Everything you always wanted to know about Architecture* (*but were afraid to ask)
Today we open a new section on our website; this crazy little thing called blog.
We do that to build a direct connection with all the people who have their dream project in mind but are still determining how this could happen or what the hurdles scattered along the path leading to the final delivery of the house keys are.
If they need an architect, do they need an architect? Is an architect worth wasting their time with?
Usually, only architects read what other architects write, thus creating a vicious circle of essays seasoned by jargon, egos and golden rules no one follows.
We will try not to use design slang here; occasionally, we may be forced to utilise some technical term to explain how a process, an architectural detail, or a building layout (there you go) work, but we will apologise unreservedly soon afterwards.
We will explain how specific procedures, such as the planning process, the building regulations, and the party wall agreement, work.
I know it is boring, but essential to understand for everyone who wants to embark on this frightening and beautiful journey that will take us together from an early sketch on a napkin (that’s the narrative architects love; initial sketches are always drawn on a napkin during a dinner with clients at the restaurant) outlining the first project ideas, to the day that the building becomes your home.
We will discuss the subject of sustainability in architecture and, more generally, in life. The building industry is responsible for almost 40% of global energy-related carbon emissions: roughly 30% from operational emissions, the energy needed to heat, cool and power them, and the remaining 10% from materials and construction (source World Green Building Council) and it’s our moral duty to help the trade to be more sustainable and the clients to make the right choices for their projects.
Most importantly, we will try to keep our posts as concise as possible because we are not Marcel Proust, and people will quickly get bored after a minute and thirty seconds of reading.
But then, it’s funny to make all those plans about what we will write on which subjects because we believe that, after a while, this blog will start to live its own life, our professional experiences and stories will change and evolve; eventually we will write about something which we have no idea at the moment what will it be. That’s exciting!
Writing about design and architecture, and I will count later how many times these two words have been utilised in these few lines, it’s a two-way beneficial activity. Firstly because it helps not professionals (potential clients, architecture enthusiasts, blog wanderers) to understand how the discipline works, and secondly for us, the scribe architects, because it will help us reflect on the state of the art of the profession, the approach to technical and human problems, its evolution over time. This exercise will make us better architects and, hopefully, human beings. In short, it’s also a therapeutic process for us.
We are also conscious of how difficult it will be to keep the blog updated and carve out time from our daily schedule to write a post that could make at least some sense.
We thought about it for a long time and finally decided it would be worth it as a direct connection with readers would make our everyday working routine and life more intriguing and inspiring.
So let’s start this journey together,
Welcome aboard.
The laa crew