How do we define an Architect's job?

"The facade and the circulation. These are architectural tasks, i.e. the architect's job."

This quote, by Dietmar Eberle inthe De Drager film, really struck me. He was commenting on what an architect has control over so that he/she can allow the user defines the space in between. On the surface, yes, this is a large part of our job, especially in today's world. However I would argue that although this is a large component of the profession, thinking about our job in this distilled and basic way is an injustice to our profession. Taken a little bit out of context, this quote is basically saying that we are responsible for throwing up walls and adding some stairs and hallways within them. Any contractor or developer can do this mundane task. While I know the author of the quote was not trying to say this, to an outsider, it makes our profession seem simple and interchangeable. What architects need to leverage is that we have a unique ability to conceptualize space and an experience, to think about how someone might feel in a space. We are advocates for the user. How can we design a facade/entry sequence to make someone comfortable as they enter their apartment complex? Or humbled as they enter a place of worship? How do we design the circulation to be an experience or facilitate interaction among users?

In addition to this, our profession has started to always look ahead - to the next technological advance, to how a space might be adapted by everyday life, and to the social and economical issues that could impact how we live. An architect's creativity and understanding of human scale gives him/her a leg up on any other profession dealing with the built environment. While our profession is/may be turning in to designing a lot of frameworks for everyday life, there is so much thought about systems, circulation, adaptation, and scale, that other professions are not able to conceptualize holistically. How can we leverage these skills so that we don't become irrelevant in today's society where stately/public buildings are not as important (thinking about the growing density and need for fast, affordable housing)? In my opinion, it starts with how we situate ourselves in the mix of other professions and how we talk about our skills and the importance of design. By saying some thing like the facade and circulation are the architects only tasks, we belittle our profession to others (even if it is somewhat relevant). Again, I doubt this is what the author intended. However, sometimes I find it hard to talk about the complexity of our profession to family and friends so I will describe the topic (studio project, film, lecture, etc) in its most basic form. Although my audience may understand me better, am I making it too simple? I guess my rant really comes down to, while our profession is still defining itself in this new era of design, how do we talk about architecture in a way that's understandable but not underestimated? I think part of our job is to create our own scope/definition of the profession and to position ourselves to continue to have a positive impact on the built environment.

  

Is this really our new job definition?