Bill Blanski - post celebration note

Friends

We had a very nice gathering at The Republic Bar in Minneapolis on Friday night (after the celebration in Rapson Hall).


These are the folks who joined in:


Chris Zagarias, Sue Britt, Ann Schley, Bill Wittrock, Art Bartels, Jim Wilson, Roald Gunderson, Hani Ayad (MArch, and Spouse Mary), Norman Barrientos (and spouse Lisa), Bill Blanski, Mark Brennan ('86), Mina Adsit ('86) and Steve Prater (MArch).


One main conclusion - we need to do this more often!


Be well -

Bill

Sathirut Nui Tandanand

I wish to congratulate the University of Minnesota School of Architecture on the Centennial Anniversary. During my time studying under Dean Ralph Rapson, I have had fond memories of the school and still cherish the friendship with my classmates.


Unfortunately, I am unable to attend the celebration due to prior commitments. It is very disappointing not to see my Professors and friends that I truly miss again.


I wish you all the success with the Centennial Celebration and the fabulous events and activities. Once again, Congratulations to the University of Minnesota School of Architecture.


Respectfully yours


Sathirut Nui Tandanand, Class 79
President Elect, Architects Regional Council of Asia (ARCASIA)

Post-Centennial Note to the Class of 1984

Hello Class of '84,




It was great to see some of you at the Centennial reception and gala events last week and I hope to see more of you in the future.




For those of you who attended and for those who didn't, I am providing you with a link to some photos I took. I have also posted a few photos from way back in 1981 from studio days.




In Facebook I have set up a shared Album for anyone, even if you are not on Facebook, to browse through. Please feel free to tag Names onto the photos and if you want, add some photos.




https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.735254333156977.1073741839.100000172509723&type=1&l=2e4c3f3abf




Also, I am providing you with my Dropbox folder for higher quality resolutions of the same pictures. In this link I also included a few pics of the historical student drawing collection which was exhibited at the Reception. Very inspiring as they make you want to get out the old Pilot Fineliner.




https://www.dropbox.com/home/Photos/UMN%20School%20of%20Architecture%201980




I look forward to seeing everyone at future School events.




Norman Barrientos

norman@barrientosdesign.com

office 414-271-1812 ext 1

www.barrientosdesign.com

Post-Centennial Note to the Class of 1966

Class of 1966,

Greetings.


For those of you who could not make it, you were greatly missed!


The Centennial Celebration of the School of Architecture School was a very big event with over 800+ architects from east and west coasts and 5 foreign countries. Bill Pederson and number of other illustrious alumni where there along with illustrious alumni from the class of 1965, 1966 & 1967. One always seems to remember one class above and one class below yours.


For the class of 1966 members who were there, I am including pictures of our Saturday morning brunch & at "spoonriver' restaurant (see attached pictures). We had a lively discussion of times past and present. Brief one line summary of where the 6 attendee's live and what they are up to:


James Pettinari lives in Eugene, Oregon and just retired from teaching but still consults with the University of MN on planning issues.


Gerry Allen still practices and teaches at the College of Art and Design in Minneapolis and lives in Afton, MN


Jim Morss lives on Bainbridge Island 20 minute ferry ride from Seattle and still practices specializing in medical clinic planning & design.


Jim Wengler lives & works on a boat in Trinidad but still keeps his residence in St. Anthony Park in St. Paul 2 blocks from my house.


Peter Hall lives in Maiden Rock, Wisconsin and is working on transforming an older building into a brewery.


I am still working at Parker Design International (PDI Design Group)after retiring for the 2nd time and live in St. Paul.




Keep the class of 1966 conversation going and let us know what you are up to. We heard back from a few who could not attend the Centennial; Bill Burch, Gary Crowell, Tom Clark, Jack Smuckler, John Scott, Mark Merrill . How about Carl Safe, Harvey Niskala, and others. Does anyone know the whereabouts' of Nick Palaia, Lowell Baumgardt, Pier Dahlstrom or any others I am missing from our class. If you do let us all know. Thanks


Francis Bulbulian, FAIA
fbulbulian@pdidg.com

Robert Traynham Coles, FAIA

I have many reminiscences, not only of my years at Minnesota but also M.I.T., and then going on to the profession I love. They include:

1. Working with Buckminster Fuller on two projects and the complications that developed.


2. Meeting Ralph Rapson, who became Dean at the School of Architecture, while I attended graduate school at M.I.T.


3. Meeting fellow student Randy Vosbeck, who is now the Senior President of the AIA, and who also received the CALA Alumni Achievement award.


