For this weeks episode of Architecture, Coffee, & Ink, it is a conversation episode with three guests, Marilyn, John Michael, and Erika! In this episode we focused on discussing studio culture, how we felt it needed to change and what we loved about it! Also a quick apology, the embedded episodes are now the correct ones, I accidentally embedded the wrong link and failed to notice, but am excited to announce that they are all now updated.
Transcript
Grab your trace paper, & turn your sketchbook to a blank page-It’s time for Architecture, Coffee, & Ink.
~30 second theme song
“Hello, this is Hollywood C. and you’re listening to Architecture, Coffee, & Ink. A podcast dedicated to introducing concepts, detailing out designs, and tackling the architecture you might not realize the meaning behind. I’m your hostess and I am here today to start introducing you to the designs that make you wonder why.”
tag line: So I ask you to brew your coffee, grab your sketch book and pen, and let’s begin.
So welcome to another conversation episode! This week, we will be focusing on studio culture. As a quick summary of what this means for the non-designers, studio is where the work takes place. Image those scenes in movies where the camera pans into the artists domain, and art supplies run rampant with half completed sculptures, sketches and designs littering the tables and floors. If you multiple whatever you see artistically placed by like 1000, you will have what a real studio kind of looks like. Since I live in an apartment, my home ‘studio’ is basically a corner where if I get within 5 feet, I will magically develop paint and charcoal stains-but only on my clothes. If any of my physics friends want to try and explain this phenomenon, let me know. But Studio Culture is basically the relationships you develop with whomever is in your studio. So, whether you are in a job or a student, the culture is kind of its own mini world. It’s how you interact with each other, with the work, and with each other’s work. To clarify this is my interpretation of the definition, not an official one. Ideally, it would be a positive relationship, wherein you would be able to give each other feedback and help each other grow the projects to the best of their ability. I say ideally, because I am aware that not all studios have that culture, I have been pretty blessed that studio culture and encouraging a positive culture has been a fundamental part of my education. So I am extremely spoiled, and have had a really good experience overall. However, some of you reached out to let me know that that is not true for everyone, and you wanted to have me discuss it further. So, because I know that I have the unique experience of jumping between studios and jumping between disciplines, I decided to reach out and interview some classmates of mine that are exclusively either Architecture or Landscape Architecture. I just wanted to get their perspective on the situation. Now, I do have to disclaimer that this was done in fun, with zero criticism or negativity implied. None of us are claiming one way is the correct way, or one college does it better. So, with that, I am excited to introduce: Marilyn, John Michael, and Ericka.
Music-briefly loud
Interview 1
Hollywood
All right, and thank you everybody for joining me. So today I have Marilyn and John Michael-so Marilyn is in the landscape department and then John Michael is following the architecture track. So before we begin just to kind of give everybody a quick history of your backgrounds. What is your background before your current degree track? I’m not asking you to name drop or list your locations, but how did you join with experience in the field or? Did you switch into it?
Marilyn
Uhm, OK, I’ll go, uh, I got a undergraduate degree in philosophy and then I spent about 15 years working in the field. So I would say like like. Uhm, physically installing landscapes, but I owned a design build company so kind of self taught designing.
John Michael
I came from a background in. Political ecology and human geography called sustainability science at the school that I went to and before coming to architecture school. I did some like. Youth outdoor adventure education. So no background. In architecture or design.
Hollywood
So we have one person with a lot of self-taught experience and the one person with absolutely none.
My listeners definitely know I am the none person as well. I had zero experience except for, you know, little old ladies and my neighbors that I helped design their house. Which does not count at all.
But uhm, the really big question I guess, is how what do you guys feel like? Studio culture is.
So when I was researching it for this episode, I found articles for both sides of it. Some people saying that. Studio culture had a very specific definition, some saying that studio culture was dead. Some saying that it needed to be revived, so I guess what? What do you both think it is in general just to start with?
I know I could invest the bigger broader question.
John Michael
Yeah, I know. Uhm, so all out of all of that, what? Do we think it is just to start? I think it is. An ideal upon which studio is founded. I think it rests on some really sound like educational principles. Uhm, that also take like a really gifted educator to pull, pull out, pull off so so I think it’s this idea that studio is a like kind of happy, bright, cooperative place where people are constantly bouncing ideas off each other and learning from each other and everyone grows at once and. Uhm, just kind of like a really open creative community. In theory.
