I just move to Atlant a temporarily from Los Angeles. Am I blind, or is there very little to no creative community here? Any interesting architecture firms besides Scogin.Elam?
When you drive around Atlanta there is massive building projects---but mostly McMansion track developments and standard mega-malls
decatur,
while it isn't as publicized as other cities, atlanta has a thriving creative community (yes, beyond scoginelam)...
as you probably already know, the new high museum extension will be opening soon (you can already check out the restaurant, i think), and the MODA (museum of design atlanta) has been getting better and better exhibits. if you'd like directions, i can give them. the Comtemporary Art Center is another great gallery, as well as eyedrum on MLK Jr Dr (they just showed 3 of g.matta-clark's films w/ discussion afterwords the other night). there are a dozen or so galleries within walking distance in castleberry hill...
in terms of "interesting" architectural firms, there are many small- to medium-sized firms who are doing some exceptional work, but don't get national recognition. personally, i find lots of the firms here very "interesting"...they don't have to be published to be interesting. i think there has been a discussion about this in the past...feel free to browse my previous posts and do a search for atlanta in the discussions.
where are you driving around, by the way? have you driven through inman park, little 5, cabbagetown, candler park, oakhurst, east atlanta? it's just a shame that people (like koolhaas) formulate opinions about atlanta without sampling some of the best neighborhoods first.
and of course, if you want to see some the 'creative community' here in atlanta, you have to check out the local music scene. it's a good one. head to east atlanta on any given night and you'll hear some great music.
hmmm...yes, I've driven through inman park, little 5, cabbagetown, candler park, oakhurst, east atlanta and seen some great music, and a handful of galleries openings (art)--have not been to MODA yet, but am interested in the evo6 exhibition. I've found Lake Lanier for boating, the dekalb farmers market rocks, etc.
But in terms of architecture, it's harder to find. Modernism seems dead here, although all the new cultural buildings will hopefully heighten the awareness of what good design can do for a city. The newspaper does not really have an architecture critic--more of a journalist reporting (good writing, but not critical). The ajc does not feel they need an architectutral critic, that the city doesn't want one...I've knocked on their door and that's a quote from the editor.
With Geargia Tech's architecture school, I know the city has got to be filled with good designers---but are they building???
not sure how I feel about that...my first reaction is: that would be fantastic, if Modernism died...like any old man, its infirmities have been over-exposed, and death will soon follow.
no, you're not blind, but if you were, i must be blind, too.
atlanta is a creativity deficient city, though there are people who think they are creative. and it's not referring to just architecture. i don't see its creative community booming. it's also a strange city with unorthodox city layout. per koolhaas, atlanta is not a city, it is a landscape. i personally think atlanta lacks an identity. i planned to get out because of the creative environment, and i got out.
creativity issue aside, atlanta is a rather pleasant place to live though. new apartments with good amenities, relatively low living standard, laid back atmosphere, and people are friendly, in general.
Decatur,
If you can't find it in (downtown)Decatur, then you're not looking very hard.
If you were in one of ATLs standard suburbs, I'd tell ya to get intown. Go to Decatur, L5P, Va Highlands, the 'West Side', Downtown, Midtown, Buckhead. There is a bit of interest outside the perimeter in 'downtown' Smyrna, but it really aint there yet. Marietta square is a nice island, but no real nightlife. There is a lot of stuff up GA400, but it's not worth making a real trek for.
Go get a creative loafing, & check some of these web sites: link">www.armadaMagazine.com]link[/url] link link
Anyway, I got tired of the 'ATL scene, so I moved to Luanda....updates to come. Basically, all I can say @ this point is WOW, & OH CHIT!
Most cities in America don't have an architectural critic at the newspaper.
Most cities are uninterested in Modern, Neo-Modern, Contemporary Architecture.
Most ciites require diggin deep to find the counter-culture.
And Most citites therefore have an unbelievably robust counter-culture that is full of creative people.
Atlanta is no different than any other city and it has great weather, and great neighborhoods, and hot women.
