This afternoon I took my fourth ARE: "Building Design & Construction Systems." I think this was probably the hardest of the tests I have taken so far because the range of topics covered was very broad and so it felt difficult to prepare for. Also, there were three drawing components to complete in 2 hours 45 minutes, which felt a little tight. As with the other drawing components I have taken, when you get near the end of the testing time, you have to make a decision: do I nit-pick and play around with my proposed solution to make it better (and risk submitting an incomplete solution when the time runs out!), or do I leave it as it is, even though it may include minor mistakes. I have chosen the latter option each time: it is, I think, far better to have a complete solution with a few mistakes than to have one that really is not complete at all.
Today in the mail I (finally!) received the score for my first ARE (Site Planning & Design), which I took back in October. I am pleased to report that I passed!
I just got back from taking my third registration exam: Schematic Design. The test material was not really difficult, but the time constraints made it feel a bit difficult. In the first of two exercises, I had one hour to lay out the interior partitions and furniture for a suite of offices. In the second, I had four hours to lay out the schematic plans for a two-story building given a specific program and code requirements. Neither of these exercises created great architecture, but I hope that I was able to fulfill the program and code requirements sufficiently. There were certainly some things I wished I could have clarified or tweaked, but at a some point, you are just beyond the point of no return! I know I could have been more clear on a few components of each layout, but I am hoping that I made only minor, non-critical errors in the exam.
If you have ever met me, you probably figured out that I love Modern architecture. If you know me well, then you probably know that I love Latin American Modern architecture in particular. If you know me really well, then you have probably heard me talk about my admiration for the great Brazilian Modernist architect Oscar Niemeyer. And if you know me really, really well, then you know that my little black dachshund, Oscar, is named, not after the famous hot dog brand, but after Mr. Niemeyer himself!
Today is my 29th birthday. Today is also the 500th anniversary of the birth of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio (d. 19 August 1580)."I like to be on the edge of the possible." (Jørn Utzon)
Danish architect Jørn Utzon (b. 19 April 1918) died today at the age of 90. Utzon, who is most famous for his design for the Sydney Opera House, won the prestigious Pritzker Prize in 2003. In their award citation, the Pritzker jury commented that Utzon "proves that the marvelous and seemingly impossible in architecture can be achieved. He has always been ahead of his time. He rightly joins the handful of Modernists who have shaped the past century with buildings of timeless and enduring quality."
Although I have not visited his Opera House in person, I did have the opportunity to visit Utzon's Bagsvaerd Kirke (c. 1976) back in the summer of 2006 when I was in Copenhagen for a few days on business. I really love sacred spaces and I have a soft heart for well-designed, beautiful, and inspiring religions architecture, so I was not disappointment with my visit to this wonderful church.
In spite of the fact that the Sydney Opera House is one of the most recognizable and iconic buildings in the entire world for both architects and non-architects alike, Utzon is not a designer who is studied much in school or talked about often in the profession. Before my trip to Denmark, I was only vaguely familiar with the Bagsvaerd Church. I had seen in passing the plan and section of the building. These drawings illustrate the basic concept of the free-flowing, lyrical ceiling floating within a fairly straight-forward, boxy shell.
The exterior of the building is very simple with an almost industrial in feeling. The walls are made up of white concrete and white glazed tiles; the roof is corrugated aluminum. Though austere, the building possesses that simple and elegant warmth prevalent in so much Scandinavian architecture.
The building comprises a number of courtyards, classrooms, offices, a chapel, and a soaring sanctuary space. The sanctuary is by far the real jewel of the building. Though relatively small and compact in plan, the ceiling of the sanctuary is quite high, with clerestory lighting along the rear of the vault. In a design sketch of the ceiling, Utzon showed his inspiration as coming from the clouds. The board-forming of the white concrete vaulting give the ceiling a natural feeling consummate with this inspiration. The simple pine furniture in the sanctuary was designed by Utzon's son Jan and the colorful textiles were designed by his daughter Lin. Behind the white terrazzo altar, a triangular masonry screen separates the main sanctuary from a small prayer chapel, while extensive sky lighting in the corridors adjacent to the sanctuary and from the vault above fill the building with abundant natural light.
Today I took my second A.R.E.: Structural Systems. I must say, it was much better than I had expected. Going into the test, I was thinking "bloodbath," but I am cautiously optimistic that I sustained only a few minor flesh wounds in this battle! I certainly was not over-prepared for the test, but I definitely was not under-prepared either.Well, I did it! Yesterday I took my first ARE: "Site Planning & Design." This was the first of seven tests I will have to take in order to achieving my architectural registration. Though I feel pretty comfortable with my performance, I will have to wait a few weeks until I receive my official score (pass or fail) in the mail.
