I'm copying this from the "Visiting Cornell 11.27.06" thread becuase I've added NYC to my itinerary and changed the date... With the updated thread title, it might get more interest.
So, here's my travel plans (subject to change, of course):
Saturday, 11.25: Drive to NYC
Sunday, 11.26: Go to church, wander around NYC
Monday, 11.27: Visit Columbia and Cornell's NYC studio, drive to Ithaca that evening
Tuesday, 11.28: Visit Cornell and/or wander around Ithaca
Wednesday, 11.29: Visit Cornell and/or wander around Ithaca
Thursday, 11.30: Drive back to Chicago
Any GSAPP students care to give me the nickel tour of Avery Hall? (I've been there once before, but it was over eight years ago.) Any NYC Archinectors want to get together for beers or something? Sometime Sunday afternoon or evening would be best for me.
On the other thread, Shashimi46 has offered to show me around Cornell in Ithaca, and Justavisual has offered to show me Cornell's NYC studio.
Still no Columbia GSAPP people willing to represent? Any other NYC Archinectors interested in getting together socially while I'm in town?
Also: Are there any particular advisors or faculty people at either school who I should make a point to set up a meeting with? Ideally, it would be nice to meet with somebody willing to give me the candid lowdown, rather than just the officially-sanctioned sales pitch.
Just bumping this one more time to see if anybody is interested in meeting up. I have a meeting at Cornell at noon on Tuesday, but my schedule is free otherwise.
Well, I just got back from my trip (decided to come home a day early to save some hotel money)...
I briefly visited GSAPP, and although I generally liked what I saw, I wasn't blown away by it, either. Avery Hall is incredibly cramped, and people are practically sitting on top of each other in the studios. Lots of computers, naturally, but relatively little in the way of models or hand drawings. While walking around, most people seemed inclined to avoid eye contact and pretend I wasn't there. Being a former NYC resident, I guess I shouldn't have expected any differently, but it would have been nice to at least gotten a friendly "hello" from somebody.
I spent Monday evening and all day Tuesday up in Ithaca, and spent most of that time hanging around the Cornell campus and the surrounding area. Ithaca itself actually reminds me a lot of Eugene, Oregon... Smallish college town, incredible natural beauty, and lots of flannel and granola. Cornell itself was very nice, and I had a good meeting with Dr. Lily Chi, the director of the graduate architecture program. She gave me a few helpful pointers about my portfolio, gave me tons of information about the program, and led me on a brief tour of the facilities before setting me loose to explore Rand Hall on my own. Rand Hall itself is rather old and decrepit, but much more spacious than Avery, and looks like a cool place with a lot of creative energy... I especially loved the top floor studios. In general, there seemed to be much more of a balance between computers and hand drawings and models, which I appreciated. Dr. Chi introduced me to a couple of the students there, and they were happy to answer any questions I had.
I happen to love waterfalls, so later in the day I did some exploring around the area and got some photos of some of the nicer falls nearby. The Cornell campus reminded me of Rivendell... How many other colleges can claim to have large canyons and waterfalls directly adjacent to the campus? Even if I don't wind up in Ithaca for grad school, I may have to build myself a vacation house there someday.
Overall, I was much more impressed with Cornell than with Columbia, not only in terms of the welcome and the general vibe I got, but also in terms of the facilities and the program itself. Of course, where I end up going is up to the respective admissions committees of the schools I'm applying to, but I feel safe in saying that Cornell is my #1 pick at the moment.
The entire area surrounding Cornell is extremely beautiful, and Ithica is a pretty fun little town considering it's size. I would just mention one thing. The winters up there can be really, really rough and depressing. I've had two friends who've been to school at Cornell, and one of them left after his second year because he just couldn't stand another crazy winter up there. Just something to consider, because Ithaca spends a good portion of the year dark and covered with ice. On the other hand though, Columbia has its' own strange depressing vibe. Columbia is in such a crappy part of Manhattan, and the campus has always seemed uber-Gothic and sad to me.
I've been living in Chicago off and on for 13 years now, so I can deal with crappy winters.
About Columbia, I actually like the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, and don't consider it crappy at all. During my time living in NYC, most of my social life revolved around that neighborhood, and Columbia's location is one of its big draws for me.
For those who are interested, I've posted some photos from my trip.
Cathedral of St. John the Divine, NYC
This is my home church in New York, and is currently undergoing a massive cleaning and restoration project as the result of a severe fire in 2001. The nave is currently closed for restoration, but the Gret Choir has recently been re-opened, and the results are spectacular.
Ithaca, Cornell, and environs
Okay, not much in the way of Cornell itself, but several photos of Fall Creek Gorge and Taughannock Falls.
And as if beautiful gorges and waterfalls wasn't enough, I found a very cool bar near campus with 50+ beers on tap... And not a single Budweiser, Miller, or Coors among them. I felt like a kid in a candy store.
