DEAR CLASS
Solam has asked me to write out my comments for you, based on our interaction
last week when you presented your work. However, I love your class more than any
that I have taught before and so I wrote you this letter instead1. I hope that it helps.
I gather that many of you are rattled by the feedback you got from us. Maybe you’re
even angry. Maybe you’re angry at Solam for having spoken positively about your
work only to find that a panel of his choosing would remain virtually unimpressed. I
completely understand. In fact, after third year I held a grudge against Solam, all the
way until he taught me again in Masters, because of the very same experience that
you had on Tuesday. However, your anger (like mine) is misplaced.
What you experienced on Tuesday is a dilemma that lies at the very heart of our
profession: all of what we know never seems to fit into the confines of the
problem at hand; it is up to each professional to revise what they have learned, in
the context of what must be done to solve the problem at hand. In 3rd year Solam
seems to have successfully introduced you to a new problem. You are now aware of
a need for a humanist component to your work, a narrative that adds a new layer of
meaning, life, consciousness and revolutionary urgency to your work. I could see
that in copious amounts in your presentations. Most of your work imbued
spirituality and a sense of identity into space that does not exist in the work of
younger students. However what we were all critical of, as panellists, is how you
have chosen to revise your learned knowledge (all those sections, plans and
sketches that we worked tirelessly to develop together; all those long nights of
reading). Is it fair to yourselves for you to expect a picture to replace all of that hard
work?
Perhaps to truly grasp what you and I have learned from 3003, and what we have so
misunderstood about Solam’s lessons, we have to look at Solam’s own work: to see
it in context, not just the few images on his PowerPoint slides. He always works with
team of other professionals (architects and planners) who are committed to
producing the plans, sections and reports that make up the bulk of our professional
work. He uses his images to help uncover the intangible reality of the city and thus
adds to the larger body of work. This is a rare and valuable skill and he has taught it
to you.
Welcome to the profession
Mawabo
1 I hope that my writing you this love letter will not result in any harassment charges ☺
Solam has asked me to write out my comments for you, based on our interaction
last week when you presented your work. However, I love your class more than any
that I have taught before and so I wrote you this letter instead1. I hope that it helps.
I gather that many of you are rattled by the feedback you got from us. Maybe you’re
even angry. Maybe you’re angry at Solam for having spoken positively about your
work only to find that a panel of his choosing would remain virtually unimpressed. I
completely understand. In fact, after third year I held a grudge against Solam, all the
way until he taught me again in Masters, because of the very same experience that
you had on Tuesday. However, your anger (like mine) is misplaced.
What you experienced on Tuesday is a dilemma that lies at the very heart of our
profession: all of what we know never seems to fit into the confines of the
problem at hand; it is up to each professional to revise what they have learned, in
the context of what must be done to solve the problem at hand. In 3rd year Solam
seems to have successfully introduced you to a new problem. You are now aware of
a need for a humanist component to your work, a narrative that adds a new layer of
meaning, life, consciousness and revolutionary urgency to your work. I could see
that in copious amounts in your presentations. Most of your work imbued
spirituality and a sense of identity into space that does not exist in the work of
younger students. However what we were all critical of, as panellists, is how you
have chosen to revise your learned knowledge (all those sections, plans and
sketches that we worked tirelessly to develop together; all those long nights of
reading). Is it fair to yourselves for you to expect a picture to replace all of that hard
work?
Perhaps to truly grasp what you and I have learned from 3003, and what we have so
misunderstood about Solam’s lessons, we have to look at Solam’s own work: to see
it in context, not just the few images on his PowerPoint slides. He always works with
team of other professionals (architects and planners) who are committed to
producing the plans, sections and reports that make up the bulk of our professional
work. He uses his images to help uncover the intangible reality of the city and thus
adds to the larger body of work. This is a rare and valuable skill and he has taught it
to you.
Welcome to the profession
Mawabo
1 I hope that my writing you this love letter will not result in any harassment charges ☺
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