Our firm is in the middle of design documentation and detailing on two very interesting projects. It is so rewarding to be working at this level of detail…evaluating the way that the structural frame integrates with the building envelope and then creates interior space. And, it is magical to be a part of the team that is dreaming about what could be with energetic and engaged clients. It makes my days just fly by and provides such reward. I am always amazed at the energy that folks put into thinking, evaluating and commenting on their wishes and desires.

As the architect, there comes the time when coordination needs to take place, and in my book, this is the time when the magic takes place. During this critical juncture, the architect takes all of these esoteric dreams and desires and translates them into a concrete set of documents that will be used by the contractors to build the facility. The contractor, of course, offers the final interpretation of the dream, but the architect has seen it all before in their imagination, and the energy that goes into this coordination and detailing (the dream state) is simply enormous. Without this coordination, the act of building would be very complex indeed. We have to picture it…consider it…change it…and evolve it to the point where simple shapes and forms, individual systems, and divergent pieces and parts transform themselves into architecture.

I am very concerned about the “lost” art of design coordination. As the years pass, fewer and fewer architects hold a true passion for this type of work, and as the level of expectation of our client is increasing, the amount of time that is set aside for true coordination and detailing seems to be slipping away. We have to be patient. We have to set aside the time and really do our best at this phase of the project. It isn’t easy to consider every facet of a building that is still in the dream phase. And, it’s overwhelming when one begins to understand that the architect has to evaluate and make decisions on every single aspect of a facility nearly two years prior to its realization.

So, architects of the world, seize the time to coordinate and detail! And, never forget that without energy, rigor and passion towards coordination…all of those early dreams will simply be lost in translation.

It became clear to me the other night that after all of these, years, I have a lot to learn. Our firm is working on the design of a very nice church addition and we had been waffling around with the plan of the sanctuary over the past few months. We would look at it one way and get some folks to engage, and then they would ask us to look at it another way and others would prefer that layout. And then, it dawned on me. Our design is all about flexibility. And, we just keep on showing them only a portion of the story.

That is the issue with drawings. They are static. As architects, we see the potential of the space and have a vision that is so darn hard to communicate in graphic form to the client group. And, a fixed plan is exactly that. It is a plan that is fixed and cannot rely on the viewer to understand the potential flexibility. In order for the client to understand the flexibility, we have to show them the potential.

You just never keep learning. Architecture is all about communication…and you have to tell the entire story.