Marilyn
Uhm, I think I’m still trying to figure it out. I guess I didn’t. I never heard the term before I came to school, so I think. For me I. Maybe it changes. It changes with every semester. What I think studio culture is and I have only been in a studio culture with culture with one cohort of people basically like it only got mixed up one of my semesters, so uhm, I think I like have trouble just generally in my life. Anyway, but like, uh, just uhm. Like being super influenced by the people around me, so I think I like maybe a professor changes my mind about what studio culture is each semester and my cohort has kind of, uh, influenced my ideas of it, but uhm. I think it means that yeah, you get to discuss your work.
You get to see what other people are up to. You find out what they’re thinking, what their projects are like, and it’s a place to. Like do work collaboratively, is my image of it, but I don’t. Maybe you’re going to ask this later. I wouldn’t say that that’s necessarily played out. In in my experience, but that’s what I think it is.
Hollywood
So I guess that’s a really good point. So Marilyn, you said that you’ve been basically with the same cohort the entire time and and John Michael hasn’t been the same for you in the architecture field, or.
John Michael
Kind of until this semester that my really small cohort has been like mixed in with a couple different groups throughout, so it’s it’s grown over time. But it’s been like the same. More or less the same people until this semester with option Studio.
Hollywood
OK, uhm I. Guess ’cause for duels. We switch back and forth so I know both of you have been in class with both of you, but I imagine neither one of you considers me part of your cohort. There’s only like a cohort of the three of us. Right now, duels.
John Michael
Yeah, this is the first semester that my like little group of six hasn’t been in the same studio together.
Hollywood
That must be a really weird feeling then.
John Michael
It is. That’s them.
Hollywood
So you both mentioned that professors seem to kind of play a role without name dropping, because I really don’t want to get in trouble. Would you say that each professor sets different standards? In it or influences how strongly or weakly it’s going to be layout in your studio.
Marilyn
Yeah, I think so. I think again just because I had never even heard the word before I came to school.
I think like the the first semester it was, it was, uh, like a big part of like what I thought I was supposed to understand about what going to design school is like. And also like the students about like in the years ahead of me. I think we’re really good. At studio culture and so that like made me want to participate.
In it more I think. But then the pandemic came. And I think that like every like since then professors feel less dumb. Like more. I don’t know like it’s less about the philosophy of studio culture and and there’s like a lot of like. Like movement in and out of what I would call a studio culture and just in a lot of things were online so yeah.
John Michael
Yeah, I would definitely. Agree with that, but it’s been. Perhaps a slightly unusual studio culture experience where. I think we went. Virtual my second semester so I didn’t have no autonomics.
I guess in person studio experience. I think I think that it’s a two way St that the professor plays a part and kind of setting the stage for it that some professors kind of. Run it like a supervised study hall where you’re you know on walk the whole time. Yeah, there’s no distractions you can’t leave early to go do anything else, and in those kinds of studios, by the end students are kind of ready to go and get out. Whereas the professors that tend to let you know a little bit more. Personal freedom and creativity. People seem to be more enthusiastic about sticking around. I think usually. In my limited experience, that’s but like kind of elusive. Studio culture has forged more outside of studio hours.
And then when we’re actually there with professors so far.
Hollywood
OK, so basically professors take note because I do know a couple you listen. Don’t don’t run it like. A dictatorship and will stay. But come. How do you feel that the pedagogy of the field and the school plays into the role of studio culture. So I know in the landscape we have culture, matter meetings and like extra meetings that aren’t in architecture at all. Where instead of just like a lecture just to kind of explain for the architects. We’ll have like official group meetings and we’ll discuss either an aspect of studio culture or we’ll like meet with guest lecturers or things like that. So how do you two feel that?
Just like the amount of school involvement plays into it with different than the professor involvement.
John Michael
When you say the the amount of school involvement, do you mean you mean like? Administrators and faculty setting up those kinds of meetings or school being the students.
Hollywood
Administrative and faculty. Or the students? I guess we can also talk about that too.
