Soy Arquitecta
"I'm an Architect"
The ambiguity of what is an Architect has always been present like De Carlo says. In Mexico is kind of an ambiguous profession yet people do have a good idea of what "we do" or they assume so.
During my senior year of high school I wasn't sure what to study and I sat with my grandma to figure it out. This was one of the most ambiguous conversations I had with her. We were trying to figure out what I should do and she suggested to start saying things that I liked.. anything goes. So I did, and the list went more or less like this: I like colors, hotels, talking to people, construction, organization, economics, politics, interiors, engineering, physics, nature, cultures, people, traveling, design, objects, light, graphic design, etc. By the time I was done she said.. you should be an Architect. Why? How did she know? I think the ambiguity of our profession was the key to it. To her, I would be able to do all of those things under one umbrella. Which personally I don't think it was a bad thing yet it is still ambiguous.
Architecture in Mexico involves design and construction. Simple as that... "simple as that". As an architect people are okay with you designing buildings, cities, objects, graphics and constructing them. You are and architect but sometimes you are more of a contractor, a graphic designer or a residential builder, yet always an architect. It is a very strange situation and acceptance of the field. We are perceived as artistic yet not very well educated in engineering.. but people still trust that we'll "pull it off" or call the engineer... under our supervision. This notion blows my mind because it is not like this everywhere else but the ambiguity is still there.
I think this ambiguity could be taken as a strength rather than a detriment. Yes, we cannot know everything, I totally agree with Ksenia on having consultants but since we are able to insert ourselves in so many layers of society I think that we hold a great power for change. For good change, and this is something unique to our field that we should take advantage and put forward to give everyone a better life. How do we do so? That's the key to its success or failure.
Here are some examples of the work some colleagues in Mexico are doing:
The ambiguity of what is an Architect has always been present like De Carlo says. In Mexico is kind of an ambiguous profession yet people do have a good idea of what "we do" or they assume so.
During my senior year of high school I wasn't sure what to study and I sat with my grandma to figure it out. This was one of the most ambiguous conversations I had with her. We were trying to figure out what I should do and she suggested to start saying things that I liked.. anything goes. So I did, and the list went more or less like this: I like colors, hotels, talking to people, construction, organization, economics, politics, interiors, engineering, physics, nature, cultures, people, traveling, design, objects, light, graphic design, etc. By the time I was done she said.. you should be an Architect. Why? How did she know? I think the ambiguity of our profession was the key to it. To her, I would be able to do all of those things under one umbrella. Which personally I don't think it was a bad thing yet it is still ambiguous.
Architecture in Mexico involves design and construction. Simple as that... "simple as that". As an architect people are okay with you designing buildings, cities, objects, graphics and constructing them. You are and architect but sometimes you are more of a contractor, a graphic designer or a residential builder, yet always an architect. It is a very strange situation and acceptance of the field. We are perceived as artistic yet not very well educated in engineering.. but people still trust that we'll "pull it off" or call the engineer... under our supervision. This notion blows my mind because it is not like this everywhere else but the ambiguity is still there.
I think this ambiguity could be taken as a strength rather than a detriment. Yes, we cannot know everything, I totally agree with Ksenia on having consultants but since we are able to insert ourselves in so many layers of society I think that we hold a great power for change. For good change, and this is something unique to our field that we should take advantage and put forward to give everyone a better life. How do we do so? That's the key to its success or failure.
Here are some examples of the work some colleagues in Mexico are doing:
I can totally relate to being intrigued and invested in so many things that we experience as humans. I always want to know "why" it works the way it does and "how" it works that way. And that's what architecture is all about so it's very exciting to be able to explore those questions and make a difference in the world. In a good way of course, so we have a responsibility to solve problems with care.
ReplyDeleteGreat story, I remember a similar conversation with my mother. She asked me to list things I was good at and enjoyed. Most of the answers revolved around buildings, legos, construction/building, art, math, physics etc... She recommended taking an architecture class in highschool and the rest is history. I love the ambiguity of the definition. I love being so involved in other disciplines and professions. Despite the frustrations and temporary ignorance, it brings a high level of fulfillment.
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