.

problems facing painting was the arbitrary as-

The diagram uses oblique drafting to represent

pect of the enterprise.25 Stella’s sense of irony

space, but becomes a flat, uniform field of lines.

and dark humor are well-documented26 so it

I’m reminded of Stella’s words, “The solution...

is easy to read the Black paintings as an effort

forces illusionistic space out of the painting at

to bring this arbitrariness to the surface. How-

constant intervals by using a regulated pattern.”

ever, he also had a keen sense for the potential profitability of painting. In March of 1957, Stella wrote to Stanley Guberman, “Michael F., W.D.B. and I are going into the real big and bad art world if we can get Reed to put up about $200,000 so we can buy widely and wisely. If we could get past Reed to Reed’s father & the money our progeny will have a great deal of art & Money with which to make fools of themselves.”27 Stella wanted his early paintings to be “direct - right to your eye...something you didn’t have to look around - you got the whole thing right away.”28 I assume he intended for the impression to be received while the painting was

23

Rosmarie Haag Bletter, “Review,” review of Reviewed Work(s): Five Architect. Eisenman, Graves, Gwathmey, Hejduk, Meier by : Five on Five Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 38, no. 2 (1979): 205-06. Bletter points out that Eisenman’s invocation of gestalt phenomena is negated by the fact that gestalt perception relies on more complex shapes that the rectangular columns he draws to induce it.

24

Jeffrey Hogrefe, “Stella Ties Record,” The Washington Post (1982), https://www.washingtonpost. com/archive/lifestyle/1982/05/06/stella-tiesrecord/6a86a538-961d-40b0-a9ba-86da3dc5a64f/?utm_term=.c5b932c86f55.

25

Guberman, 26.

26

Ibid., 24.

27

Ibid., 43.

28

Ibid., 37.

21

22

Charles Vincent Thornton

physically present, but an unanticipated ben-

Columbia GSAPP

shadowed by the monolithic Black paintings.30

efit was that the paintings retained this effect

Eisenman was as shrewd as Stella in mat-

as small reproductions for newspaper reviews,

ters of media coverage, and even more aware

exhibition pamphlets, and auction catalogues.

of the importance of printed collateral. The col-

This is not an insignificant detail, considering

lection of the five architects was based more

the fact that major buyers such as museums

on social ties than commonalities in their work

often prefer to buy from auctions anonymously

or purpose31 so the printed media had to carry

without being present for fear that their inter-

the burden of justifying the exhibit. This can be

est will drive up prices. Nuances of color, re-

sensed in the beginning of Kenneth Frampton’s

flectivity, or texture can easily disappear in art

essay as he stretches for significant common-

reproductions, even with the incredible imaging

alities between the architects, coming up with

technology we have at our disposal today. Com-

observations like the fact that they don’t include

pared to the color fields of Rothko or intricate

scale figures for reference, except that a few

detail of Pollock, Stella’s Black paintings showed

of them indicate scale by showing doors.32 As

remote critics, audiences, and buyers exact-

a side note, there actually is a small scale fig-

ly what they looked like, or at least give them

ure in the photo of Charles Gwathmey’s model,

that impression.

which makes sense considering his designs are

29

The prodigious success of Stella’s early paintings secured him a spot in the artworld for the

the only ones that are traditionally appropriate to the scale of a house.

rest of his career, but the notoriety of the Black

But detail is not important here. What was

paintings continues to eclipse his later work.

important was to generate serious discussion

Even with their heroic displays of intentional

around architecture, and to Eisenman, for this to

garishness, Stella’s later works remain over-

happen there had to be a clearly defined group.

29 A review of John Thornton’s work reads, “these pieces are meant to defy the time-allowance of modernity...No, they won’t look good on Instagram, they just do not translate. Even here in JPEG form, Thornton’s obscured meaning in texture is lost, you will have to trust me on this.” Lori Zimmer, “John Havens Thornton at Amstel Gallery at the Yard,” Art Nerd New York (2015), http://art-nerd.com/newyork/john-havensthornton-at-amstel-gallery-at-the-yard/.

