"eco-consciousness"!? right, just what the sf bay area needs to bolster its stereotypical image: more crunchy, mediocre, formulaic, nature-is-good, 'organic' anti-design crap -- and legitamized by the academy!

Posted by: bothands on Jul 18, 05 | 9:42 pm

You mean '"orgainc"anti-design' like FLW and Shigeru Ban and Rick Joy and Ken Yeang and Kevin Roche and Bill Mc Donough and LeddyMaytumStacy and...

I haevn't seen any of the work out of there as of yet, but Fer Chirssakes man, read beyond the press release. Whole building performance/ ecology is where the market for buildings is moving (witness LEED; even with all its warts). 'Green Design' doesn't mean anti-design any more than 'Code-Compliant Design' is anti-design. It all boils down to the skill (or lack thereof) of the building team; or in this case student.

If you going to endict an entire curricula, then link to some examples.

Posted by: Regan Martin on Jul 25, 05 | 1:41 pm

I've been to the school and some of the classes. Discussions, dialogue, and designs are a bit on the mediocre side. The classes are informative at best and is better suited for those starting their interest in green design or are complete self-starters who need a starting off point. Plus add factors such as lack of accreditation, class meetings that are all once a week for about an hour and a half, and not too innovative of faculty with may be one or two here and there, makes you question where the institution is headed. Tuition is dirt cheap though. Most students who attend are deeply interested in the subject matter with a varying range of experiences. I don't know about the upcoming semester, supposedly it will be good. Get on their e-mail list and find out.

Posted by: mad+dash on Jul 25, 05 | 6:12 pm

Regan Martin:

Maybe I should've been more specific and level-headed. I am not ranting against so-called 'green' design, nor simply reading the school's press release, but rather reacting specifically to years worth of fairly uninteresting, cliched and cartoony (if not anti) 'organic' design found in the school's marketing material -- particularly problemmatic in light of certain reactionary, even regressive anti-aesthetic tendencies of the Bay Area context (just check out the amount of fuss and whining made over the DeYoung before it started)...if you think otherwise please post links to any strong design work from the school...and by the way, I would argue Kevin Roche is in a very different vein than your other "organic" architect examples above -- he built crazy megastructures like the Hartford Arena and drive-thru corporate headquarters looking like Paladian Villas on steroids "Fer Chirssakes man" (as well as the amazing Cummins Engine plant in his earlier career); and for that matter what do any of those architects have to do directly with the school anyway? - besides the worked-over ghost of FLWright (ala Taliesen Fellowship's regurgitation/bastardization of the masters' work).

Posted by: bothands on Jul 25, 05 | 8:06 pm

I'm interested in anyone's opinion who knows something about the SFIA. I'm considering doing a Masters by distance learning and I've never been to the place. I'm a practicing architect and I want to learn more about this strange occupation, including improving my design skills.
Please post your views of the SFIA. Thanks!
What does the professional community think of it?

Posted by: Fred4 on Mar 02, 06 | 3:20 am

Hi Fred4, my name is yuan xue liang and I am from Hong Kong , China and I am now working and living in Beijing in the field of urban
design. I have similarily question as you. I am currently looking for a distance learning program of architecture so that I could to learn more about architecture.

I have learnt that San Francisco Institute of Architecture is the only
institute that provide distance learning architecture. Actually Accreditation is not an issue for me. I hope to find an quality, inspiring architecture program so that i could work during the day and study at night.

I have visit SFIA website and I think the school is good, it has
passion and the program is well structured and its focus on
ecological design is increasingly important nowday.

I want to ask if anybody could tell me more about the school, share
their experiences of the school and their understanding of the school.

Cheers

yuan xue liang

Posted by: yuan xue liang on Apr 26, 07 | 11:41 pm

I am a distance learning student at SFIA. At the beginning, I felt great about the program: the reading material is very progressive and mostly interesting, the style of "teaching" is very self-directed, and questioning of material is not only encouraged, but required.

Initially, I would hear back from the school shortly after I'd submit an assignment. The replies to my work would be well-thought and well-written indicators of how I was doing.

I noticed it started to take longer to hear back from them, and it got worse from there. There have been periods were I haven't heard a word from them for months, not even a simple email expressing that my assignments were received. When I've contacted the school over the phone about this and other concerns, I generally get told that someone will call me back. No one has ever called me back -- I always have to keep calling to get in touch with them.

I think that the program at SFIA could be exceptional but they fall short. I believe that they are well-intentioned people; I like to think that they are just understaffed and not intentionally ignoring me. At any rate, when I started school there I planned on SFIA being a large part of my educational plans. Now, I will just finish the courses I've signed up for. Which is unfortunate, because they offer such a unique and needed service. I certainly hope they get their act together.

Posted by: divinehammer on Jan 18, 08 | 1:05 pm