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Editor's Comments - Lucia Bogatay

The Annual OWADP Retreat - The Editor

Register for the 18th Annual UIFA Congress - from Inga Horton

Equity in Architecture at 2015 AIA National Convention - Rosa Sheng

ATLAIANTA 2015: Reflections on the 2015 AIA National Convention - Pamela Tang

OWADP tour of Blake Garden - Carolyne Orazi

Dear Readers: In my travels I like to do water colors of the places I visit. I lost a dear friend to cancer early this year, but over the past few years, I had made several visits to see her and her family in the Czech Republic.

Last year I made a trip to Prague and my wonderful host and hostess organized interesting trips around the town and in the countryside, to places which were not normally inundated by tourists. Once we visited the deer moat around Prague Castle, and of course Vysehrad, the site of a medieval Slavic encampment and early settlement. In the Czech National Revival, Vysehrad became a symbol of Czech history, and a famous cemetery is located there. The view of the City of Prague from its ramparts above the Vlatava River is lovely, and the park is very calm and quiet. The photo is of the Rotunda of St Martin, the oldest standing structure in Vysehrad, probably from the 10th Century.

The theme of the 18th Congress is Contributing to the Constellation which aims to portray and elucidate the woman's role and influence in architecture and other design related fields. This idea of a constellation advances the IAWA's mission to preserve the works of women pioneers in architecture and design. As these trailblazing stars extinguish, their work may be lost. Permanently. We save their work, uncovering these materials to preserve them for future generations while also supporting the stars of today. #savethestars.

Please join us.

Dear OWA Members,

We are very excited to share recent events from AIA National convention and beyond that are paving the way for Equity in Architecture.

The disparity and inequity for women in architecture has been a long journey and likely very personal for many of you. Our longstanding goal has been to spread awareness and engage discussion between women and men about the systemic challenges for talent retention in Architecture. The publication of the research findings coupled with the active discussion of the Symposium and workshops both locally and at AIA National convention have resulted in positive feedback and steps towards change.

Current AIA President Elizabeth Chu Richter was a true champion by asking the Equity question of Bill Clinton first and being an advocate for getting workshops and seminars as part of the AIA CEU convention curriculum. We had great attendance for all events that we participated in. Both women and men attended the Hackathon and the 2 Work/Life Flex workshops.

The most invigorating affirmation was the passing of Resolution 15-1 Equity in Architecture with 4117 delegates voting YES, and less than 200 as no or abstaining. In the coming months, I will be working closely with AIA National Staff to assemble recommendations and action plan for the Equity in Architecture Commission and goals for the coming year. I look forward to reporting progress as we proceed.

There are invariably many resources and conversations happening. Our 2nd EQxD "U" Workshop event was just held at AIASF (June 11) on the topic of work-life flexibility challenges and solutions, with 4 panelists of diverse backgrounds and levels of experience leading discussion of our survey report findings on work/life flex topics, followed by small group discussion on specific topics and ideas for solving the work/life challenges we face today.

I encourage you all to engage with us in the dialogue at our future EQxD "U" workshops for 2015, #3 on August 13 and #4 on October 15. Many people nationally would love to attend or find access to these workshops. We are fortunate to be close enough to engage our Bay Area community and we hope that you will join us.

Warmest Regards,
Rosa

For more information on EQxD at the AIA Convention, visit our blog, where we tried to capture the highlights from the overall convention as well as a deep dive on the Hackathon from our attendees/teams point of view.

Former President Bill Clinton urged architects to step up to the plate and channel their creative resources in a joint effort to solve the world’s problems. As designers of the built environment, our work will have a large, and lasting, impact. As he noted, there are many low-hanging fruit, but it requires the resources of our profession to provide effective solutions. Our strength lies in our ability to collaborate and work together to problem-solve, to analyze and synthesize across disciplines. Hands down, Clinton observed, a team of motivated individuals working together will always produce better results than any genius working alone.

Moshe Safdie, 2015 AIA Gold Medalist, brought the audience to a roaring standing ovation with his poem, “If we seek Truth we shall find Beauty”. Safdie both reminded us of the cyclical nature of our pursuits and articulated the fine line between the perils of our ambition and the noble purpose that motivates us. Vanity, arrogance, and gratification must be checked so that the built expression of our work can embody a validated sense of place, the ultimate truth. As Safdie illuminated, beauty is the reward, not the purpose.

Peter Eisenman, 2015 AIA/ACSA Topaz Medallion recipient discussed the history and current scarcity of ‘Heroes’ in architecture. With the recent loss of Michael Graves, Eisenman remembered his heroes who have been the impetus in advancing Architecture – Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier, Louis Kahn, James Stirling, Robert Venturi and Aldo Rossi. He defined heroes as those who challenge convention and create cultural value. As the digital age and environmental challenges consume our attention, however, we risk losing the essential building blocks that provide the kind of transformative ideas and leadership necessary to evolve architecture. Looking forward, he stressed the value of Master of Architecture programs; M.Arch preserves the rigorous education of future theorists, practitioners, and educators and provides the necessary incubational period to focus on thoughtful exploration.

Although this year’s honorees are predominantly men, I am not in the least discouraged. Change is on the way. For every Bill Clinton there is a Hillary. For every Moshe Safdie there is a Zaha. For every Peter Eisenman there is a Meejin. At my MIT Architecture Alumni gathering at the Convention, I met bright, talented, resourceful young women ready to step up. All this would not have been possible without the sacrifices of previous generations.

We came to Atlanta to learn, to question, to be inspired, and to be recognized. We left elevated, charged, united, and ready to bring about change and IMPACT. In the words of Louis Kahn, “Even a common, ordinary brick … wants to be something more than it is. It wants to be something better than it is.” With IMPACT, with #ilookup, with collaboration, with honesty, and with heroes, the 2015 AIA National Convention laid the foundation to be something more.

OWADP members toured Blake Garden in Kensington on May 14th. Laurie Twichell, a landscape architect, who works at the gardens guided the tour. Laurie explained the history of the estate once owned by the Blake family. Originally, 40 acres of grazing land, the Blake’s brought in all the plants that now grow there. Mrs. Blake’s sister, Mabel Symmes designed the grounds. Mabel was one of the first graduates of the UC Berkeley Landscape Architecture program. The garden was modeled on the Villa Tusculana at Frascati, Italy. The garden remained a private residence until 1957 when it was deeded over the the university.

Laurie guided us through roughly 2 acres of the property. She introduced us to the varying regions of the garden and provided explanations on the research taking place there. She spoke highly of four different forms of composting the garden was using. She discussed the methods being used to maintain the garden but how the garden will grow and change with the needs to the users over time.

The garden was home to several university presidents until 8 years ago when the garden was opened to the public. Now a teaching and research garden for the Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning, the garden also offers a learning laboratory for UC students and students from local community colleges. It is open to the public Monday through Friday.