Marilyn
Maybe I’m, I think I’m understanding the question, but I I think like with landscape architecture now we are getting or my first year there weren’t any. There were only 3/5 plus ones and now every year there’s more, so the school is. Getting bigger. Than when I started, but I do think we tried to come. It seems like we tried to like, uh, get to know each other, like like the expectation is that we go to each other reviews that we like are involved in each others lives a little bit I guess not personal lives, but like our school lives. So I think that I, I think it influences. In culture matters and like having a student group, the group that. Like you know everyone face and you know the people and they’re always talking on slack about what it is. I think that it I think that that does influence the studio culture because inevitably you are talking about. And school you’re talking about what’s going on in your in your studio project? You’re like just more. It feels involved, and I, I don’t. I don’t actually even. So how many students are in the architecture school? But it seems like a a lot more to like understand group dynamics. I I can’t really compare it, but it it feels like we we at least know everyone space and like no of them and know what their studio. Is up to so.
John Michael
Yeah, I don’t, I don’t know. I’ve I’ve heard that. From other duels and landscape students at the the studio culture is super different in that part. We don’t really. That I know of have I know there’s been a couple times where they’ve tried to have like graduate student. Uh, like town hall kind of things where people meet up. I can’t think of a ton. Of like organize. Ideas or events outside of the lectures?
Or you know the general all culture events. So I honestly have. No idea what what role this, so that sounds. I always hear about the ASLA event. How much I’ll do? Outside of school, that sounds really nice.
Hollywood
Well, for those who don’t know, ASLA is the American Society of Landscape Architects just to kind of throw a name out there. This is the student chapter.
John Michael
And it totally could be that I’m just not plugged in to that side, since it is a little bit bigger than the landscape slightly. So I won’t. I won’t let like all of the blame at the school. It could be me too.
I just don’t have any any personal experience to say about it.
Hollywood
Well, I mean the architecture school is a little bit. I don’t know how many, I feel like there’s a couple more cohorts than the landscape. Like maybe it’s just how young the landscape program is.
Where we’re at, there’s not as many years and tracks really. There’s the five plus ones.
The twos, the regular three years and then that’s that should. Be it right. I think. Like how you look.
Marilyn
Oh, there it sounded like there was someone banging on a pipe Speaking of studio culture. Our studios are already beside 3. There’s three different freshmen. Architecture studios like in our like you know general vicinity and and they meet at like in the mornings instead of the afternoons. So it feels like there’s always like constant chatter. It’s loud in here so.
Hollywood
So I guess, uh, for though my kind of last big question is there is what I was kind of discussing before, where there’s several people who believe that studio cultures are on the way out the door and and and others believe that it is super helpful and just needs a reno. And so I guess, where do you fall? Or maybe because that’s a little bit of a. Big ask of a question that like state if you’re four against studio culture, how would you feel that it would be a more beneficial experience could be had for studio
John Micheal
Lot of potential there. You know it’s founded on a lot of I had a professor send me an article about the origin of studio. The idea of that kind of studio and that culture. And it makes a lot of sense. The ideas behind the theories behind it. So like. I have several people who have other design degrees in my cohort from either interior or landscape and. My first year they were a huge help to me and the other person who had no design experience. Taught us all kinds of things that they. Learned in undergrad that.
Just didn’t get touched on. Some of the basics of like representation and design and spatial layout and stuff which is really interesting, so I think I think the. Idea is there. I think it needs more. I think it could use more by and all around as opposed to kind of just throwing out studio culture. It’s like, yeah, studio culture. It exists, and relying on it to exist and romanticizing it that way, I don’t. Think is very effective. I don’t know what the answer would be necessarily, but I think some of those things we talked about of. Professor buy in and school buy in and this the the student buy in as well. Love not just wanting to go home and go to bed after right after studio.
Marilyn
Yeah, I think uh, from for me personally, it’s like hard to really accomplish a lot at home and less. It’s like late it. Unless I’m like I’m gonna stay up late I’m gonna be working like I I get really distracted by my whole life so for me it’s nice to be in studio and have headphones on see the people who are working ask people questions I know especially my first year when I was like had not. Never opened any Adobe product in my life. It was like kind of critical for me that third years were around. Uhm to help, but I think that the pandemic definitely changed people in my cohort’s idea of studio culture and most out now I don’t want to. Say most but a. Little bit like there’s a a sentiment of like they really like.
What is that hybrid look like? They they would like to be at home 50% of the. And dumb or less, you know, some like variation of hybrid learning is is like, uh, what they would like and I think like.
Uhm, that would be. Difficult for me like it would be just like I really like, wouldn’t get my money.
