Each year the Rochester Chapter of the American Institute of Architects celebrates the talent of the Rochester region architects. Saturday June 19th we will once again assemble as a design community to honor the vision and execution of great projects that are so prolific in this region.
I like to think of architecture in terms of music. A successful project cannot be executed without the supporting players. The participation of the engineering disciplines are married to the ambitious visions of the owner that have been translated into a three-dimensional reality, just as a conductor orchestrates the music of the winds with the strings to create a beautiful audible sensation that moves the audience. When brought into this context, by honoring the architect, we honor the entire team.
Good design, led by the architect, also serves the public. We all experience the environment through architecture. Our work place, places of entertainment, public facilities, and homes are all architectural environments that affect us through the duration of the day. By honoring good design we reward the architect for moving us towards healthier, more livable, and sustainable communities. Once again, the architect as the conductor utilizes an understanding of ergonomics, the environment, psychology, engineering, and art to advance society through design.
As a public and as patrons of architecture we should use this occasion celebrating art and architecture to issue a challenge to the architects of Rochester to raise the bar that we use to gauge what is and is not good design. Good design should be, on the surface, aesthetically pleasing, but good design ought to go deeper.
- Good design ought to be sustainable. The architect must educate and advise the client and the public about ways in which to develop the built environment most responsibly as a basic service regardless of LEED® certification goals or standards.
- Good design ought to be economical. Saving energy, recycling building materials, and reusing buildings that are still serviceable are all ways in which good design can be economical. You may even decide that the solution to your building problem is not to build at all. That is okay too.
- Good design ought to contribute to social equity. By finding new and more innovative ways that individual building components can be accessed universally, a good architect can provide a comfortable and livable environment for people who are physically challenged that approaches that of the average person.
- Good design ought to contribute to good health. A well detailed building with carefully planned building systems can inhibit the generation of biological matter that deteriorate our health. Careful orientation of building facades and fenestrations can contribute to the quality of light, reducing eye strain. Meticulous attention to ergonomic detail can ease stress on our bodies during our daily tasks.
This just outlines some of the examples of what makes good design.
Through the awards that we give for design excellence each year we seek to promote the ideals and ideas that are presented here in a public forum. In addition, they are a challenge. These awards are a challenge to architects to exceed the design excellence of today by contributing to solutions that increase the quality of life for us all tomorrow. They are also a challenge for our clients and the public. We want you to know and learn what to expect from us, and hold us to that standard for your sake, the sake of the public, and the sake of the architectural profession as a whole.
Respectfully Submitted By:
Daniel L. Edgell, AIA, NCARB
President AIA Rochester, 2010
