#ilookup

“Look Up” or #ilookup is the first phase of the AIA’s new public awareness campaign to help communities everywhere better understand what architects do and why their contributions to society matter. We asked some of our staff to respond and share what happens when they look up.

Architects look up. Sometimes we’re not supposed to.

But find an architect, and they’re probably looking up.

Why do we look up? We’re all fascinated with up. Just being up in the air for a moment is special.

Sometimes being a long way up is very special, if we remember to notice.

Look up, and you’ll find things you didn’t expect.

You’ll find things you do expect, looking in ways you don’t.

You’ll find old things no one uses.

You’ll find strange places up at the top of things.

Even looking up when you’re down low can show you secret places hidden under things.

When you look up, you almost always find something made by people. Sometimes it was made by people a very long time ago.

Other things are being made by people we know, right now.

Some of the things were made for you to look up at.

Others weren’t made with looking in mind at all.

But all the things were thought of by someone before they were made. Every part of them was imagined first.

Architects look up, and we imagine what’s next. 

We see the future, and then we figure out how to make it happen.

We look up and see the next piece of the world.

All photography in post courtesy of Matthew Fickett, AIA (copyright Matthew Fickett Photography).