Exceptions: NYC, LA, Chicago.
I've heard that YAF (Young Architects Forum) is announcing the winners of Emerging Voices this Thursday (October 27th) at their monthly social. Also they are taking suggestions for next year which can include programming for cultural awareness and engagement.
YAF Website looks like it is in the works but you can see some info at YAFatlanta.org (click that text on the pdf)
With all of the info you've already been given it should lead you to find that we actually do have culture and a distinct character. Atlanta is fractured, disjointed and quirky. Welcome to a growing city in the South. It's beautiful, except for those McMansions and Malls...
It is funny that I haven't heard any criticism of Atlantic Station in this ATL discussion (although I know it has been covered before). It is an exciting community model that is getting a lot of attention right now. Due to the nature of the south, however, it got hit with the "bland" stick in design development.
ATL = NYC-like bouroughs + LA traffic - coolness and sexiness of LA & NY scenes
oh yeah, decatur is great. but go to oakhurst (over by agnes scott). Universal Joint is a converted service station that has amazing wings and beer (boddington's on draft!)
id say auburn has all locals beat. "ridiculous?" no. yes spsu is trying. ask any local firms who actually want decent recent grads and they would pick spsu grads over tech for the most part. i do think tech is stronger in many areas over the other ga schools.
lets face it though, there isnt anything special about any of these schools.
i agree with your first staatement about the academic standing. they are one of the best schools in the southeast. the only reason i say that a firm, be it arch, civil, mech, etc., would choose a poly grad over tech is that many people say that spsu is more "hands on" while tech is more theoretical. when one graduates from spsu they know how to work a building. perfect example is the chick sitting next to me right now. (at work). she admitts that she was ill prepared for the real profession. after saying this, i love theory and concept over reality any day. so in this aspect tech has it. with auburn and clemson at the line with them.
believe what you wish. i have heard it.
j, I'm sure GaTech is a fine school with high admission standards...however, it is unlikely that the average test scores and GPA's of admitted freshmen are any better than those at UF. Just to clear that up.
as far as the architecture program goes, the UF SoA requires students to pin-up after 2 years for admission into the upper division of the Bachelor of Design in Architecture degree program. Typically, just over 200 students begin the lower division program, while about 120-140 make it to the pin-up semester, and 96 are allowed into the upper division.
wow J, seriously, GaTech as the intellectual hub of the southeast?!?!?! please...
UF, is very rigorous, and takes only the best students. The few people I have met from GaTech have struck me as more than a little weird.
Not to mention about the stories they tell of chicken livers being thrown at jurors during crits. Don't know if that story is true or not.
I mean GaTech sounds like a good place, wasnt Monica PoncedeLeon teaching there? But it definetely is not the best in the south.
for the record, there are many scad and spsu graduates that our firm would hire before the typical ga tech grad
we don't do paper architecture !
for that reason, we look for candidates who offer BOTH talent AND a real-world perspective. day-in / day-out, scad and spsu graduates tend to consistently offer the most reliable combination of those two attributes
that is not to say we don't have to screen candidates from all three schools carefully -- weak candidates manage to get through all three programs. but, we find that too many graduates of the ga tech program have an unrealistic, and inflated, view of their own talents and their own value
also, for the record, my own degree is from ga tech
digger. thank you. thats what i was trying to say. oh and plexus r+d princ's graduated from uf. i think. i know they then went to princeton.
anyway. im sure that there is individual talent at each school. its just a matter of opinion as to what a firm, or you as an individual, terms important.
decatur,
i hope this banter of "which school is better" helps you discover the true essence of atlanta. if it has, there are approx. 200 other threads on the discussion board where you can discuss arch. schools as if they were football teams. best of luck!
re: "ask any local firms who actually want decent recent grads (blah blah) ..."
This entire discussion depends on personal criteria and the firms you are actually referring to... it can go on forever in its ambling state...