30 Preceding a retrospective show of Stella at the Whitney Museum of American Art, chief curator of the Modern Art Museum, and primary curator of the show, Michael Auping said, “If I were to summarize how most people feel…they say, ‘I love the early work, the black paintings, copper and aluminum, the late work I don’t really know, I haven’t seen very much of it, I’m not as keen on that.’” Eileen Kinsella, “Is Frank Stella’s Market Finall Poised for a Surge?,” Artnet (2015), https://news.artnet.com/exhibitions/ frank-stella-whitney-retrospective-350948.

31 Bletter, 205.

32 “Five Architects: Eisenman, Graves, Gwathmey, Hejduk, Meier,” 9.

Essays & Lectures

Pushing Out Space

The reductive simplicity of the drawings provide

draws railings, stove tops, cabinet pulls, and

visually consistent outlines of the various proj-

door swings, while Eisenman doesn’t draw any

ects. Shadows are omitted to keep the drawings

of these. The oblique drawings are the best tool

flat, divorcing the designs from site and con-

for drawing these architects together. They flat-

text, while also separating these five architects

ten space, merge geometry and text under the

from the practicality of the many. More than any

authority of the Museum of Modern Art, and im-

other medium in the book, oblique projection

pose a measured uniformity over the work.33

flattens the work. Even the most reductive of

So Stella and Eisenman both employ the later-

Choissy’s axonometric drawings communicate

al “knight’s move” strategy to assert the impor-

space more strongly.

tance of their work without embroiling them-

The mediums in the book begin to undermine

selves in the unraveling narrative of “progress”

the project. Photographs, for example, contrast

in post-war America. Stella set out to disman-

the cedar planks of Gwathmey to the white

tle the romantic notion of the artist, and Eisen-

painted tube steel of Meier. The photographs

man’s work employed a re-interpretation of a

are black and white at least, creating an appear-

past movement, divorced from its time and so-

ance of uniformity just like the original exhibi-

cial purpose. Both Stella and Eisenman saw the

tion of the International Style in 1932. Even the

path of resistance as eliminating picturesque

plans of the “Whites” show more variety in both

illusions that might imply naive attitudes. Stella

graphics and content than the oblique draw-

veers towards absolute materiality, and Eisen-

ings: Graves draws curves meandering through

man towards the non-sensory purity of con-

space, while Gwathmey inscribes space in cir-

cept. Both Stella and Eisenman make shrewd

cles. Hejduk draws walls with solid poche, while

use of the media, but both also fell victim to its

Meier draws the thickness of finish. Graves

effectiveness. Their agendas to flatten space

33 Bruno Latour, “Drawings Things Together,” in Representation in Scientific Practice, ed. Michael Lynch and Steve Woolgar (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1990), 44-47. See Bruno Latour’s section on “Capitalizing inscriptions to mobilize allies” for a thorough unpacking of the many ways in which printed material is so effective in leveraging control.

23

and eliminate illusion enabled the efficient dis-

itself. While the much-publicized debate between

semination of their work, but also allowed their

the “Whites” and “Grays” appeared to be a bat-

work to be quickly assimilated into superficial

tle of opposing polemics in architecture, the

capital and media enterprises. Stella, for one,

importance to Eisenman was that it existed,

has vocalized melancholy and regret for the sit-

and it was in print. In fact, Eisenman suggest-

uation at which we have arrived, “It’s a little bit

ed to Robert Stern that he put together the

m own fault. I didn’t mean it to be that way. I

critical

used to say that, after all, a painting is only an

generate buzz.