4. Meeting fellow student Louis Angelikus and interning with his father's firm to design the Richfield State Bank while Louis and I were still students at Minnesota; and working with James Stageberg on his first house while he attended graduate school at Harvard.


5. Meeting Kay Lockhart, who later worked with me at Techbuilt Homes in Cambridge. Returning to Minneapolis after graduating, I attended parties hosted by Kay and his wife, Lynn, to honor Dean Rapson. I also enjoyed dining at their New French Café.


6. Attending other parties in later years honoring Rapson, including a "Breakfast with Rapson." I cherish a photograph taken of us at one of these parties; Tom (Fisher), you were there.


7. Winning the Rotch Travelling Scholarship in 1954, allowing me to spend a year travelling and studying in Europe. Jim Stageberg followed me, winning the Rotch a year later.


8. Receiving the Whitney Young Jr. Citation from the AIA in 1981.


9. Serving as the AIA's first Deputy Vice President for Minority Affairs from 1982 to 1984.


10. Being elevated to the Chancellor of the AIA's College of Fellows in 1994, and in 1997 receiving the CALA Alumni Achievement Award.

Very truly yours,
Robert Traynham Coles, FAIA, President

Tom Clark

Hello Class of '66!


Regrets. Kit and I won't be able to be in the Midwest in October. Sounds like fun! Sorry to miss it. Would love to see everybody again and catch up a bit on the last half century.



TRUE STORY


I still have this recurring dream in which I'm back in the design studio. Everybody is working hard on their quarter-long project and the jury is going to start in a few minutes. Only one of the projects is going to pass and the rest are all going to have to be re-designed next quarter. I'm not worried though because somehow in the dream I seem to realize I've got about 50 years of experience as a lead designer, so I am confident I can do this school project.


In the dream, all the models are on display in a big glass enclosure built in the middle of the architecture court. The students are outside the enclosure waiting to receive the news as to which of us will have to re-design and which one of us will pass and graduate. Rapson comes out of the glass door to the enclosure carrying an envelope. He opens it and reads the name of the architect whose project wins the award and graduates. "The winner is..."


...Francis Bulbulian!" The crowd cheers and gathers around Fran to congratulate him. Even after 50 years, and in my OWN dreams, Francis always does an outstanding job! Next time I have this dream, I'm going to try to install my own brother on the Jury. Hopefully that will give me more favorable result!


.....


I had a chance to read some of the other memories posted at this site. It's fun to see what people remember about Minnesota. In a word, the experience was INTENSE. Here's a bit more information just to add some context to that recurring dream I described above:


Fran and I went through the architectural curriculum at the same time. We were two of less than a dozen students in our class that did it in the catalog-prescribed time frame. Both of us roomed in an old house about two blocks from the Architecture building. John Scott, John Sheehy, Mark Merrill, Scott Berry, and a couple other architecture students shared those beat-up facilities.


I remember the common bathroom in that old house had a shower with a shower curtain. Behind that curtain, lived some sort of moldy living "organism" that we all assumed covered the entire interior of the shower stall and might very well have been the same species as the carnivorous plant in the play, "Little Shop of Horrors." I use the term, "assumed" because nobody ever actually dared to fully open that shower curtain, let alone risk taking a shower in there.


Not surprisingly, my wife Kit, who knew us all, says what she remembers most about the architecture lab was the pervasive "aroma" of unwashed architecture students that apparently permeated the concrete and masonry so that it never quite dissipated.


Kit and I knew Fran's wife Barb from before she and Fran started dating. We've all tried to stay in touch over the years. Francis was in my wedding and I considered him my closest friend in architecture school. My earliest recollection of a specific conversation with Fran was in Jim Stageberg's design studio. It was very late one night, right before our project was due. Fran was walking past my desk, I stopped him to ask his frank opinion of my project, which I was just finishing. I said something like, "...Well, what do you think of it?"


His response was, as always, honest and fairly typical of the way we all often talked to each other. He paused; looked over the drawing taped to my drawing board, thought about it for a few seconds and then replied, "I don't think I could EVER do anything that BAD!!"