‘s worth that you tied in with me like I like wanna have a pool locker and I like like shower here and exercise. I like I’m paying a lot of money for it, so for me it feels like there’s so much like accessible for you. If you’re just at school, and I know that like. That’s easy for me to, even though I’m like an older student, I don’t. I don’t like I don’t have a. I don’t have kids and I like I can do that relatively easily, so I think. Uh, and because I’m committed to it, maybe because I’m an older student. You know I’m running through school. I like to understand that I want to get my money’s worth in a certain way, but and I think that like it’s amazing to me how like every day. Basically, on the Uke calendar is something that I’m like that sounds interesting, so I think like there’s like a there’s like a. Don’t know that like the studio culture discussion is like in the way that it feels kind of top down like our like someone telling me that studio. It’s important me being influenced by that and being like, yeah, it must be important like I think there’s like a discussion to have somewhere in there that like how can we make it work for like students so that it can still like be integral to learning and the way we see design school, but also like the like.
If it is hybrid or whatever it is that. It like. Maintains its like importance I guess. And I don’t know, maybe all of university life is changing in that way, but. Yeah, I don’t know if that makes any sense, but it’s it’s.
It feels important to me.
John Michael
I think 1. Yeah, I like. What you said at the end there of having. That conversation reminded me. Something I used to do. We used to do like in the field with expedition groups. With young, you know, like middle school and high school students was at the first days, then a significant amount of time going over like expectations not only from the top down of my expectations for you know how they would comport themselves, but their expectations, what they were going to get out of it. Right? How they wanted to treat each other. How people should behave and take responsibility throughout the program and then like. Make just like a silly little contract, not like a legally binding contract, but like get colored markers and draw it all in and like Turkey hand sign it. Little cheesy things like that to like really set the stage for. People feeling like they have ownership of it, and I think some professors definitely try to do that, and I think. You know, maybe that should come from the students from from my side that maybe it would be better to voice. Those ideas those expectations instead of relying on the. Studio culture pamphlet that we get at at the end of the syllabus every semester.
Hollywood
I would personally be really down for the hand hand signed turkeys like 100%. No so. I mean, that’s that’s pretty interesting. Points like whether it’s student driven versus expectations. I mean, as a dual student coming from both sides, I feel like sometimes I get very torn between it the studio, like when I go to landscape. I’m expecting that expectation from above down, like the professors to tell me. And then when I. Come into the architecture side, I’m expecting more the students to drive it and to decide like even just using slack versus like we use GroupMe, more for architects and then in slack for landscape. And it’s the entirety of the landscape department in the slack versus like individual classes. For the Group B, and so that does set the stage a lot. And I guess when one last question is do you feel and this is kind of a pandemic question. Do you feel that the actual having a studio makes a really big impact on you? Like having a physical location? To go to.
John Michael
Love being remote at first I’m I definitely prefer working at home. I think I find it quieter and more comfortable and I have better coffee than Einstein’s does typically. This this semester for sure I’m starting to miss it. Trying not to get too specific. Wishing I think starting to miss the aspect of being able to talk to other people about while I’m working and like a physical way, not a physical way, but like in in physical proximity and like go in outside of class hours and like talk to people and bounce ideas off of other people and kind of approach it in a more like casual way. So I’m I am. Starting to turn. I’m changing my mind that. I think the physical space is important. Even for just like putting a drawing out and saying leaving a note that says Mark this up on the table, you know like you can do it on your own. It’s just not.
I hate I hate I’m about to say, but it’s just not the same.
Marilyn
Uhm, yeah, I might have already answered this, but like I I. Yeah, I I don’t. I don’t mind learning on the online, but it feels kind of. Cumbersome to me, like, uh, like more cumbersome than getting in my car and driving here every day for something. Which seems a little like maybe it shouldn’t shouldn’t be the case, but. Uhm, yeah, I think there’s good things about it though. I really like that it’s possible, like for instance, right now, my studio mate. She’s been [out sick] and. Like my our project we’re doing.
Partner project this semester and she’s been gone for two weeks ’cause she has had some health issues. Using so like I will, I think like I would not have known how to be as efficient as we are being had the pandemic not happened. So like I would not have known how to do. Or without her, had I not practiced for a year and a half? So I think like, uhm, there are really good things about it. I think, uh, I’m gonna graduate next semester, I hope, and I think that I probably won’t be thinking about like. This, like it, feels very like a like a little vacuum. This like online like. Maybe it’s not true. ’cause maybe it’ll be that way when I go into the field or like get a job. Also, they like probably everyone who has like had some practice, but like in terms of studio culture, that feels like a. Like, uh? Uh, thing that’s cool is always wrestling with, and now there’s just like this new element of like people wanting to be home. And the hybrid version and so yeah, I think. I don’t know, maybe. Maybe it was. It’s a continuous question, but yeah, I I. Really like being ads.