review,

knowing

that

it

would

36

object — not meaning that it’s just any object. It

Eisenman succeeded in stimulating discus-

is a special kind of object — one that’s intended

sion of architecture apart from its social con-

to be a painting.”34

cerns, but what has resulted, in a deal-with-

In Eisenman’s oblique diagrams, he devel-

the-devil like scenario, is a popularity among

oped an interior logic that took the format of

architecture fans more than architects, that

axonometry to be the form itself, simplifying

is as superficial as the premise of the original

the medium to a limited modularity as opposed

show.37 Like, the empty lines of canvas between

to exercising its intended capacities to capture

the masses of black paint in Stella’s paintings,

a variety of curves and shapes.35 One could

the oblique drawings of the “Whites” impose

argue that Eisenman’s approach to exhibition and

a constant measure, pushing out any illusions

scholarly debate in the same way, as an end unto

of space.

34 Rubin, 15.

36

35 Robin Evans, “Rumors at the Extremities,” in The Projective Cast: Architecture and Its Three Geometries (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1995), 339.

Robert A. M. Stern, “Robert A. M. Stern,” Perspecta 37, no. Famous (2005): 52.

37 Paul Goldberger, “Architecture View; a Little Book That Led Five Men to Fame,” The New York Times (1996), http://www.nytimes.com/1996/02/11/books/ architecture-view-a-little-book-that-led-five-mento-fame.html. Goldberger writes a cautionary tale, illustrating how the Five Architects had intended to assert idea over image, but by the 80’s had become one-dimensional icons and caricatures with mass appeal.

Beatriz Columina

Rory Hyde

Anupama Kundoo

Rama Allen

Azra AkĹĄamiji

Marc Jarzombek

Hood Design

Wu Hung

28

Charles Vincent Thornton

Emilio Ambasz Associates

Langarita Navarro

Virgil Abloh

Kevin Slavin

Columbia GSAPP

29

Xaviera Simmons

Zeynep Celik Alexander

Sharon Sutton

Peter Cook

30

Charles Vincent Thornton

Carlos Arroyo

José Aragüez

Atelier Bow Wow, Moyomo Kajima

Columbia GSAPP

31

Jeffrey Hebert

Daniel Fernรกndez Pascual & Alon Schwabe

BUILT-IN COSTS: THE PRICE PAID FOR ARCHITECTURE SCHOOL P R O F E S S O R JA M E S G R A H A M

Have you worked tirelessly for three months on

towards over-criticism of myself and others, and

a project, striving to manifest a proposal in ink,

often overly rational. I am not a top award win-

paper, and pixels, and then present it in front of

ning student who effortlessly breathes life into

a panel of a dozen esteemed educators, histori-

jaw dropping images, but I am also not tripping

ans, and professionals who take turns slighting

behind the rest of my class. I would locate myself

your efforts, and relishing opportunities to make

somewhere in the soft round middle of my

half jovial - half snide comments to each other

peers, and on occasion I have been known to

as they lean back in tiny seats with a coffee in

make keen observations.

hand? If so, you might have gone to architecture school.

Architecture School is a difficult topic because it can be extremely inspiring and in-

This may sound a bit critical of what is over-

credibly frustrating. What is it that frustrates

all a beneficial experience and a rare luxury to

me so much about architecture school, and

explore ideas under the guidance of leaders in

what are the challenges inherent to school ver-

architecture. I do not mean to dismiss this priv-

sus challenges that architecture education is

ilege or negate the efforts of individuals who

suffering from? I will attempt to separate, a bit,

work tirelessly to push architectural education

my own unique issues with architecture from the

forwards. I do, however, feel the need to assess

topic at hand; the qualities, practices, and orga-

our current educational system in architecture

nizational structures that are particularly toxic.

precisely because I care so deeply for learn-

I will also seek successes and models for a

ing, intellectual practice, and the development

way forward.

of future architects. My hope is that by shining

I believe the central issue must be cost.

attention of some of the problems, we will be

Have you taken out student loans before? You

better able to work together on the long project

may be fortunate enough to have relatives who

of pulling architecture school out of its conser-

were able to assist you with tuition, which is no

vative and elitist roots buried deep in the beaux

grounds for guilt, but perhaps some envy from

arts tradition.