When I visited Cornell, I liked their campus, but their architecture studios really depressed me--not because of the surroundings, but because of the desks! Everyone had built this huge walls around three sides of their little desks, and when I asked why, some student there told me that they don't like to have other people looking at their work or bothering them, so they build enclosures around their desks. This seemed very sad to me. I was already in school at the time, and at our school we had huge open desks in huge open studios and everyone walked around and chatted and collaborated and shared ideas and yes, made fun and did all the fun things like that that I loved in a shared studio environment.
Not sure if that student was correct as to the reasons, but the existence of the boards saddened me nonetheless. The school however has an excellent reputation and seems to turn out excellent students so maybe the enclosures work, who knows. It just wasn't my style.
as a current cornell architecture student, I have not seen any students put up walls around their desks. in fact in the freshman studios, the only walls standing are those that enclose the building itself, so our studio is very collaborative. people love to exchange ideas...maybe it was different before.
my TA once told me that a student from harvard transfered into Cornell and started putting walls around his desk, but everyone took it down.
I didn't notice any such enclosures there, thankfully. It would sort of defeat the purpose of even being in studio... If you don't want anybody to see your work, why not just work from home?
The only enclosures I saw were 6' tall partitions that separated different studio sections in addition to serving as pin-up surfaces. There were maybe a dozen or so desks within each section, which seems reasonable.
ahh, that's good! Perhaps it has changed. This was about 6 years ago.
Yes, I thought it defeated the purpose, too. It was very odd, like working in tall cubicles. The studios were I believe 3rd year studios that I had walked into.
its been relatively warm lately but the cold front's coming in and we're expecting snowfall every single day of this week. temperature just dropped 30 degrees in one night!
That's the same storm we got here in Chicago the other night... 50's and sunny one day, then 20's with snow and ice the next day. Good thing I drove back a day early, or else I would have been driving through the middle of it.
Gin's New York Road Trip
I'm copying this from the "Visiting Cornell 11.27.06" thread becuase I've added NYC to my itinerary and changed the date... With the updated thread title, it might get more interest.
So, here's my travel plans (subject to change, of course):
Saturday, 11.25: Drive to NYC
Sunday, 11.26: Go to church, wander around NYC
Monday, 11.27: Visit Columbia and Cornell's NYC studio, drive to Ithaca that evening
Tuesday, 11.28: Visit Cornell and/or wander around Ithaca
Wednesday, 11.29: Visit Cornell and/or wander around Ithaca
Thursday, 11.30: Drive back to Chicago
Any GSAPP students care to give me the nickel tour of Avery Hall? (I've been there once before, but it was over eight years ago.) Any NYC Archinectors want to get together for beers or something? Sometime Sunday afternoon or evening would be best for me.
Let me know...
*bump*
On the other thread, Shashimi46 has offered to show me around Cornell in Ithaca, and Justavisual has offered to show me Cornell's NYC studio.
Still no Columbia GSAPP people willing to represent? Any other NYC Archinectors interested in getting together socially while I'm in town?
Also: Are there any particular advisors or faculty people at either school who I should make a point to set up a meeting with? Ideally, it would be nice to meet with somebody willing to give me the candid lowdown, rather than just the officially-sanctioned sales pitch.
Just bumping this one more time to see if anybody is interested in meeting up. I have a meeting at Cornell at noon on Tuesday, but my schedule is free otherwise.
go to Piano's and see 'nect's favorite photographer, if you're nice she'll even give you a free drink token...
man, would typically love to meet up...but tis the season to get out of town.......
man, would typically love to meet up...but tis the season to get out of town.......
Well, I just got back from my trip (decided to come home a day early to save some hotel money)...
I briefly visited GSAPP, and although I generally liked what I saw, I wasn't blown away by it, either. Avery Hall is incredibly cramped, and people are practically sitting on top of each other in the studios. Lots of computers, naturally, but relatively little in the way of models or hand drawings. While walking around, most people seemed inclined to avoid eye contact and pretend I wasn't there. Being a former NYC resident, I guess I shouldn't have expected any differently, but it would have been nice to at least gotten a friendly "hello" from somebody.
I spent Monday evening and all day Tuesday up in Ithaca, and spent most of that time hanging around the Cornell campus and the surrounding area. Ithaca itself actually reminds me a lot of Eugene, Oregon... Smallish college town, incredible natural beauty, and lots of flannel and granola. Cornell itself was very nice, and I had a good meeting with Dr. Lily Chi, the director of the graduate architecture program. She gave me a few helpful pointers about my portfolio, gave me tons of information about the program, and led me on a brief tour of the facilities before setting me loose to explore Rand Hall on my own. Rand Hall itself is rather old and decrepit, but much more spacious than Avery, and looks like a cool place with a lot of creative energy... I especially loved the top floor studios. In general, there seemed to be much more of a balance between computers and hand drawings and models, which I appreciated. Dr. Chi introduced me to a couple of the students there, and they were happy to answer any questions I had.
