Archinect - Features

Some Clients Are Jerks. And That's OK.

2019-03-21T10:54:00-04:00

What we make things mean.

We’re all guilty of passing quick judgement on others. We do it everyday, most often without giving it a second thought. That idiot who cut in front of you in traffic or the uncouth teen who didn’t hold the door of the café as you were trying to get in with your stroller and a myriad of kids in tow. It’s hardwired in our brains as a remnant of a time when we had to make split-second decisions that would make the difference between life and death. It worked well as a survival heuristic, but nowadays, where the most dangerous activity most of us voluntarily engage in daily is driving, very rarely any of us have to face real and unexpected danger.

Vetting = Power; The Importance of Choosing Your Clients Wisely

2019-02-28T16:00:00-05:00

It’s just like dating.

Unlike many other professional service providers, architects sell services that routinely tie them to a client for multi-year projects, often taking one, two or even more years from kick-off to occupancy. Such long term relationships eventually move past the honeymoon phase to settle into a routine, a more casual association where each party gets to know the other more intimately. Much like a romantic relationship, the qualities, quirks and annoying behaviour traits of the other naturally rise to the surface, as people get more comfortable with one another.

There is nothing inherently good or bad about this, but it does beg the question: How do we ensure that one chooses the right kind of clients? Much like one should probably not get married on a whim, designers ought to spend time ensuring that the clients they take on are a good fit, both from a service provider perspective, as well as on a personal level, as the two eventually become intertwined as the re...

Architects’ Most Unusual Client Requests

2019-02-02T14:00:00-05:00

When people hear architect they assume you are designing houses, office buildings, shopping centers etc. However there is always a special client out there wanting their architect to push the envelope or go beyond the stereotypical project or provide some unexpected service. The following are some architects and designers who shared their most unusual requests from clients.

"The Element of Time": Celebrating a Century of I.M. Pei

2017-04-26T09:09:00-04:00

On April 26th, I.M. Pei turns 100 years old. From his former colleagues to Sir Norman Foster to the architect himself, here are remembrances, anecdotes, and a general celebration of the genius of one of the masters of architecture.