Hollywood
Well, thank you both so much once again for joining me to have a conversation about studio. I tremendously appreciate it. Did you guys want to like give a shout out to any businesses or anything that you had I? I’m offering it every time to all of my guest speakers, I didn’t know if you had any or if it’s just hi mom.
Marilyn
Is my mom listening? You mean like places that we like local places that we might say as a great?
Business to support or something.
Hollywood
Yeah, technically, if you want to, I I I had a place a firm that said they wanted to like drop their like social media and stuff just so people could follow up with them. So just putting it out on the table if you want.
Marilyn
Well I did before I came to school. Here I worked at a native plant nursery in Vonore, Tennessee. Called Overhill gardens. That’s a really nice place to buy native plants.
Hollywood
What about you, John Michael? Any place you want to shout out?
John Michael
No, I didn’t. I didn’t ask anybody permission to shout him out beforehand in terms of work or businesses, but. Yeah, I don’t know. Speaking of good coffee, honey being South Knox, I’ll always gas them up.
Hollywood
Alright, well thank you both once again.
Music-briefly loud
Interview 2
Hollywood
Alright, and a big thank you to my second guest, Erika who is here to join me today. So I’m gonna ask you a lot of the same questions. I asked the first interviews again, this is a pretty casual what you think, not a right answer, type conversations. So what was your background? Before your current degree track? UM, not asking you to name, drop or list your locations again. Just did you join with experience or did you switch into the fields?
Erika
I have my bachelors in neuroscience so going to landscape architecture was definitely a solid 180.
Hollywood
That that does sound like a solid 180, but you have some interest in photography, right? That was before you got this field.
Erika
Yes, I’ve been doing about nine years now of portrait photography as well as I work. I worked at my undergrad university and now I work here at University of Tennessee to take photos for the university too.
Hollywood
That’s so cool. Uhm, I love photography so it’s so cool that you like do. I can’t do it at your level. I’m a definite amateur at it. Your photos absolutely blown me out of the water. They’re so amazing.
Erika
Ah, thank you.
Hollywood
What do you? Think Studio culture is so in this I’m just asking what your opinion of what you think it is because I’ve seen some articles and I said this in the earlier interview both for and against it. And like both had both all I said both, but both sides of the conversation seemed to have a very different interpretation of what studio meant. So I guess, what do you feel like it?
Erika
I feel like Studio is a collaborative workspace. It’s kind of like this. Nice place where you can kind of go into your own pod and just like home in on your own work. And most people really understand that, and they’re. Like they’ll kind of let you work if you really need. It, But there’s also. The beauty of studio culture and the reason I feel so strongly about like. Being in studio as much as I can is that I can go and I can talk to my classmates and I can collaborate with them, get ideas, expand on ideas, and just even break up the day a little bit. Sometimes if you’re sitting behind a computer for you, know five hours straight. Yeah, your head kind of starts to hit a wall, so having people next you too. Sort of dispersed that can be a huge help. With getting through and maintaining. The your best level of creativity.
Hollywood
No, that’s a very good point. I mean, after like 8 hours straight of you know, those like last minute design, crunches, you’re just like I need to speak to somebody. I’ve been staring at way too long.
Erika
Oh yeah.
Hollywood
But what is your typical experience with studio culture? Do you think it changes from Professor to professor or do you think there’s like an overlying under theme behind it?
Erika
I think it’s been a mix of things I remember very clearly, like my first studio, and I think it also has a lot to do with my cohort. In general, my first studio was super collaborative, very very talkative, and I think our professor just allowed that because we really needed to get to know each other and build trust within our cohort. And that helped immensely, but I feel as we’ve gone on, all of us have sort of found our focus and now that we feel a little more like I think. Everybody has found their balance in studio I. I think it’s definitely been more of like. An individual slash cohort thing. And like the professor might have some influence on it, but largely it just has. To do with like how. We’ve found a good balance ourselves.
Hollywood
When you say balance, are you referring to like balancing how much you interact with other people? Or just like how much you study or.
Erika
Yeah, I see I have balance in like how much we need to interact with one another versus how much we need to just work on our own and just kind of power through the rest of the day. I think that’s been something that has just slowly, over time, developed, and we’ve all kind of gotten a good grasp on it by second year.
