Letters to the Editor
A Note of ThanksMarcia Jones, SDA, 1999 CANstruction Chair, writes: "I would like to take this opportunity to thank you on behalf of the Society of Design Administration and the 1999 CANstruction Committee for all that you did to support this year's event. Thanks to you, we were successful in raising 18,726 pounds and 25,235 cans for the Houston Food Bank. This will provide many meals to our community which comes at a much needed time." Michael Meyers Design Competition RecognizedThe following letter was received from Shelly Montgomery, who, with students from her art classes at Stratford High School in SBISD, participated in the Michael Meyers Design Competition sponsored by AIA Houston. Ben Sauceda, AIA, chaired the 1999 competition. Dear Ben and Michael Meyers Committee: Thank you once again for a successful contest. I was pleased with the overwhelming turnout last April. I appreciate your time and energy keeping this contest going. It is great that you award the Summer Architecture Scholarships this year. My students were very excited about that addition! The Texas Art certificates are always great; thanks for taking your time in acquiring them. This was my last year at Stratford as I am building a new lab at Memorial Senior High School. I have been going through my archives and thought I would share with you what I found. Even though Stratford LOVES to win, there are many that submit that do not. Many of my students discover a love for architecture and design and pursue it in college. In fact, I believe every first place individual entry in the past five years is studying architecture in some facet. I can not tell you how much my students learned from this contest, from winning and losing to simply seeing a project come to completion. I am grateful for what your committee does. Thanks.Shelly Montgomery Thank You from Representative BentsenThe following letter was received from U.S. Representative Kenneth E. Bentsen, Jr. Thank you for awarding me with an Honorary Membership to the American Institute of Architects. I appreciated the opportunity to participate in the AIA annual award gala held last month. As I'm sure my parents did as well. Thanks again, if I may be of assistance in the future, please do not hesitate to contact me. Design Variables in Education
by David A. Red, AIA, Professor Emeritus, Architecture, UH, The Sage Press, 8/17/98 Architecture has changed dramatically in the Twentieth century as compared with centuries gone by. Back then the Architect/Builder was faced with few choices to use in designing a building. The styles of architecture can attest to this. The Egyptians used sandstone and the workman who could work it. The Persians used brick and tile with very little mortar or earth mortar and the same with the craftsman. The Greeks used marble and the workman who could work it. The Romans used fired brick and cement mortar and the workman who could use them. The French built the great cathedrals with stone and stained glass. The Industrial Revolution in the Twentieth century brought in many new building materials and products. This makes it very difficult for the modern architectural designer to make choices when designing a building. Besides there is no real definition of design. In the past there have been attempts to make such a definition, but none have survived. So, "Design is a mental process that provides a solution to a functional problem." This can be explained in mathematical terms. The mental process occurs in the mind using variables that can be explained in a formula: Variables = Solution to a building problem. In Architecture the formula is: (A)(B)(C)(D)(E)(F)(G)(H)(I)(J)(K)(L)(M)(N)(0)(P)(Q)(R)(S)(T) = A Building It can be seen that there are many variables to be considered in designing a building today. It is difficult to give a style to this type of design because of the variables to be considered in design. However some architects have Standard Details that they use in their working drawings that distinguish them from other architects. This is their Style that can be recognized. Le Corbusier used concrete, Mies Van Der Rohe used glass and iron, Frank Lloyd Wright used wood. "What if" is a question that originates in the mind, located somewhere in the brain. Its origin is unknown. It is followed by many "How Tos". These are variables that pertain to the question and eventually produces an answer. This variable concept, is used by many artists to produce their particular style. They manipulate these variables to produce their art work, the formula is: Manipulating Variables = Style of artist's work. One definition for art can be: "Art is a mental expression that is communicated by some technique or medium." The mental expression is communicated by many different variables, depending on the artist's knowledge of his or her medium and technique. Painters can be recognized by the Manipulation of the variables that they use to convey their mental expression. These are (types of mediums: water colors, oils, acrylics, tempera, pigments of all kinds.) Some painters in their paintings have a blue period, a green period. Perhaps these principal colors are the only colors they have on their palate. It may be that these colors are the only pigment they have available. Writers can be recognized by how they manipulate words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs) used to communicate their mental image. Poetry is an art in which the variables, cadence and rhythm are important. This is mostly mental. Musicians have variables such as instruments: violins, clarinets, drums, and others. These produce sounds that are variables. These contribute to the musician's style. They use notation on a score to communicate a musical composition such as waltz, symphony, mazurka, and others. These are also variables. Opera is a true art. It not only combines music, and poetry but set design and costumes. It also includes musical composition and performance. Many variables are involved. The principal feature in using variables is: If you change only one of the variables, the result is changed also. In improvisation: a painter drops, throws or spreads color on a canvas, or a musician plays on his instrument without a theme in mind, or an actor performs spontaneously, an artist places a toilet seat or a tin can on a pedestal calling it sculpture. These are persons having fun with their medium. They may be experimenting with sound, words, or color. This is intuitive. Some may consider this art, but it may not involve mental activity. However, an After Thought may be considered a mental activity. The Art in Architecture is not a sketched drawing. The art of architecture is the communication of a Building Type (school, house, barn, office building and many others). This is done by using current technology and available materials. The variables mentioned above can be used to communicate the building type through its characteristics, its appearance. This keeps the cost within the budget. These thoughts are the synthesis of many years of teaching architecture and teaching as a whole. Educators should stress the Manipulation of Variables rather than answers, "Dogma". Researching variables in some dogma from the past has sometime shown that dogma is often untrue. After all, education teaches "Truth". (John 14:6)
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