Has this experience been a rewarding one for you? Why or Why not (keep it positive, if you had negative experiences, focus on what you learned- make yourself look good!)? How has the reality of your internship matched or contrasted with your expectations? What is the most important learning you did during your internship?
This experience has been very rewarding for me. I really enjoy working with Buddy, Micheal, Bobby, and everyone else who works there. It’s been really rewarding getting to sort of know the people there and how they do business. Prior I had never had any professional and creative architectural experience. It’s been rewarding learning all about how things opporate in the career field I’m interested in, not only becuase it’s answered many of the questions I have about it, but also because I will really be able to utilize what I’ve learned when I continue my pursuit of becoming an architecrt. Surprisingly the enviorment I am in is very similar to how I expected it to be. Not only the office space but the people as well. I was not expecting to be able to participate in the sort of things I’m participating in, like meetings and giving feedback on projects. Until I was able to talk to Buddy and figure out what I would be doing there, I had not thought I would be doing more creative oriented work on my own designs. I thought I would be doing physical work like cleaning bathrooms or restalking things, which are not bad things, but from my understanding was what typical interns do. There’s this movie by Wes Anderson called “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou” and in that movie there are several interns that do chore work for the crew. That was the type of work I was expecting, except not being held hostage by pirates. I’m more than happy with the kind of work they are assigning me because it’s very education orriented and I get to learn a lot. The most important thing that I have learned during my internship is to not think of a house that has rooms, but a house that has places for you to do what you need to to live. I.e bathing, eating, and sleeping; there are many things I am learning there and that I have learned there so it was hard to choose just one thing. But I beleive that to be the fundimental thing when considering what to do when a client asks for something oriented to what he needs.
What have you seen or experienced in your internship that has inspired you the most on your own artistic journey? Has this experience changed your artistic ambitions? How?
The thing that I have seen that has impacted me most is how the whole design process is thought out. Going in I had very little knowledge of how design process was done in terms of architecture. As I continue being there I learn more and more every day. And I found that not only is this design process used for Architecture but it can be applied to creating just about anything. Painting, Music, and even the design of a game all need the essence of purpose in order to have some artistic value or meaning. In architecture that is particularly true because your design can impact the world around it and it’s one of the most important things to make sure every aspect of it has a purpose and story behind why it is what it is. Realizing this (maybe it should have been obvious in the first place to me) has made just about everything in my life a little more beautiful. I now get to look at something and contemplate why it’s there. Then go through understanding what the creator of that was trying to accomplish with it. It might make me seem a little ignorant that I’m now only seeing this, but I digress. This experience has greatly changed my ambitions. Before this internship I only wanted to work in computer based programs because that’s all I really knew about architecture, but I was missing the entire other half of this profession. Now my career goal as an Architect is to be an architectural designer. Working with actual architects and getting their feedback on my work and how I can improve helps a tremendous amount and I can’t appreciate that enough, and It’s how I grew my artistic ambitions.
How is your internship project going? Describe the progress of your project. How did the conversation about your project go with your sponsor? (If you haven’t discussed the project with your sponsor yet, how do you plan to do so?) Did they have good insights into how to improve or expand the project? How does your project bridge what you do at your internship and what you like to create for yourself? Has your relationship with your sponsor evolved as you have engaged in a creative dialogue about your project? Art there any challenges you are experiencing planning or doing your project?