Hollywood
OK, how do you feel this? Is it just occurred to me, based off of what you said so the other I didn’t ask the others this, but uhm, how do you feel that balancing your other classes with studio? Because for US studios three times a week for a good chunk of the day. So when you said balance that just kind of triggered by sure. This is.
Erika
I feel the professors that teach design like design courses and are part of like design, understand very well. That studio comes first and are very flexible with due dates if necessary and. And I’ve actually had a decent amount of luck with professors even outside of this design school when I’m taking like extra curricular courses. Who have been pretty lenient, I will say, however, that just because they’re lenient doesn’t mean the work, the quality, or the intensity of work has decreased at all. They’re just a little more understanding in some ways that studio does come first, especially when it comes to final review crunch time, so. That’s been really helpful.
Hollywood
No, that sounds really helpful to see. Instead of, especially when you’re in like a field. Like ours, it’s so. Uh, I don’t since- I have biology in my background too. Not your particular brand. Mine was mostly in genetics, but the difference between kind. The like having to go to a lab and watch an experiment every day for like 12 hours straight versus. Yeah, the studio it’s. The studio itself is so different, and if you don’t have that balance with your professors or that conversation, it’s so hard to get through.
But uhm. Do you feel that there are certain? Either Constance or do you feel the actually let me rephrase that? Do you think that the pedagogy of the field and the school plays a big role in the studio culture?
Erika
When you’re. So it’s not working. Sorry, when you’re.
Hollywood
Go ahead, sorry.
Erika
That’s OK, I was just making sure like when you were referring to pedagogy, could you just like define what? You mean by that real quick?
Hollywood
Yes, oh, I’m sorry, I think that’s an architecture term. I keep dragging into landscape. So what I’m referring is do you feel like the UM? Lessons or the teachings. Or the UM? Motivations behind the school. I mean, it’s kind of like an all encompassing ideology of the of the landscape school strongly encouraged the idea of studio culture. Or embrace it. Or do you feel like there’s like a faculty top down?
Influence into how it affects your everyday life.
Erika
So for this for instance like this year, I’m taking a history and theory course. And it has a lot to do.
With architecture and antiquity, and sometimes you’re just like. This is nuts, why AM? I going through all of this historical, kind of like Grubhub, and I think what’s? Been most interesting, is it just kind? Of opens my eyes. To all of the things that have been seen in the past and how we have improved on them and how we have like you know, we already found the wheel. So we’re just like slowly reinventing, reinventing it, and you know, adding a few sparkles. But even though it sometimes it feels really strange to be talking about things that were built in. We’re 93 BC. See, I you know like in a way it. Just because the topic perhaps doesn’t pertain to exactly. What I’m doing in studio. Still, it expands my mind in a way and it keeps me open to all the possibilities and all the places I can look to help improve what I want to see in my studio projects. And I think that’s the most important part. Design school, especially coming from a very heavy science background, is trying your absolute best to keep that open mind, because it is really largely important to getting the best work you can out of studio.
Hollywood
So would you say we? Talked about in the last interview, UM? For the landscape, you felt that Marilyn felt that the UM, like using slack and everything was kind of beneficial to that overall process like you were just saying. Like having a way to constantly communicate with the entire school as a whole. Do you feel like that’s also true for you?
Erika
It’s kind of funny. I actually brought up the idea. Of Slack, and I’m really glad that the rest of the exact committee kind of tagged onto it. I just we weren’t really used GroupMe and I have a really hard time like and I know you can like open GroupMe at a web browser but it just isn’t it as. I guess conducive to like efficient conversation. And yes, I think that having slack and a really efficient way of communicating with everybody, as well as being able to like we are having a channel to where we can pull our Google Calendar in like it keeps everybody up to date. It keeps you knowing about events. And I think it’s an awesome way to keep everybody connected as possible without being too overwhelming. You can always like turn the notifications off and it’s just a super easy application to get around so. Yeah, I think it’s been a huge help. OK, so maybe let me rephrase a little bit.
Hollywood
Maybe I wasn’t referring to like. Slack in particular, but the idea of communicating as the entire.
Erika
OK.
Hollywood
Group if that makes more sense. Uhm, like being able to be constantly communicating in communication with your entire cohort. OK, sure. It not just your cohort. The entire school, like everybody in the field of.