Therefore, back to the topic at hand: Creativity in Atlanta
"Creativity is...seeing something that doesn't exist already. You need to find out how you can bring it into being and that way be a playmate with God." Michele Shea
So, Decatur, the problem is not that Atlanta lacks Creativity... it is that not enough people in Atlanta are acting positively towards solving those things in which they find it deficient.
Get out there to change, find, or create those things that you seek.
Let the quitters leave. I hear there is room in L.A.
as someone that attended UF for undergrad and GaTech for grad school, let me clear up the argument between gators and jackets...
for me, the schools are the exact opposite...UF is great for undergrad but sucks for grad school...GT is OK for undergrad but really good for grad school...
as a professional, i certainly can't imaging choosing a southern poly student over a GT student (or UF for that matter).
for me the combination of UF and GT was very complimentary...at UF i really learned how to create space in buildings...at GT i learned a lot about urbanism and theory...there were a lot of things that i learned at GT that i really question why they weren't even mentioned at UF...the topic of urbanism and urban design was virtually absent at UF during my undergrad education at UF (96-00)...the focus was really on the building...
the studio work ethic at UF is more rigorous than any other school that i know of...during my first semester at GT there were myself and 3 other students that were from UF and we far outworked most of our classmates, thus we were branded "the florida guys" and most people didn't like us for a semester or two...
yeah, so i live in atlanta as well and agree with some of the others above that this city is a bit of a wasteland with respect to 'culture' and not only modern architecture but clients who even know what the hell it is. compared to the northeast and LA, atlanta is absolutely dead.
this town hasnt a clue and given its current pattern (which is unchecked sprawl in all directions) dont expect that to change anytime soon. the only thing that we can hope for is that more sophisticated clients start migrating down here and want some interesting work.
this new urbanism garbage has gotten hold of many of the developements around here and just will not let go.
see link --
...and we all know about the disaster at atlantic station: link
right now atlanta has its sights set on quantity not quality.
ahhh...I read about some of your frustrations with contractors and owners compromising design specifications. You're working in Atlanta. NOW that makes more sense!!!
you are correct --
that all works into it. do you know any good contractors around here??
that might be another way in, if you know what i mean. at least if you
can rely on the contractor to do decent work at a fair price, which is one less problem.
check out goux construction + architecture as a contractor in atlanta...they're actually a design/build firm, but i think that they still do GC work...one of the guys gave a lecture in my pro practice class...he did all of the concrete formwork on a project himself because he wanted it to be perfect
Hey, I have been here for just over a year. It is a strange town in dire need of urban planning. There are tons of Georgian natives that are apathetic to change (as with many cities). My advice is to work for a firm with some interesting clients, get some practical experience, and get out in a couple of years before you lose your inspiration. The music scene is great, and there are plenty of outdoors to be explored.
Oct 31, 05 1:01 pm ·
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Atlanta, GA
I just move to Atlant a temporarily from Los Angeles. Am I blind, or is there very little to no creative community here? Any interesting architecture firms besides Scogin.Elam?
When you drive around Atlanta there is massive building projects---but mostly McMansion track developments and standard mega-malls
HELP!!!
There is none. I've been here for a year trying to find it, along with my soul, but both are MIA.
What kind of stuff are you looking for, decatur?
decatur,
while it isn't as publicized as other cities, atlanta has a thriving creative community (yes, beyond scoginelam)...
as you probably already know, the new high museum extension will be opening soon (you can already check out the restaurant, i think), and the MODA (museum of design atlanta) has been getting better and better exhibits. if you'd like directions, i can give them. the Comtemporary Art Center is another great gallery, as well as eyedrum on MLK Jr Dr (they just showed 3 of g.matta-clark's films w/ discussion afterwords the other night). there are a dozen or so galleries within walking distance in castleberry hill...
in terms of "interesting" architectural firms, there are many small- to medium-sized firms who are doing some exceptional work, but don't get national recognition. personally, i find lots of the firms here very "interesting"...they don't have to be published to be interesting. i think there has been a discussion about this in the past...feel free to browse my previous posts and do a search for atlanta in the discussions.
