Entitled "An Architect's Story", the video features Chris Downey, a blind architect and founder of "Architecture for the Blind" in San Francisco. The piece, which debuted at the AIA National Convention last week, focuses on Downey's approach to architecture before and after unexpectedly becoming blind in 2008, and features talking-head interviews with Downey, one of his clients, and a student of his at UC Berkeley.
The documentary piece is starkly different in approach and style to the first installment of the "Look Up" campaign. Yes, both have the kind of generically-inspiring music one would have equal luck finding in either a Koch Industries' ad or the trailer for a young-adult romantic drama. But while the first spot, tasked with framing the "Look Up" identity, tended towards cinematic, fast-cut clips of dramatic or cerebral moments to churn up excitement about the profession, "An Architect's Story" is more focused on personal perspective. It strives to take Downey's insights from his extraordinary position within the profession and make them universal to all (current and potential) architects – specifically in the piece, this is communicated by his student, Sana, who explains how Chris inspires her approach to architecture and the world.
But does this kind of story actually fulfill the campaign's agenda, to "re-connect the public with architecture and position new generations of architects as catalysts of growth and visionaries for renewal"? Downey's position is indeed remarkable, and showcasing his perseverance and continued success offers the same kind of no-questions-asked inspiration seen in Nike adverts or charity walkathons. Still, the doc seems to hinge on addressing architects, with how a special instance can inform practice in new ways, and deepen the personal connection an architect has to their work (rather than a non-architect's connection to any facet of the built environment). What do you think? Let us know your thoughts on the doc in the comments.
Editor's note: The original version of this post referred to "An Architect's Story" as an ad. While it is involved in the AIA's "Look Up" public awareness campaign, it is a documentary-style mini-feature, and not strictly an advertisement.
6 Comments
the only spin i could put on this is - someone watches the ad and thinks "a blind architect? how does that work? don't architects need sight to do this and that.....".......in other words, it might get people to start thinking about what an architect does indirectly.
There's a joke in here, about the visually impaired architect having better vision than a sighted one.
I don't blame the AIA for embracing the commodification of identity politics/marketing that is trendy, but why can't architecture be about making dope buildings....
It's important to note the second phase of the campaign has not yet *officially* launched; the Chris Downey video was previewed at the national convention, but it's not until July that the next campaign actually kicks in. In the second phase the AIA will be asking people to make their own films, telling their own story of the role architecture plays in "looking up", metaphorically (and literally too, of course, if one so desires).
I think the tagline of *this* video*, being without sight but not without vision, is excellent as a way of communicating that architects are not just here to make the engineers' work look pretty.
(Also, a joke could be made about so many of us being without site but not without vision: also true.)
I agree with lighty. I mean think about this campaign like an album, is this really the second track, isn't the second song usually the single, and isn't this a "B" side? The first ad, fine, I'll buy into your narrative, but where is Chris in the first campaign, where is the linkage?
I wished the campaign would have been entitled 'look around' rather than 'look up'. Looking up is usually reserved for the contemplation of a starchitect creation, looking around is how most people experience their communities.
This latest add is loaded with 'feel good'. Who's going to say boo about a blind architect?
I wish him well.
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.