Erika
Yeah, everybody like within our college. Yes, yes I yes. I do think it’s a huge help as a first year especially it was really nice to be able to just like send a message out. Be like, hey this thing or I don’t really messing with. Me and more often than not I get a reply within minutes being like, hey, I’m at my desk right now. Bring your laptop over. I think having that has been a huge help and and in some ways I also wish though that it would encourage more outside communication. I see a lot of people.
Get very comfortable with communicating within our like messaging systems and and I feel like the second and third years have a pretty good system, but I still we’re still getting the first years up to speed and comfortable in trying to come out and. Meet us outside of like you know, regular, you know school meetings or like communications so yeah, but in terms of just like you know, trying to take a break from it. The beauty is like. I I only really keep it on my desktop. I do have it on my phone, but it’s fairly easy to turn the notifications off and so I try to make a really good habit. Of like it goes on do not disturb at 9:00 PM every night. And unless like I am in a deep conversation with my fellow exact committee members or I’m really hammering down a studio project for the next day, I can usually turn it off and just take a big breather before I head to bed.
Hollywood
Now that makes sense, uhm. I mean, having to take a take a break fate. They recommend that you turn off all electronics for a little bit before going to bed. I haven’t managed it yet, but I’m really impressed you do. So there are several people who believe that studio culture is on the way out, and then there are several people believe that it’s super helpful and it just needs a reno. You know where you fall or I guess because that’s. Kind of a that’s a pretty heavy question, heavy handed question. How do you feel? Would benefit studio culture, or maybe how do you feel that? It could improve or what don’t you? Like about it. Just kind of a critique of it without you know, insulting specific people.
Erika
Yeah, gosh so uhm overall. I think. I think Studio culture could use a little more flexibility. I’m going to be honest. I think there are days when I know I would feel better just working from home in my sweatpants and I know I would do better. Work at home. And also I feel like. Perhaps like having a little more leniency on like leaving early. I know some people at the end of the week. I tend to leave earlier, just ’cause. You know you hit a wall. You’re so tired by the end of the week and doing. A afternoon four to five hour session behind a computer can really wear you down, so I think those are some of the cons.
But I think overall the pros are pretty redundant to what I would described earlier. Where like having that culture is super important to making sure that our work is, you know, to the best of our abilities and so on. Sometimes I can. It’s still funny like I love illustrator. I’m an illustrator all the time, but sometimes I like be working next to my friend and we’ll be like looking over each other shoulder. And she’s like. What are you doing? You have a. There’s a shortcut for that like and, so having those little things is such a huge help because. Now I know like I don’t. Have to go into. The edit panel and do all these little doodads just to crop an image. I can just press control 7 and everything to the shape I wanted. So I think that is. A huge benefit and I really hope that cereal culture is on the way out. I think in in general it could just be a little bit more flexible.
Hollywood
OK, so you’re saying we should just keep it. Make it a little bit more flexible and we’ll be like golden and for ready to go.
Erika
I yeah I honestly like and this is also coming from somebody who doesn’t have much design background and this is the only opportunity I’ve had to be in studio, so it’s possible there are other studios out there that I haven’t found that maybe have another method that could work better, but from my experience and my first three. I think that’s really what I’d sum it up too honestly.
Hollywood
So how do you feel about we spent a couple of times referencing the pandemic in the first interviews and how that kind of changed everything, and it seemed like some of the consensus was OK. This is a temporary bleep in the studio culture and then some of us are like, well, maybe it might be a little bit of a longer. Affect how do you feel it affected you or how do you feel like you did affected your studio experience?
Erika
So I just to clarify, I did come in school while the pandemic like was still going strong and honestly, we’re still in a pretty heavy section of it, but I think over time, like I feel very trusting of my classmates to be safe and I. I feel very confident that for the most part, all of us have been vaccinated. I think that’s one thing that has really reduced a lot of my anxiety in studio culture. As well as just like people have been more understanding like I feel and I don’t know if this is just simply a design school thing, but I have had days where I. Really cannot get to studio for one reason or another, whether it’s work, whether it’s my personal health, uhm, or whether I have like my laptop. Like for instance last week. It’s like did not charge and I’m I had to have somebody from Dell come in and fix it for me, so I think it’s again a lot of that flexibility is dependent on the professor, but I think people are understanding like hey, it’s OK to go online like we have zoom through the university. You’re still going to get like a pretty full experience.