others. What is more likely is that you took out

I will be the first to tell you that I am not

loans, seeked out grants, or maybe worked three

the paradigm of unemotional evaluation, un-

jobs to pay your way through school. Personal-

biased thinking, or ecumenical appreciation.

ly, I belong to the quarter of graduate students

Quite the opposite. I am a bit moody, inclined

who have taken out at least $100,000 of loans

34

Charles Vincent Thornton

Columbia GSAPP

in order to attend school, but not part of the

dents. Is this always the case? Certainly not, but

1

10% that has taken out over $150,000 of loans.

I assure you that in many cases, this motive is

The fact that we are in a crisis of education

undeniable. Take for example, a particular crit-

costs is hopefully no surprise to you, but have

ic who is known for incessantly taking pictures

you seen or heard of any tangible consequenc-

of her students after she sets them to work and

es of this situation? Do you have a clear picture

posting the activity to her Instagram followed

of the flow of money around higher education

by all the typical hashtags to promote her firm

institutions and where exactly it goes? Did you

and associate herself with the elite institution.

know for example that in 2016-2017 there was

On occasion she is compelled to stop students

an overall trend of reduced full-time facul-

mid-presentation in order to Instagram a partic-

ty positions at architecture schools, while the

ularly colorful or busy looking image. The critic

school budgets generally remained stable or

is aware, as is the school administration, that the

increased?2 It seems that the student loan prob-

overwhelming majority of prospective students

lem is a very mobile issue, at once everywhere

use social media to see current student work

yet impossible to pin down to any one place or

and inform their decision of where to attend

even one criteria for evaluation. The exorbitant

school.3 The flow of images also supports the

cost of architecture school is perhaps a good

critic’s social media presence which can lead to

sign that something is not quite right with this

potential exhibits or commissions.

system, and in addition, the high costs are con-

Students may begin to wonder if the whole

comitant with many problems that are deterio-

architecture education apparatus has become a

rating the quality of the educational experience.

pyramid scheme in which young career building

The high cost that students pay sets up a

architects can gain access to a farm of young

scenario where the student becomes more de-

student talent and energy easily diverted into

fined as a consumer of product, and naturally,

promoting their personal brand of architecture

feels entitled to a very high quality one given

and spreading their gospel. I know of one pro-

the price, however, the studio critic traditional-

fessor at least who enlisted an eager team of

ly sets assignments, deadlines, and criteria for

former students to work intensely on the pro-

evaluation of a student. The adjunct faculty or

duction of drawings for a Venice Biennale, but

visiting critic perhaps feels underpaid, and en-

only compensated the one or two students who

titled to be getting some benefit out of the stu-

were officially employed by the office. It seems

1

Allie Bidwell, “How Much Loan Debt is From Grad Students? More Than You Think” U.S. News & World Report (March 2014): https://www.usnews.com/ news/articles/2014/03/25/how-much-outstandingloan-debt-is-from-grad-students-more-than-youthink.

2

“ACSA 2016-17 Budget and Enrollment Survey Results,” The Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (November 2016): http://www.acsa-arch. org/resources/data-resources/budget-and-enrollment-survey/budget-and-enrollment

3

Lauren A. Matchison, “The Effect of Social Media on Architecture Graduate School Selection”, The University of Southern California (September 2014): 5, http://www.acsa-arch.org/docs/default-source/ data-documents/lauren-matchison-the-effect-of-social-media-on-architecture-graduate-school-selection.pdf?sfvrsn=0

Essays & Lectures

Built-In Costs

the good graces bestowed by a famous archi-

of students can also be muted due to the au-

tect count as adequate compensation for some.

thority that the critic holds. When students are

The idea to get paying students to work in ser-

depending on recommendations from profes-

vice of an institution is not new of course. Frank

sors to enter into the highly competitive field of

Lloyd Wright provides the best example, enroll-

architecture, especially when they are counting

ing students in what he called the Taliesin Fel-

on a job in order to make high loan repayments,

lowship to do work for him during a time of few

they may be a bit less likely to speak up.

