Lessons Learned + #JimsChallenge

Architecture is full of teaching moments. Technological advancements have allowed us to speed up the architectural process, often meaning that we pay less attention to the smaller details and tend to overlook their lessons. And our architectural education emphasizes thinking conceptually about the parti, or the big design idea. Yet, architecture is at its best when every single detail—from the finish of the wood used on the exterior to the placement of the hinges on the doors—is considered as heavily as the parti, even if they aren’t as exciting to design. If there is one thing that buildings communicate very well, it’s the care, craft and rigor with which they are designed and executed. This was the narrative of a recent presentation, “Lessons Learned,” given by Jim Collins to his colleagues at PAYETTE.

The distinction between design and implementation—and the very question of what constitutes a mistake or lesson learned when the building is “complete”—was a fundamental theme in Jim’s presentation. He preaches that architecture lies in the built spaces of interactions, functions and proportions cast in material layers of concrete, steel, wood, drywall, lighting fixtures, paint and light. As Jim illustrated through images and stories, there are moments in the saga of making a building when coordination and communication inevitably misalign and the opportunity for error quietly emerges. He shared a couple of examples that he says he’s witnessed again and again: part of a light fixture flashes a conflicting color, which can be a disaster when multiplied in the hundreds, or a symbol on a drawing materializes into a beastly piece of equipment with a prominent position on the exterior of a building.

Some architects are more well-known for their big design ideas, while others have made a name for themselves based on the rigor of their craft, evident in the often overlooked details of buildings. Jim reminded us that, in the end, all of these details make up the larger picture. The final moment in which we all step back and experience, understand and analyze architecture relates to the details of its materialization. Jim wanted us to leave the presentation understanding that we need to care enough to coordinate and make these final decisions correctly. We should also take these experiences as lessons learned and do our best not to repeat these “mistakes” on our next project. Jim was also quick to say that great architecture is hard to do, and he used photos of some of his own lessons learned throughout the presentation.

Each generation of new young architects can learn so much from the architects that came before them and yet, at the same time, most architects typically make the same mistakes the first time through the full architectural process. Only after the space or building is complete can we stand back realize that it is all relative, and that the success of each detail in the project relies on the success of the others. The discipline of architecture involves a simultaneous pursuit of experimentation and perfection. It is up to us as architects to learn from one project to the next in order to improve the built environment; people’s ability to experience and appreciate architecture is dependent upon this.

There was one clear thread running through Jim’s presentation, which was to absolutely love every detail on a project. And all of this starts with observing more. Jim challenged all of us to look around and examine the hiccups in the buildings, infrastructure, interior and exterior spaces around us every day: from home to office, from office to restaurant, from restaurant to subway. The challenge is to find the best examples of smaller details that may have been overlooked in the process, so that we can tend to them during our next project.

What do you see when you look around? Join us on Twitter and Instagram for #jimschallenge. We look forward to updating you on the winning pictures that Jim will choose in the coming months!