But like, I think. All of us very well know the benefits of having that collaborative environment, so we aren’t. Going to be. Automatically, just like skipping studio, because we can’t. So I hope that sums up the question well.
Hollywood
Yeah, no, it definitely does, I mean. I think for us we were kind of it. I mean with, with the way the field is now where it’s a lot of online and talking to clients remotely, it’s it makes a huge difference, and it seems like a little bit more. Easier to bridge that gap than maybe been in previous years. Obviously we wouldn’t know what it was like. Learning how to be an architect in the 1800s, but. Uhm, so what do you feel that and this is just kind of my final question of the afternoon. So do you feel that there is like somebody who doesn’t have a any sort of. Previous limited ’cause you kind of I feel like photography really counts in the design world. OK, but with limited design experience, did you feel that there was something that could have been done to help introduce you to studio culture? More not is an insult to the school specifically, but just like was there something that you feel could have made you understand the ideals more? Or anything to like welcome you to it.
Erika
I I gotta be honest, I think just how our cohort evolved over time. I think Scott, oh, I think our first semester professor was very good. I just sort of Lee guiding us a little bit. She kind of helped us see, hey, like. Maybe you guys should try to quiet down. Hey like don’t forget like you can talk to your classmate. It’s just not like an isolation environment. So I think just having that. Guide our professor in my first. Studio was a huge help. But I got to be honest. I think not having like a humongous introduction. Like kind of getting. We got a hint. In our first two weeks of boot camp. Or kind of what we were to expect because we had people who are helping us and we got to collaborate. With our classmates then. And we sort of saw that studio environment. But I think what was really helpful for us as a cohort is that we just kind of evolved together and we found what works for us because at the end of the day, like. Studio culture isn’t just one person, it’s everybody in there and especially the people that you’re going to have those longer term relationships with. And so I think how we evolved was really the best way for any of us to learn studio culture and especially me. ’cause I think that’s just that slow learning was probably the best thing rather than. You know? Getting a list of rules and things to expect.
Uhm, I kind of liked. That we had the opportunity to evolve together.
Hollywood
Well, thank you once again so much for joining me today. I greatly appreciate it. Did you want to shout out any companies or anything before signing off or?
Erika
Not right now thank you.
Hollywood
Well, thank you once again.
Music-briefly loud
Thank you once again for tuning in, to continue this discussion, because I do think that this is an extremely important aspect of design, I am creating a separate follow-up post with more sources and information, just on my blog in addition to the regular written transcript I always post hopefully by Wednesday EST. However, I have been trying to launch a new portfolio website this week so I have been rather busy in addition to my getting ready for a studio review for my own class this week, so it might be a Wednesday-eve, Post-Wednesday. But once again I wanted to mention, that next Sunday-Halloween- will have a double feature. I will release a regular interview episode with a potentially very familiar figure in the social media world, and then will also release a Halloween special. It is a completely separate episode, so if you are not interested in hearing about any spooky architecture or scary stories, you can just ignore the second episode, without missing your regular dose of Architecture, Coffee, & Ink.
Once again a big thank you to all my listeners! A quick call to action: Please rate and review, share with your friends, neighbors, and family, your professor-whomever you think needs some architecture in their life. We again have a Facebook page and private group, both of which are under the same name: Architecture, Coffee, & Ink. The answer to the question-who is the host-is Hollywood, like the city. And second question is just your opinion, and I might just use it as a recommendation for a show with a little shout out. If you want to either be featured, or have a case study suggestion or perhaps just want to share a story of your favorite design or experience, you can either find me at Architecture, Coffee, & Ink the website is: https://architectureink.design.blog/ .
My twitter is @hollywoodconrad. Everything will be linked in the show notes, including my incredibly long URL. There is a Contact form currently at the home page of the website. You can also email me at architecturecoffeeandink@gmail.com all spelt out without the ampersands or commas. The theme song, is by me in Garageband. The other music is also from me in Garageband, and everything is credited along with the sources on the blog. Oh! I almost forgot, apparently my podcast got added to a few platforms that I wasn’t aware of. I found one once someone emailed me, but just a note, if I seem to be ignoring your attempts to contact me via the platform directly, please reach out via the blog, email, or the Facebook page, it’s not that I’m ignoring you, I just may not know that my show is there. In this case, the show was either requested or automatically added from another source I did upload directly to. But signing off as always,
May your coffee mugs be full, and your ink wells never run dry.
60 secs end song re-looped.
