Back To Storrs...

This year began last Tuesday with the usual hustle and bustle of students rushing to their new classes and taking their seats near familiar faces they missed over the long three months of summer vacation. Professors wasted no time handing out their assignments and lists of expectations, while students of the SoA began settling in to their new, cozy studio bays (or watercolor classrooms). Our plates were immediately full of projects and to-do-lists, and we almost didn't notice the newest litter of students roaming the halls looking lost, intimidated, and confused.

Why, hello first years....

Welcome to the SoA! You have just completed your first week of the rest of your creative lives and the roller coaster is just beginning. You've met a few nice people, made acquaintences with your equally terrified neighbor, and perhaps have learned which professors do not wish to be acknowledged by their last names. Your pristine borco is littered with 4x6 nonsense, that right now, means very little to you, but just give it time... this school gets weirder.

Right now you're a stranger in a foreign land where people speak in datum, hierarchy, and fibonacci. But there are ways for you to quickly become a much more comfortable sleepless zombie in this world of strange faces.

If you attended the free BBQ luncheon on Friday (I don't know why you would turn down free meat), then you might have stayed long enough to meet this years 2009-2010 AIAS Board. Perhaps a small question such as "who are these happy people?" crossed your mind or maybe "why are there so many vowels in the name of their organization?".

Well I encourage you all to bring those questions to our first AIAS meeting of this year, Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009 at 5:30 in the gallery (the room with the sweet paintings in it next to the office). In the meantime, enjoy your lack of sleep and consistent confusion.

Cherish

Studio Culture Policy

A studio culture policy is an agreement negotiated between students, faculty and staff in an effort to create a positive learning environment. The intention is that through these guidelines a culture of respect, optimism, sharing and innovation will emerge; one in which faculty are mindful of the environment they create. Promoting a healthy studio environment is paramount to fostering designers who are socially responsible, confident, and engaged in the profession.

In addition to affecting the learning environment and experience for students, the studio culture policy is also a condition for NAAB accreditation. Although the policy will be a living document that is always open to debate and revision, submitting a carefully considered and thorough draft to NAAB is very important to our accreditation review which will be taking place this spring. Please download the pdf or refer to the handout you received during convocation and post any comments or concerns you have on this blog entry. If you have any questions please email the AIAS at aiasunccharlotte@gmail.com

CNN on Rem Koolhaas

Very interesting interview with Rem Koolhaas. It's actually

the first in a series of three interviews in which he discusses

the complex nature of architecture and the effects that

complexity has had on some of his projects. You can watch

the second and third videos at CNN.com and comment

here on the blog.

Let's chat, shall we?

We've all been there… it's 3 o'clock in the morning, stressed out and fed up you just have to get something off your chest. It could be anything. Maybe you haven't been getting constructive feedback on your project. Maybe there is a new policy you don't agree with, or maybe they just haven't been stocking your favorite candy bar in the vending machine (if that last one pushes you over the edge, might be time to go home and get some sleep). A brief exclamation resonates through the studios and strikes a chord with a few of your fellow classmates. Suddenly, what started as a sarcastic outburst to relieve some stress evolves into a 30 minute free-for-all rant. While these late night gripe sessions are usually more one-liners and exaggerations than constructive criticism, they often do make a good point.

That's what this post is for; those random things that have nothing to do with anything but are important nonetheless. Whenever you have a topic that you think people ought to talk about, a question that has been troubling you, or an idea that you need help with, this blog is always available. Anytime, day or night. For all the things that don't pertain to another specific post, put it here. And for the things that don't necessarily concern the general student population, you can always email AIAS directly.