where are you driving around, by the way? have you driven through inman park, little 5, cabbagetown, candler park, oakhurst, east atlanta? it's just a shame that people (like koolhaas) formulate opinions about atlanta without sampling some of the best neighborhoods first.
and of course, if you want to see some the 'creative community' here in atlanta, you have to check out the local music scene. it's a good one. head to east atlanta on any given night and you'll hear some great music.
hope this helps.
while i'm at it, don't people read Creative Loafing? this stuff isn't that hard to find, you know...it's in the weekly free paper...
get out of decatur, decatur.
Actually, Eddie's Attic is a great music venue....which is in Decatur.
hmmm...yes, I've driven through inman park, little 5, cabbagetown, candler park, oakhurst, east atlanta and seen some great music, and a handful of galleries openings (art)--have not been to MODA yet, but am interested in the evo6 exhibition. I've found Lake Lanier for boating, the dekalb farmers market rocks, etc.
But in terms of architecture, it's harder to find. Modernism seems dead here, although all the new cultural buildings will hopefully heighten the awareness of what good design can do for a city. The newspaper does not really have an architecture critic--more of a journalist reporting (good writing, but not critical). The ajc does not feel they need an architectutral critic, that the city doesn't want one...I've knocked on their door and that's a quote from the editor.
With Geargia Tech's architecture school, I know the city has got to be filled with good designers---but are they building???
thanks for the Plexus R+D, that is great.
teresa anderson from New Orleans is playing at Eddie's Attic in decatur in early november. highly recommend it!
I second Plexus R+D
are plexus rd building anything?
...Modernism seems dead here...
not sure how I feel about that...my first reaction is: that would be fantastic, if Modernism died...like any old man, its infirmities have been over-exposed, and death will soon follow.
I think the P-RD control tower at the ATL airport is currently under construction...
that's 2nd hand info...no clue if they even did above-mentioned project? couldn't find anything on their site to verify it...
thats, pretty much atlanta, to be honest. superficial as fuck....i can't wait to graduate and move completely out of this region!
nIceman, plexus has a few projects under construction and in permitting.
check out dencity design also
http://dencitydesign.com/
you sound just like me 2 years ago.
no, you're not blind, but if you were, i must be blind, too.
atlanta is a creativity deficient city, though there are people who think they are creative. and it's not referring to just architecture. i don't see its creative community booming. it's also a strange city with unorthodox city layout. per koolhaas, atlanta is not a city, it is a landscape. i personally think atlanta lacks an identity. i planned to get out because of the creative environment, and i got out.
creativity issue aside, atlanta is a rather pleasant place to live though. new apartments with good amenities, relatively low living standard, laid back atmosphere, and people are friendly, in general.
i like the sub-categories on the dencity site:
Who, What and Why.
I thought the same thing. Why?
best use of photoshop ever!
Decatur,
If you can't find it in (downtown)Decatur, then you're not looking very hard.
If you were in one of ATLs standard suburbs, I'd tell ya to get intown. Go to Decatur, L5P, Va Highlands, the 'West Side', Downtown, Midtown, Buckhead. There is a bit of interest outside the perimeter in 'downtown' Smyrna, but it really aint there yet. Marietta square is a nice island, but no real nightlife. There is a lot of stuff up GA400, but it's not worth making a real trek for.
Go get a creative loafing, & check some of these web sites:
link">www.armadaMagazine.com]link[/url]
link
link
Anyway, I got tired of the 'ATL scene, so I moved to Luanda....updates to come. Basically, all I can say @ this point is WOW, & OH CHIT!
I met some of the guys from dencity a couple of years ago and they seem pretty nice. They're both Smith-Dalia.
Most cities in America don't have an architectural critic at the newspaper.
Most cities are uninterested in Modern, Neo-Modern, Contemporary Architecture.
Most ciites require diggin deep to find the counter-culture.
And Most citites therefore have an unbelievably robust counter-culture that is full of creative people.