That phrase often comes to mind, when anybody asks, "Well, what do you think of it? (a design idea)?" it still makes me laugh, even after more than 50 years.


My general impression of the architectural curriculum is mixed. Generally, I loved the experience enough to spend the rest of my life in this business. But, at first, it was something of a cold bath, after a rather warm and fuzzy but undemanding high school education. It's where I first was required to actually systematically THINK critically.


And, of course, like many students, I quickly found that the highest standard for graphic excellence that I had previously encountered wasn't even at the bottom of the scale when one was comparing one's drawings to those of Rapson, Gebhart, Vitolis, Larson, and so many other talents.


The major career impact of my experiences at Minnesota was to set my personal standard for design excellence continually beyond my reach. The result has been a career that has never been boring, always exciting, and always challenging.


Best regards to all,

Tom Clark

----



Tom Clark, CSI, Principal

THOMAS CLARK ARCHITECT

5820 York Rd; Baltimore, MD 21212

410 539 6830

Gary Crowell

Dear "Class of '66" -


A possible last minute flight (?). I'm scheduled to be in Denver on 28th for "closing details" on property--have held property in CO since teaching at U of C (1978-90). Although I most likely won't make it, I have a couple of vivid memories to share:

• 1965--Catching 2 hours sleep in the "refrigerator crate" in studio before final presentation.


• 1966--Sitting in my VW, in a parking lot (during mid May/June rain storm), several blocks from Northrop Auditorium--listening to commencement on the radio.


• 1978--Francis, our "last lunch" in Fall '78--recalling 15+ years of work (1962-78--U of M and MIT studios, Dewey Thorbeck and InterDesign, Ellerbe, etc.). We were leaving Ellerbe--I was going to Colorado (teaching--U of C) and you were going back to Leonard--as I recall.)

Best to all,

Gary



Gary J. Crowell, AIA, NCARB
Dean and Professor Emeritus
College of Architecture & the Built Environment
Philadelphia University
215.843.7288 (H)
267.438.9856 (C)

crowellg@philau.edu

George Myron Swan Jr.

Better Homes & Gardens, "The way we built our house"

Cerny Brochure


George Myron Swan Jr.
B.Arch 1943


This memory was shared by George Swan III, in memory of my late father, George M. Swan Jr. (B.Arch '43). He and my mother, Anne Swan (Elizabeth Anne Cleveland Swan (BA '44 Architecture) were cohort with Cecil Tammen (who worked at Thorshov and Cerny at the same time my father worked there in the 1950's) and both my parents were friends with Richard Hammel (B.Arch '46) and his first wife Libby during the 1950s. I also remember being about 5 years old and going with my parents to a Christmas Lake party, at a lake-side cabin on the west side of Christmas Lake which was hosted by Walter Vivrett (and his two Great Danes--see posting by Susan J. Blumentals, B.Arch '59, about "Andy!"). For some reason I think I remember my parents mentioning that Carl Graffunder (B.Arch '42) and others were there. My lasting impression from those years was that there was a socially vibrant arts and architecture community, post WWII, in the Twin Cities.


In addition, Bob and Ann Bliss lived up the Ridge Road (east side of Christmas Lake) from where we lived. (My mother remembers they graduated from Yale and were at the U of MN perhaps doing post-graduate work or teaching before moving on to University of Utah(?).)


I recently was reviewing "old history" with Mom when she let loose with the story about having dinner with Bucky Fuller at the Bliss's who had come to speak at the department earlier that day. "Wow," I exclaimed, "that must have been interesting!" "It was," she replied. "He was willing to reminisce a lot about his life and his work!"


I came across a promotional picture taken for Cerny Associates to introduce their "new design team" (Cerny brochure, page 2). There in the rear row--typical of his reserved personality is the image of a young, enthusiastic and perhaps still idealistic George Swan, my father. Also pictured are Vivrett, Tammon and others.


I've attached the Better Homes and Gardens article of the first house Dad designed for us and built on Christmas Lake. There were five residences total he did for our family (the 2nd is in La Crosse WI, 3rd and 4th at Verona WI outside Madison, 5th just outside Patagonia AZ town limits--1 hour south of Tucson at 4000 feet) before getting a Clayton Manufactured Home set up for Mom in Patagonia town proper--right across from the library--just before he died. After retiring in 1984, he spent most of his time reading, practicing amateur astronomy and doing watercolors as well as teaching a few watercolor workshops. Only recently have I noticed the golden rectangle of composition lurking behind the spontaneous surface of many of his watercolors.