I think it’s going great! I’m getting feedback on my thought and design process and I feel as though I’m really catching on and learning a lot. The process that all architects take when designing a place is firstly, get to know the area. The area surrounding the building, solar path, wind, climate, etc. Next It’s important to know what your client wants and how to incorporate that into the design of your place with the budget limitations that you’re working with. This has the trickiest part for me so far, although I’m not working with a budget limit I have had to go back and redesign the floor plan three times now which totally fine because it’s the job of most architects to refine their design. I don’t think it’s really common for people to get it right the first time. I have gotten a good amount of praise for my ability to learn quickly but I also get fairly criticized by my coworkers on my work which is totally fine and normal and it really excites me because I love to learn what I’m doing wrong and what I’m doing right and that constructive feedback really helps me understand what I’m doing right and wrong and how to improve. The talk about my project went really well, we discussed about a few options and agreed about a First Friday presentation and pin-up. I felt a little bad springing up the project proposal on Buddy because it felt a little spontaneous and too early for where I was at there, so we could only really agree on loose concepts about what it should be but I’m positive that it will become more refined as the semester comes to an end. They are always commenting and helping me improve what I am doing there. It’s bridging what I like to create for myself by involving me in a type of creative environment where I can choose what to do in terms of looks and design of a building. My relationship with my sponsor has evolved a little bit because it’s become more easy for me to talk and ask questions which I’m usually not comfortable with around new people so it’s pretty nice. The only challenges I can think of are when I’m getting creative writers block when I try to design a certain aspect of my project, but that doesn’t come up too often.
What is the difference between working on personal art projects and working in a creative business? What have you learned about working in a creative business?
Working on personal art projects are probably the funnest thing I do because I’m able to build some form of intellectual art that can be critiqued and then added upon by experts to further my ability to create even better buildings. Buddy doesn’t really have me work on anything else besides my projects which is fine. He has let me sit in on a meeting once which was really cool because it showed me how the company works with the client to work on the design of the building and it’s relation to cost. It’s super cool to see because I learned a lot from it. So saying all of that, I don’t really think there is much I can say about a difference because I don’t really work on anything else besides my personal art project. I do know that I’m working on my project without a budget limit and obviously anything Hangar 41 works on has a budget. I can’t think of any other way to drag this answer on to 250 words so I think I’ll just stop here.
How do people at work treat you? How does it make you feel? If you have in intern one day will you treat them the same? What have you learned so far from your co-workers and sponsor?
The people at work treat me with respect as they would any other coworker. Although they also treat me like a student because they see me there as more there to learn rather than to “do work” so they give me any insight I need and answer any questions I might have. I feel good about it, I know it’s okay if I ask dumb questions or make a fool of myself because I am there to learn and figure out how everything works. I like that they see me as a peer rather than a subordinate. It makes me feel like I have a lot of coworkers rather than a lot of bosses, which is nice because I have a plethora of authoritative figures in my life. If I were to have an intern I would treat them the same way because of the more positive nature of an environment I’m in. That positive environment makes me feel more creative and less stressed than I feel like I would at a different place. Creativity can breed success so that type of environment can create a very successful intern. I have learned a lot from my coworkers. I have learned a lot about Goudi from Micheal and a lot about design from Ryan. I have probably learned the most from Buddy because he really is teaching me about the fundamentals of designing a place for living. Recently I had deleted the house I was designing because I didn’t like the way it was turning out. Then I started randomly piecing together a house and Buddy had seen and laughed and took me away from the computer and gave me an example of how exactly to come up with a design which helped incredibly much.
How do you feel like your internship is going so far? What are the highlights and the “low-lights”? Do you feel like you are making connections with your co-workers? What can you do to improve your experience?
I feel like my internship is going great so far! I’m learning a lot about what goes on in the business mainly by overhearing conversations that go on between Buddy and the other employees that work there. It’s fascinating to hear about how their projects go and who they get contracts from. I feel like the highlights are when I’m making great progress on my project and my little creative bubble as a whole, as I’m learning more and more about Revit, my project starts to look better and better and it’s an awesome feeling of accomplishment. The low-lights that I can think of is just when I go in and like no one talks to me, I feel a little alienated from the whole office because I’m usually doing my own thing and their all collaborating and being part of a team. Although there are cool moment like when I get to sit in a meeting with them for the most part I’m on my own. As for my coworkers individually I don’t feel like I’m there enough to make any sort of strong connection like friendship. However, I do get along with all of them and they are pretty cool to talk to when I do talk to them. All of them are also incredibly friendly. I suppose I could try and ask more questions and also try to learn more about what’s going on in the office like what projects they are working on.
What is it that inspires you to be an architect? How cool would you consider your internship? How do you feel about the office space Hangar 41 works in? Are there any “gripes” you have about anything related to your internship?