Atlanta is no different than any other city and it has great weather, and great neighborhoods, and hot women.
Exceptions: NYC, LA, Chicago.
Decatur / Fakeid
Also check out:
http://www.eyedrum.org/
http://www.atlmodern.com/
http://www.docomomoga.org/
http://dust-digital.com/
http://www.pastemagazine.com/
I've heard that YAF (Young Architects Forum) is announcing the winners of Emerging Voices this Thursday (October 27th) at their monthly social. Also they are taking suggestions for next year which can include programming for cultural awareness and engagement.
YAF Website looks like it is in the works but you can see some info at YAFatlanta.org (click that text on the pdf)
With all of the info you've already been given it should lead you to find that we actually do have culture and a distinct character. Atlanta is fractured, disjointed and quirky. Welcome to a growing city in the South. It's beautiful, except for those McMansions and Malls...
It is funny that I haven't heard any criticism of Atlantic Station in this ATL discussion (although I know it has been covered before). It is an exciting community model that is getting a lot of attention right now. Due to the nature of the south, however, it got hit with the "bland" stick in design development.
ATL = NYC-like bouroughs + LA traffic - coolness and sexiness of LA & NY scenes
Great airport, though.
oh yeah, decatur is great. but go to oakhurst (over by agnes scott). Universal Joint is a converted service station that has amazing wings and beer (boddington's on draft!)
ok. i have lived here some, all of my life. i have a very hard time loving where i live.
oh, and ga tech isn't anything special. spsu and scad are probably better.
smaller. but better. kind of.
my understanding is that SCAD is all about money--cranking out grads as a business and spsu is trying, but its more like a vocational school.
don't forget about auburn's school of architecture jsut 90 miles away and for that matter Clemson's closer
id say auburn has all locals beat. "ridiculous?" no. yes spsu is trying. ask any local firms who actually want decent recent grads and they would pick spsu grads over tech for the most part. i do think tech is stronger in many areas over the other ga schools.
lets face it though, there isnt anything special about any of these schools.
hmm....i've heard great things about tech as well as auburn
i agree with your first staatement about the academic standing. they are one of the best schools in the southeast. the only reason i say that a firm, be it arch, civil, mech, etc., would choose a poly grad over tech is that many people say that spsu is more "hands on" while tech is more theoretical. when one graduates from spsu they know how to work a building. perfect example is the chick sitting next to me right now. (at work). she admitts that she was ill prepared for the real profession. after saying this, i love theory and concept over reality any day. so in this aspect tech has it. with auburn and clemson at the line with them.
believe what you wish. i have heard it.
j, I'm sure GaTech is a fine school with high admission standards...however, it is unlikely that the average test scores and GPA's of admitted freshmen are any better than those at UF. Just to clear that up.
as far as the architecture program goes, the UF SoA requires students to pin-up after 2 years for admission into the upper division of the Bachelor of Design in Architecture degree program. Typically, just over 200 students begin the lower division program, while about 120-140 make it to the pin-up semester, and 96 are allowed into the upper division.
wow J, seriously, GaTech as the intellectual hub of the southeast?!?!?! please...
UF, is very rigorous, and takes only the best students. The few people I have met from GaTech have struck me as more than a little weird.
Not to mention about the stories they tell of chicken livers being thrown at jurors during crits. Don't know if that story is true or not.
I mean GaTech sounds like a good place, wasnt Monica PoncedeLeon teaching there? But it definetely is not the best in the south.
for the record, there are many scad and spsu graduates that our firm would hire before the typical ga tech grad
we don't do paper architecture !
for that reason, we look for candidates who offer BOTH talent AND a real-world perspective. day-in / day-out, scad and spsu graduates tend to consistently offer the most reliable combination of those two attributes
that is not to say we don't have to screen candidates from all three schools carefully -- weak candidates manage to get through all three programs. but, we find that too many graduates of the ga tech program have an unrealistic, and inflated, view of their own talents and their own value
also, for the record, my own degree is from ga tech
digger. thank you. thats what i was trying to say. oh and plexus r+d princ's graduated from uf. i think. i know they then went to princeton.
anyway. im sure that there is individual talent at each school. its just a matter of opinion as to what a firm, or you as an individual, terms important.
they did graduate from UF
<begin sarcasm>
decatur,
i hope this banter of "which school is better" helps you discover the true essence of atlanta. if it has, there are approx. 200 other threads on the discussion board where you can discuss arch. schools as if they were football teams. best of luck!
