sorry...there is always a poor combination of "consistent internet access" and "free time" to post the china blog. would you believe that I would have to come all the way out to lhasa to find the internet again?!? just kidding, it was mainly an issue of having a studio and an "installation" elective crammed into about 5 weeks.

but I promise that when I get back, august 29, I have all these posts and images and sketches saved up. so until then...

there isn't much to say...in my last post, I showed the new studio space in the basement of the 61st street Manhattan campus building. the review was epic - at least in proportion. but honestly, with three reviews going on at any one time, it became manageable. for me personally, this semester... View full entry

Affectionately referred to as “the dungeon,” Design 6 (fourth year) and Design 8 (thesis) undergrads got a new studio space in the basement of one of our Manhattan campus buildings. I’m pretty pleased with this development, and here you can see two key images: the 70 some odd... View full entry

Today we had another in the series of NYIT “Lunchtime Lectures.” This lecture series features symposiums from current faculty (along with some notable guest appearances) during the free period in our school (when no classes are scheduled, Tuesday and Thursday, 12:30 – 2 PM). They... View full entry

Had a great field trip today with the class of Intro. to Architectural History…I’m the TA for Dr. Brian Brace Taylor. We went down to South Street Seaport to discuss the Urban Fragment. What’s the significance of something like South Street Seaport? Since this is the first... View full entry

well. we were supposed to have a new studio space here in manhattan oh, about, say, 6 weeks ago. At that time, our chairman, david diamond, informed us that, although the project was two weeks late (two weeks into the new semester, slated for completion over winter break), we were officially... View full entry

we all pulled all nighters...well, maybe not all of us. but we were preparing for our SECOND design midterm in a week. seems that the dean wanted a closer look at the projects, so we had to prepare more material after midterm presentations last tuesday/friday. I plotted and ate, returning to the... View full entry

Purple, why not? Actually, it is more of an “if you can’t beat them, join them” approach to our plotters…I can never get blues to print out anything other than purple, so I figured let’s just go with purple. Oh, and the blues you see on screen printed out this time... View full entry

At the beginning of last semester, we were met with tragedy. But I consider this work something that I can honestly say I am proud to be a part of:Tribute Booklet to Kevin Cullen The PDF is a touch under 2MB. It looks great in print (full color with a glossy cover). Personally, I'll be honored to... View full entry

So, probably the least anticipated entry I have made, commencing with the models from last time: model progression And, the notes I took during the review: notes There was a lot of mention thrown around of what a project is “about.” So I made note of all mention that day. For the next... View full entry

So we were told last Friday that today would be a graded concept review with an outside panel of jurors. That’s fine, so I worked on manipulating the programmatic elements to create some passive sustainability opportunities. Last Friday, I came into studio having done my due diligence... View full entry

Just something fun I found...since the NYPD Mounted Unit Training Facility requires dressage space, I went looking for some info on dressage. I found these neat diagrams. Just for fun I drew them up and made a comparrison to my plan process diagrams. the diagram reads funny at this orientation (I... View full entry

This is sad...I am defining relationships between elements of the program, so I made a diagram. the only thing I am happy with is the sad, sad logo I have made for my project with a tentative title. sorry diagram sad logo (desperate plea for help) not even cool logo that I used to program with... View full entry

Thank you, Phish, for Icculus. The block of our site for the design project is a typical NY block near the park. To maximize the built output, the zoning laws for setbacks are pushed to the limit. Nearly all of the buildings there run right up from the edge of the property line, creating this... View full entry

Well allright...back to design studio. I haven't had one since last spring, so I feel like I am ready to get things going. The design problem - build a training facility for the Mounted Police Unit of the NYPD that shares the site with a neighborhood athletic facility. The proposed site for this... View full entry

As per this thread on archinect, I am posting my blog rationale. I think a blog is a real tool to consider and ponder. Perhaps I should have posted this much earlier, but hey, better late than never. I sould like to say that archinect provides a great forum that begins to achieve some of the... View full entry

Sorry, I was waiting on the pictures. And thanks to Giovanna I have them now. So the next film we watched was Antonioni's The Eclipse. We had to respond to any element(s) of the movie of our choosing and create an 8 inch x 8 inch x at LEAST 1 inch construct - only in grey. When we read about the... View full entry

For the second project, the class viewed the documentary The Buena Vista Social Club by Wim Wenders. Information is provided in small sets that add up to the whole. For instance, you don't get a whole map of Havana or New York City, but you are given markers (which, in some cases, happen to be... View full entry

For the first project in Film and Architecture, we watched the film Battleship Potemkin by Eisenstein. The two very clear ideas to me were the montage and sequence = path. These two ideas are related to architecture by the streaming together of experience and journey. This turned into a built site... View full entry

So in structures we had a project that turned into a competition. Using ten (10) 1/8” x 1/8” x 36” basswood sticks, we had to make a cantilever that held an empty soda can as far from the table as possible. The only other rule was, “The cantilever must... View full entry

Territories in Teaching Last night, Tatiana and I braved the Long Island Expressway to visit NYIT's other campus out in Old Westbury. Yes, our school has a Long Island Campus, and the home for second class citizens (ha-ha!), Manhattan. Anyway, the lecture event was “Territories in... View full entry

I had high hopes for the mandatory psychology class in our curriculum. But we're getting nowhere fast. A fellow student walked in a bit late today and said, "Man, you were BURIED in your notebook, what kind of notes do you have for me?" This, after 1.5 hours... View full entry

We have a brilliant elective course this semester that I took - Film & Architecture. Over the course of the semester, we will analyze some famous films (most noted on this site as good films for architecture, I've noticed). Then after discussion (this is a seminar, so naturally), we will... View full entry

My only interaction in 6 semesters of school with Kevin was last semester's studio. We all know how traumatic a studio environment can be - deadlines, pressure, insanity. Right now it doesn't amount to anything fun and worthwhile. Here's a guy who is willing to take a stand on things, pretty hard... View full entry

So our AIAS president, Evan Lepore, in conjunction with the NYIT Manhattan Campus Architecture Chairman Professor David Diamond, organized an introductory/recruiting meeting today. I'm not currently a member, so I and several other upperclassmen decided to attend. I have to say, they have quite a... View full entry

So last spring, we actually did a blog that recorded our work as the studio progressed. But the interactive nature of the web really wasn't exploited ot the fullest. Anyway, I won't link to the blog (because of Archinect rules), but I will post some pictures. The topic: Housing. The site: New... View full entry

I should probably give some background on the eve of school. Background projects, that is. This summer another student, Tatiana, and I entered the Peepshow Pavilion competition. Here's our entry boards for this year's theme, Truth and lies (more pics to follow). View full entry