commissions. Besides losing an $800,000 law-

Despite the myths of the ivory tower, archi-

suit with the town of Wyoming, Wisconsin for

tecture schools do not exist in another world ex-

falsely claiming tax-exemption for being an ed-

empt from economic pressures. While they can

ucational institution, his fellowship was a great

conduct experiments and research not possible

success. Perhaps some professors see it as a

in the private sector, schools are still subject to a

model for success.

marketplace mentality which in turn affects the

4

The tradition of apprenticeship has a long

work created or not created within the school.

history in all major professions, but what is dif-

Students in architecture school are not tested

ferent now is that students are paying enough

on their proficiency in drawing bathroom de-

to have professors doing drawings for them.

tails, and I think this is a good thing. However,

Given the costs of school, it seems fair to ques-

there is mounting pressure to display aptitude

tion whether the PR endeavors of professors

in trending software interfaces, and even if one

are eroding the quality of the educational ex-

hopes to continue in the academic realm, there

perience. When a professor demands colorful

are other expectations of production. Archi-

models that “move and light-up”, wouldn’t you

tecture exhibitions have proliferated in recent

want to understand why? As students, we have

years, and the is often produced by students

the luxury to be incredibly outspoken without

under the direction of professors. It seems the

the risk of being fired. This essay itself is a tes-

purpose of architecture school has shifted away

tament to the freedom of speech which can be

from the historic missions of teaching a craft or

exercised at educational institutions. There are

perhaps shaping a subject to being primarily fo-

also evaluations for classes which I am sure are

cused on production of work, and displays of

read, and most likely have an impact on a pro-

visual virtuosity. The displays of skill, in turn, are

fessor’s longevity at a school. But the opinions

used for marketing the superiority of the school

4

“Wright’s Taliesin Is Still Active”. The Evening Standard. Uniontown, PA. Associated Press. June 29, 1965. p. 3

35

36

Charles Vincent Thornton

Columbia GSAPP

in the fierce competition to attract the talents

I agree with Cook’s assessment of the myth-

of next year’s prospective students. There is a

ical need for an Ivy League degree. However, I

very circular logic driving the need to produce

don’t believe it is so simple as to be a matter of

spectacular images while in school. I certainly

academia versus the corporate world.

believe in learning-by-doing, but what I take is-

If I were to be indulge in overt cynicism, I might

sue with is making students take out six-figure

say that architecture schools participate in a

loans for doing-by-doing with minimal concrete

complex game of intellectual racketeering. The

instruction and little allowance for student di-

promise of an ivy league education is to cure

rected explorations.

you of the affliction of self-doubt and imbue you

I also believed to some extent in the myth

with the confidence displayed by the radiant

that this would be a time of unrestricted cre-

alumni. First however, you must make it through

ation away from the pressures of the profession-

the experience of having specially trained crit-

al world, and a chance for self-development of

ics instruct you in the art of over-analyzing ev-

my own agenda in architecture, which unfortu-

ery decision. They can even teach you to ana-

nately, has not been entirely the case. Perhaps

lyze the way you analyze your decisions. The

I could do a better job of practicing the philos-

rare contesting of the critic’s authority is met

ophy that “it is better to beg forgiveness than

with abrupt and unflinching counter-offense.

ask for permission” when it comes to exploring

Any combination of intimidation factors might

novel ideas in studio, but I also know I am not

be used; the dismissal of a withering sigh and

alone in having a critical view of ivy league ar-

rolling eyes, more direct shaming of the student

chitecture schools. In an article titled, “Killing

with a poor evaluation in front of his or her peers.