<end sarcasm>
My penis is bigger than your penis.
re: "ask any local firms who actually want decent recent grads (blah blah) ..."
This entire discussion depends on personal criteria and the firms you are actually referring to... it can go on forever in its ambling state...
Therefore, back to the topic at hand: Creativity in Atlanta
"Creativity is...seeing something that doesn't exist already. You need to find out how you can bring it into being and that way be a playmate with God." Michele Shea
So, Decatur, the problem is not that Atlanta lacks Creativity... it is that not enough people in Atlanta are acting positively towards solving those things in which they find it deficient.
Get out there to change, find, or create those things that you seek.
Let the quitters leave. I hear there is room in L.A.
BTW: Plexus is NOT building a tower at Hartsfield
the tower at hartfield is the biggest ever though. so my penis is biggest.
usc rules.
as someone that attended UF for undergrad and GaTech for grad school, let me clear up the argument between gators and jackets...
for me, the schools are the exact opposite...UF is great for undergrad but sucks for grad school...GT is OK for undergrad but really good for grad school...
as a professional, i certainly can't imaging choosing a southern poly student over a GT student (or UF for that matter).
for me the combination of UF and GT was very complimentary...at UF i really learned how to create space in buildings...at GT i learned a lot about urbanism and theory...there were a lot of things that i learned at GT that i really question why they weren't even mentioned at UF...the topic of urbanism and urban design was virtually absent at UF during my undergrad education at UF (96-00)...the focus was really on the building...
the studio work ethic at UF is more rigorous than any other school that i know of...during my first semester at GT there were myself and 3 other students that were from UF and we far outworked most of our classmates, thus we were branded "the florida guys" and most people didn't like us for a semester or two...
damn...I didn't mean to set off that discussion. it was just a quick word to remove UF from the lump.
UF is for hacks
bloody waste!
every school has there hacks
if we're talking southerns schools let add in Tulane minus the football part...yeah Reed Kroloff
yeah, so i live in atlanta as well and agree with some of the others above that this city is a bit of a wasteland with respect to 'culture' and not only modern architecture but clients who even know what the hell it is. compared to the northeast and LA, atlanta is absolutely dead.
this town hasnt a clue and given its current pattern (which is unchecked sprawl in all directions) dont expect that to change anytime soon. the only thing that we can hope for is that more sophisticated clients start migrating down here and want some interesting work.
this new urbanism garbage has gotten hold of many of the developements around here and just will not let go.
see link --
...and we all know about the disaster at atlantic station:
link
right now atlanta has its sights set on quantity not quality.
ahhh...I read about some of your frustrations with contractors and owners compromising design specifications. You're working in Atlanta. NOW that makes more sense!!!
ahhh, a reputation i have. hmmm.
you are correct --
that all works into it. do you know any good contractors around here??
that might be another way in, if you know what i mean. at least if you
can rely on the contractor to do decent work at a fair price, which is one less problem.
check out goux construction + architecture as a contractor in atlanta...they're actually a design/build firm, but i think that they still do GC work...one of the guys gave a lecture in my pro practice class...he did all of the concrete formwork on a project himself because he wanted it to be perfect
link
Hey, I have been here for just over a year. It is a strange town in dire need of urban planning. There are tons of Georgian natives that are apathetic to change (as with many cities). My advice is to work for a firm with some interesting clients, get some practical experience, and get out in a couple of years before you lose your inspiration. The music scene is great, and there are plenty of outdoors to be explored.
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