Design Inspiration

Have you ever had someone ask you to name your favorite architect? It happens from time to time, usually from someone who doesn’t know what an architect does. What goes through your mind? HdM, Lutyens, Aalto, Maki? Do you even have a favorite architect? Probably not. But you probably do have a list of architects who you respect and some that inspire your own work.

When did that start to happen? Before college? Did one of your aunts find out you were thinking about architecture school and gave you a book on Frank Lloyd Wright or Frank Gehry for your birthday? Or did you just show up at school a blank sheet not really knowing many famous architects at all? It was the latter for me, hanging out in the architecture department library going through books and magazines looking for someone or something that captured my imagination. The two architects that resonated with me at the time were Corbu and Mies. These two were my inspiration during those formative years in college. Oh yes, and Ant Farm. They came to campus and gave a lecture suggesting we all do the same sort of thing they were up to, (Cadillac Ranch) … if only we could! They were way out there at the time. We also had a professor who had worked in Kahn’s office, and at the time it appeared to be more of a way of life than a design philosophy … what did a brick want to be anyway? Lou’s work never really resonated with me.

But once out in the real world in the mid 70’s in the middle of a bad recession, any job would do regardless of the philosophy of the practice. The first job I had was for a small firm that focused on K-12, most of it renovation, and particularly uninspiring. Then I moved on to a smaller residential firm in suburban Philadelphia, a mid-size commercial firm in London, England, and then back to a small practice in Philadelphia. All these firms were relatively interesting and informative in their own way, but again, not particularly inspiring from a design point of view.

Then in the early 80’s I found myself in a real design firm, Venturi Rauch and Scott Brown. The irony was I was never a big fan of Venturi’s work. I even said so at my interview, and they still hired me! But finally, I was in an environment that was truly inspirational. Not only in that Bob could be inspiring but that he was inspired by many other architects work and almost insisted that you likewise needed to understand his inspiration. On one of my first projects I was instructed to spend two days looking through Bob’s original copies of the Lutyens portfolios to get inspired! After two days Bob came over to my desk, we looked at the books together for about ten minutes, something caught Bob’s eye and out came the yellow trace. It was a small footbridge that Bob turned into a chandelier. While the client rejected the idea, the process of looking at one thing to inspire the creation of another seemingly unrelated other thing was a new and inspiring way to approach design. Architecture as a creative process integrated into all aspects of the design world and the culture around us. 

During my time in that office we were pointed towards Lutyens, Asplund and Aalto to name a few and through Steve Izenour, Main Street. Messy vitality was the catch phrase, albeit very disciplined in its own way.

After leaving that office I have rediscovered Voysey, Mackintosh, Schindler and Mendelsohn, particularly his later work in Palestine, the latter two of which were inspirational for projects at Yale and OWU. But I find myself always going back to my roots: the plan is the generator. Start with a modernist plan within a mannerist aesthetic, an interesting and complex road of exploration I have set for myself.

So what is the context within which you find inspiration for your projects? Does it stem from the rich history of 20th century architecture? Are there common threads back to the heroes of your college days? Are your projects built on an historic foundation reinterpreted for the 21st century? Is sustainability the driver, net zero uber alles? Or are you looking at the latest architectural publications or web sites for inspiration regardless of who the architect is?

Personally I need to see my work as a continuum, a dialogue that is inspired by iconography that define our culture past and present. A legacy of connection that is understandable, familiar and hopefully provocative.

So, what inspires you and why?