Creativity” from 2015, Peter Cook writes,

There is no risk of being fired from school, but

“The cosy condition, long accepted, is that the American Ivy League is the only gateway for the ambitious...and that architectural studies are not being taken seriously enough by the business world, so we had better smarten up and all get good degrees. Much of the present scenery of architectural education has grown up with these uncomfortable myths...then, knowingly, encourages the best of them to take a master’s degree in a famous place where the performance will need to be intense, impeccably referenced and take the party line of the chosen course. Then the individuals are good meat for the cohesion of a corporate office.”­5

5

Peter Cook, “Killing Creativity,” The Architectural Review, October 2015, 11.

if education is supposed to subscribe to rules apart from the capitalist system, shouldn’t the fairness of its power dynamics be evaluated by the social and not capitalist metrics?

Most students have learned how to successfully play the games set up by school. Since the critic can’t overtly tell students what to think because this would shatter the myth that students are going to school to think for themselves - students must play charades with their drawings until they land on what the critic was

Essays & Lectures

Built-In Costs

thinking from the start. The shortcut, as many

that mid semester drawing, and expressed gen-

students have discovered, is to simply Google

uine bewilderment as to why the student re-

a critic’s professional work or past student proj-

fused to follow their advice. Her explanation was

ects in order to properly mime the desired aes-

simple, and heartbreaking, “In the real world,

thetic. One student I know, after a semester of

offices want people who can use Revit.” While

rejected explorations, decided in exasperation

I think many offices would understand that a

to essentially copy a competition entry that his

highly creative, if unconventional drawing, sig-

critic has submitted a year prior. It was sadly,

nifies that a designer has the intelligence and

and unsurprisingly met with delighted approval

confidence to learn whatever tools necessary, I

by the critic.

also completely understand the student’s deci-

Not every student can afford to spend a se-

sion to use the incredibly expensive time spent

mester playing the academic game of profes-

at school, not working, to get a leg-up on the

sor-mimesis however. More frugal students, un-

technical skills needed to secure a job instead

derstanding the value of their time being spent

of rolling the dice on the acumen of corporate

at school, on top of the obvious tuition costs,

HR directors to recognize and compensate cre-

can choose to ignore the critic’s opinion and

ative talent.

bolster one’s portfolio with displays of software

How did we arrive at this situation of being

aptitude. They know that this can be translated

so mired by debt and costs? What are the power

into a cash earning job after school. Does this

structures, desires, and mythologies surround-

sound like a bit of a characterization? In fact, I

ing architecture school that leads a student like

am thinking of a particular final review I saw this

me to take on $100,000 dollars of debt for this

Spring. A student presented a soberly resolved

degree in the first place? Keep in mind, I already

project with traditionally legible plans, sections,

have a professional 5 year degree with which I

and renderings of a building. There was also

can get licensed, and I had the option to attend

one elaborately imaginative drawing that was

a non-ivy school for half the cost. For me, the

included on the pin-up wall from the mid-term

clearest reason for attending an elite architec-

review. It was a beautifully flowing, hand-drawn

ture school was to gain credibility through the

landscape of buildings and outdoor spaces,

school’s reputation, and therefore open up a fu-

merging projection methods and varied scales

ture of previously unlikely opportunities.

as needed to represent a narrative of events

So how is the symbolic value of the degree

happening across the drawing at the same time

constructed exactly? It seems to me that the

as displaying the variety of spaces. The studio

alumni of the elite architecture schools carry

critics lamented the change of direction from

greater authority in professional relationships,

37

38

Charles Vincent Thornton

Columbia GSAPP

and are the benefactors of a hundred mega-

reputation impact the actual educational expe-

watt halo effect particularly when it comes to

rience?

client relations and marketing or PR endeavors.

Many architecture students (or their parents)

Typically, we attribute this, or participate in con-

are savvy enough to recognize that perhaps

structing this, because we believe in the track

symbolic value of an architecture degree from

record of success of the alumni of these insti-

an elite university overshadows the use value of

tutions. But which alumni are invoked even now

the actual educational experience. This, unfor-

as you read this? I would argue that the reputa-

tunately, becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy of

tions of a handful of top practitioners and aca-

which even I am partly culpable. Consider, for

demics of note do the lion’s share of projecting

example, a studio class day of mine in which

the ideology of the school’s success. Tradition-

only seven out of twelve students showed up!

ally, we would assume that the experience re-

If students felt that every class was truly worth

ceived from the transaction with the school is

the equivalent proportion of their tuition, how

what formed these architects into the exempla-

could they possibly throw that value away?

ry practitioners and academicians that they are.