I happen to love waterfalls, so later in the day I did some exploring around the area and got some photos of some of the nicer falls nearby. The Cornell campus reminded me of Rivendell... How many other colleges can claim to have large canyons and waterfalls directly adjacent to the campus? Even if I don't wind up in Ithaca for grad school, I may have to build myself a vacation house there someday.
Overall, I was much more impressed with Cornell than with Columbia, not only in terms of the welcome and the general vibe I got, but also in terms of the facilities and the program itself. Of course, where I end up going is up to the respective admissions committees of the schools I'm applying to, but I feel safe in saying that Cornell is my #1 pick at the moment.
i'm glad you like cornell. it's a great place to be. come burn dragons with us!
The entire area surrounding Cornell is extremely beautiful, and Ithica is a pretty fun little town considering it's size. I would just mention one thing. The winters up there can be really, really rough and depressing. I've had two friends who've been to school at Cornell, and one of them left after his second year because he just couldn't stand another crazy winter up there. Just something to consider, because Ithaca spends a good portion of the year dark and covered with ice. On the other hand though, Columbia has its' own strange depressing vibe. Columbia is in such a crappy part of Manhattan, and the campus has always seemed uber-Gothic and sad to me.
I've been living in Chicago off and on for 13 years now, so I can deal with crappy winters.
About Columbia, I actually like the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, and don't consider it crappy at all. During my time living in NYC, most of my social life revolved around that neighborhood, and Columbia's location is one of its big draws for me.
For those who are interested, I've posted some photos from my trip.
Cathedral of St. John the Divine, NYC
This is my home church in New York, and is currently undergoing a massive cleaning and restoration project as the result of a severe fire in 2001. The nave is currently closed for restoration, but the Gret Choir has recently been re-opened, and the results are spectacular.
Ithaca, Cornell, and environs
Okay, not much in the way of Cornell itself, but several photos of Fall Creek Gorge and Taughannock Falls.
glad you had a good trip gin. now its back to the eames lounger.
cornell wins
twice...
imagine how your architecture will look being surrounded by that...
And as if beautiful gorges and waterfalls wasn't enough, I found a very cool bar near campus with 50+ beers on tap... And not a single Budweiser, Miller, or Coors among them. I felt like a kid in a candy store.
well that's a bonus...for those nights when you're just stuck and can't come up with shit...
...which happens more often than I care to admit.
Wow, I didn't know they had a waterfall.
When I visited Cornell, I liked their campus, but their architecture studios really depressed me--not because of the surroundings, but because of the desks! Everyone had built this huge walls around three sides of their little desks, and when I asked why, some student there told me that they don't like to have other people looking at their work or bothering them, so they build enclosures around their desks. This seemed very sad to me. I was already in school at the time, and at our school we had huge open desks in huge open studios and everyone walked around and chatted and collaborated and shared ideas and yes, made fun and did all the fun things like that that I loved in a shared studio environment.
Not sure if that student was correct as to the reasons, but the existence of the boards saddened me nonetheless. The school however has an excellent reputation and seems to turn out excellent students so maybe the enclosures work, who knows. It just wasn't my style.
(the student made it sound very competitive.)
as a current cornell architecture student, I have not seen any students put up walls around their desks. in fact in the freshman studios, the only walls standing are those that enclose the building itself, so our studio is very collaborative. people love to exchange ideas...maybe it was different before.
my TA once told me that a student from harvard transfered into Cornell and started putting walls around his desk, but everyone took it down.
I didn't notice any such enclosures there, thankfully. It would sort of defeat the purpose of even being in studio... If you don't want anybody to see your work, why not just work from home?
The only enclosures I saw were 6' tall partitions that separated different studio sections in addition to serving as pin-up surfaces. There were maybe a dozen or so desks within each section, which seems reasonable.
ahh, that's good! Perhaps it has changed. This was about 6 years ago.
Yes, I thought it defeated the purpose, too. It was very odd, like working in tall cubicles. The studios were I believe 3rd year studios that I had walked into.
emily- on the weather note i believe it hit 60 yesterday here in Ithaca. Although it does get pretty bleak here sometimes, usually it's not too bad!
its been relatively warm lately but the cold front's coming in and we're expecting snowfall every single day of this week. temperature just dropped 30 degrees in one night!
That's the same storm we got here in Chicago the other night... 50's and sunny one day, then 20's with snow and ice the next day. Good thing I drove back a day early, or else I would have been driving through the middle of it.
Yeah- they claim the snow's coming, but all I've seen is a few flurries, nothing's sticking. It is pretty chilly out though.
Mpls is a balmy 16 right now - that's the high of the past few days. Look out east coast- this alberta clipper is heading your way.
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.