I chose to “try out” the field of architecture because I previously wanted to be a game developer but wasn’t completely set on that yet so I took the architecture class down at CEC (Career Education Center) and fell in love. I have always been interested in the way houses and really just places are developed and made. I loved getting to express that kind of creative art that isn’t just on paper. I found out that architecture is just as much of an art medium than anything other kind of art. I would consider my internship very cool. Just last Thursday i got to sit in a very important meeting with my boss and coworkers and I learned a lot about how the client/business meetings go down and it was really cool. Although I’ve mostly been reading and writing I am very excited to get yo express my creativity in a project. The office space at Hangar 41 is really unique I feel. They have little sculpture pieces throughout the office. The wall to the right has a topographical 3D map of Santa Fe made of plastic, metal, and woof (I want to say) that hangs from the ceiling. They also have three pieces that are shaped like airplane parts (a tail, and two wings) that display information, pictures and Hangar 41’s logo. Towards the front is a mural of an octopus that I believe they had someone from Santa Fe paint. I do not have many if at all any gripes about Hangar 41. However the work comes in sort of slow at times and also the bus is almost never on time.
Do your actions affect your workplace? Do you contribute positively? How do your co-workers actions affect your internship? Which coworkers are you connecting with?
My actions do not affect my work place too much. Hangar 41 is an office and nothing really changes around here in terms of physically altering actions. I, unfortunately, am interning during a time period where the office won’t be hosting any first Friday art gallery events. However, my actions or ideas also do not affect much of my coworkers or the office. This internship is more of a learning experience and a good one too. I’ve learned a lot from my coworkers and boss. I haven’t contributed much of anything to the office as I’m mostly working on my own projects and research. So as to say that I contribute neither negatively or positively, I’m just kind of here. My co-workers actions greatly affect my internship as they are mainly the ones helping me out. They point me in the direction that they feel I should be headed in terms of research, design theory, and work. I get most of my work load from them due to Buddy, my boss, always being absent due to important client meetings. Which is completely fine as they really help me out and make me understand the work I am doing. The co-workers I am connecting with most are Ryan and Micheal. Ryan really helps me with what or who to research and Micheal helps me understand design theory and some fundamental parts of Architecture.
What was the best thing that happened this week at your internship? How did it make you feel? What else makes you excited about your internship?
I think that the best thing that happened to me this week was when I got to create my own dream client. I made up a man named Sam Ross who wanted a multi-family housing unit done. I loved that I got to express my creative thinking and I even got to share it with my coworkers. It made me feel great, like I was able to control what exactly I wanted to pursue in terms of creativity and design. However, after some feedback they’re making me take a step back and really research the philosophy and process that architects take when creating their work of art. The man I’m reading a book about right now is Corbusier who is really the father of the contemporary architecture movement. I am excited to learn more and use the knowledge I’ve already learned to further develop my skills and critical thinking. I feel like the opportunity to work with Hangar 41 is really going to give me an edge in the career field and I really value the experience because the more I learn there the more I start to love architecture and the trade.
Jan-28-2017
What did you learn from your first week at your internship? Did anything surprise you? Who did you meet and what do they do? Did you engage in any code switching?
I learned about how the work place operates and what people were currently doing. I learned about what kind of project I will be doing for the final, which will be multi family housing. I believe we decided on eventually making it a model from plans. I also spent a good amount of time compiling a list of potential projects to do. Such as single, and multi family housing, apartments, schools, and various other type of buildings. I also wrote an essay about Antoni Goudi, a semi famous Spanish architect who has several works all around Barcelona, Spain. I met Bobby, Ryan, David, and Michael (and a few others who I haven’t learned the names of yet) who all do various things. No one there has a set specific task they all do different things each day. Buddy, Bobby, and Ryan like to occasionally, aggressively, play foosball for creative thinking and stress relief. As for code switching, I did engage in code switching. Before being there I was at lunch with friends and had engaged my personality I usually have when around them. When I was at Hangar 41 I was more professional, and aware of the people I was around. I’m really excited to get into this semester because I really enjoy designing and making something my own. Buddy and Michael told me that they were going to take me through their design process and get me more experience working in revit and get me more experience in the industry as a whole.