But if students believe that the final degree is

However, there is a new line of thinking about

the true object of value, why bother attending

success and the track record of these institu-

class? For the students who measure worth by

tions exemplified by books such as Malcolm

the status of the degree, class becomes another

Gladwell’s Outliers. It controversially postulates

hoop to jump though. But for the students who

that perhaps the activity of the institution is sim-

measure worth by the quality of the educational

ply a self-fulfilling prophecy. The architects who

experience, there is a significant loss of value

had the aptitude, and more importantly, the be-

when other students don’t show up. Without the

lief that they deserve to be top architects, would

mutual participation in class and critique, the

likely reach success regardless of if they went to

design process stagnates, leaving the husk of

the GSD or the BAC. Of course, they choose the

what would be a learning experience.

GSD as a matter of tradition, and in this way, the

Many students, in fact, are not truly commit-

value of the reputation perpetuates itself. Per-

ted to the educational experience, and in some

haps this seems elitist, but I don’t actually see

cases they are not even interested in the access

much harm in the phenomenon of the talented

to high status personal connections or the po-

wanting to be surrounded by talent and there-

tential of leveraging the degree for authority in

fore seeking out the institutions of the highest

architectural practice. The degree becomes a

reputation. On the other hand, how does the

simple status symbol, and truly an end in itself.

activity of architecture schools trading on their

In these cases the apathy in the classrooms is

Essays & Lectures

Built-In Costs

palpable, at times wafting through whole stu-

more productive to revisit the actions of archi-

dios with the pungent smell of creativity be-

tects to build counter-models to the status quo.

coming rot.

For example, Columbia University witnessed a

Approaching the 50 year anniversary of 1968

radical experiment of student mandated change

presents a great opportunity to reflect on the

to administrative practices following the violent

radical progress of culture during that time, and

student riots of 1968. Students and staff of the

in architecture school I have seen a surge of

architecture school negotiated to change “the

work referencing the playfulness of Archigram’s

school’s hierarchical governance structure as a

Instant City, and the adaptability of scaffolding

democratic one, thereby violating a breathtak-

presented in Cedric Price’s Fun Palace. It makes

ing number of university statutes.”6 The “May

sense that there would be a resurgence of these

17th Resolution”, as it was called, created coun-

desires given the darker uncertainties we face

cils of students, staff, and faculty that participat-

today. However, it seems the the aesthetics of

ed in everything from curriculum to staffing, and

fun, openness, and flexibility of those 1960’s

even the budget.7 Most interestingly, students

drawings and collages that were born out of a

created a new form for their studios, termed the

passionate desire to manifest those qualities in

platform system, in which students could group

architecture have been siphoned off from the

together as desired and choose the topic of a

original work, carefully collected into our dig-

studio with the guidance of a faculty member.

ital vitrines, and then applied as a thin veneer

While the extreme extent of the flexibility was

to conceptually hollow images of architecture

eventually deemed to be more work than was

that are efficiently produced in assembly-line

practical, what is should be remembered is that

like efficiency for the next review. The dream of

this incredibly democratic form of education

the student is that their masterful simulacrum

actually existed at an Ivy League institution,

will produce an aura of lightness and fun con-

and most importantly, the radical and positive

vincing enough to have the image published in

motivation behind it,

the next school publication, passing down the Platforms would emphasize student initiative, be open to all grade levels, and last for as long as a particular project required. Because students would choose which platforms to join and because advisers would help them chart individualized learning plans, the revolutionaries believed that student motivation, student-faculty dialogue, and project diversity and relevance would improve.8

DNA of visual exuberance to the next class of students who will similarly try to reanimate the corpse of 1960s radicalism through Instagram and Pinterest.

While I understand the impulse to re-create these images, and have also proposed some scaffolding here and there, I think it might be

6

Sharon E. Sutton, When Ivory Towers Were Black: a Story about Race in America’s Cities and Universities (New York: Empire State Editions, an imprint of Fordham University Press, 2017), 81.

7

Ibid., 82.

8

Ibid., 87.

39

40

Charles Vincent Thornton

Columbia GSAPP

At first blush, this model strikes me as an

the best way to condition future leaders is to

amazing format that would be much superior to

make them lead their own projects while still

the rigidity of our current format. However, the

in school. Notable figures like Peter Cook are

form only lasted for a few years, partly due to

brave enough to pull back the curtain on what

the enormity of the effort needed to execute it.9

can appear to be a mystical design process, and

The incredible flexibility of the platform system

encourage students to be equally daring.

created a workload for the professors and ad-

I know that the intense environment of

ministration that was unsustainable. The inten-

architecture studios and challenging culture

tion is compelling nonetheless, and I can easi-

of critiques and reviews is designed to prepare

ly imagine instituting this structure for at least

young architects for the endlessly challenging

a few studios, or allowing a limited number of

task of pushing forward design in professional

them available through lottery or some more

practice, and I’m sure a portion of my indigna-

thorough process.

tion is based on my own personal aversion to

Some students today are becoming more

critique. However, given the immense costs of

bold in their call for re-evaluating the current

school today, the challenges put on students

state of affairs. In response to a piece that crit-

seem to take on a particularly acrid flavor.

icized the glorification of young architecture

Many efforts are being made to untangle the

and called, “self-important millennials, too ‘im-

issues of student debt for undergraduate

patient’ and ‘entitled’ to work their way up the

degrees, and much more can be done for

ladder”, architecture students Violet Whitney,

graduate programs such as architecture school.11

Julie Pedtke, and Matthew Lohry wrote,

While restructuring the economics of graduate school tuitions will be a continuous and

There needs to be a recognition that our rigid curriculum and licensure processes represent only one insular slice of a larger world of information, technologies, methodologies, ethics, and analysis that should be included in architectural practice.10

incremental process, in the meantime, we can all take efforts to make school exciting, productive, and generous. As Peter Cook reminds us, “In the end, it’s about people. Not buildings, not curriculum (always the seat of

There are dedicated educators at even the

blame for over-comfortable faculty), not nec-

stodgiest of institutions who continue to push

essarily location (though that does help). To

true

the discomfort of many, it is about who runs

9

experimentation,

and

recognize

that

Ibid.

10 Violet Whitney, Julie Pedtke, and Matthew Lohry, “Young Architects Respond,” Architexx, http://architexx.org/young-architects-respond/#.WO77jtLyvD4

11

Ron Lieber, “Comparing College Costs the Easy Way,” The New York Times (New York), November 21, 2014. B1. A small but forceful company called College Abacus emerged that strove to demystify the costs of undergraduate tuitions, and provide a service to compare multiple schools all in one place.

Essays & Lectures

the place.”12 So being the millennial that I am, I would like to end with a Facebook post from a friend and talented artist who addresses more directly what I have been wanting to say: If you are an educator, or if you ever consider to be one, I hope you listen to your students’ opinions without belittling them, without ever making them feel small or discriminated. No institution is perfect, and the only way to make it better is to listen empathetically, and to help carry out justice without exercising ego or power. It is not your position or title, but your words and actions to students on a daily basis that makes you an educator and earns you respect, so please be mindful. Thanks.13

12

Peter Cook, “Killing Creativity,” The Architectural Review, October 2015, 12.

13

Thuy Anh Nguyen’s Facebook page, accessed May 7, 2017, https://www.facebook.com/anhthuynguyen232

Built-In Costs

41

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