The photo of the two men is a picture from later in my father's career when working at Hackner and Schroeder in La Crosse WI. Dad is on the right pictured with Roger Rosslansky, the designer on the H&S team who paid my father a compliment by buying our La Crosse family residence when we moved from La Crosse to Madison. You can Google a street view of it at: 1205 Cliffwood Lane, La Crosse WI. Fifteen years earlier (1950) Dad had designed original sliding-glass doors for a "contemporary", lake-side house with a unique-looking exterior. This time (1966), with several years experience in prefabrication design, he focused on cost-efficiency. I asked him once why he hadn't designed more "flashy" houses like the first, and he responded, "Well... after a while, you realize all you need are four walls with a roof on top." This second house and the three following it, were of that simple design concept; the innovation and interest arise from where you put the windows and doors and how you lay out the interior.


A comment a few weeks ago from the Realtor who sold the last residence he and mom built in Patagonia: "We showed your parents' house to a lot of people. Fifty percent of the people didn't get it; all they saw was the exterior box. The others saw the interior, its connection to the exterior, and the innovative and efficient use of space it is--as well as the magnificent view of Red Mountain from kitchen, living room and dining room."

Joel H. Goodman

These photos were taken in 1975 at an Earth Awareness Portable Classroom review in Rapson Hall. I was a faculty member at the time, teaching a studio design course. As extra work, I initiated the Earth Awareness Portable Classroom project with students from Dennis Holloway's environmental design course. I offered the project to Holloway's many many students, and a team took on the project.


An undergrad student mechanical engineering project was coordinated with the Earth Awareness Portable Classroom project being designed and fabricated by architecture students spring quarter of 1975. Renewable energy systems were designed for a transportable educational resource, an inflatable classroom that could be entered for media presentations. Prof. Frohrib's ME 5-254 and 5-255 engineering students presented two basic energy systems; power for the systems of the earth balloon (lighting, projection, fan) and power for transporting the portable facility in a truck (small wind generators, batteries, and a multi fuel truck motor). Small tilt up and down wind generators were mounted on the top of the truck.


Students on the project are pictured in front of Ralph Rapson and me (Joel Goodman). Dan Feidt is pictured with the video camera in the lower photo.



After attending the U of MN, Joel went on to earn an Master of Architecture degree from MIT. He currently resides in Dodgeville, Wisconsin.


View a gallery of some of his work

AND

http://solarcooking.wikia.com/wiki/Joel_Goodman

http://solarcooking.org/Joel_Goodman.htm

Hazel Thorson Stoick Stoeckeler

BS '40 Art Education, M.A. '45 Architecture







Bugle article-HStoeckeler.pdf


At a time when the United States was experiencing a period of extensive mural painting in public buildings, and Mexican artists were at their peak productivity of mural art, Hazel Stoeckeler chose to do a mural painting as a thesis project for an advanced degree.


Perhaps the only architecture graduate to complete a mural as her thesis project (certainly the first!) and the only master of arts degrees in the major, Hazel's 45 foot long mural, "The Epic of Minnesota's Great Forests" still graces the lower level walls of Green Hall on the St. Paul campus of the University of Minnesota. She also has a series of watercolors on display in a conference room of Skok Hall next door.


A productive artist and teacher, Hazel's work will also be part of a series of curated exhibitions celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the Regis Center for Art on the University campus, October 22-November 9, 2013 - conveniently timed to happen during the School of Architecture Centennial!

Dennis L. Johnson

Minneapolis Skywalks - A Bridge to Revival

Nearing age 81, architect Dennis L. Johnson, looks back on a rich and rewarding career designing many buildings large and small, mostly in the Philadelphia area. He claims that the genesis of the Minneapolis Skyway system took place in that presentation by design students at the University of Minnesota on a June day in 1957. The attached letter shares his memories of that time and the years that followed.

Doris (Schwanz) Bjorklund

B.Arch '46





Family members think Doris Bjorklund is pictured here in 1942, 7th from the left, on the steps of Northrop Auditorium. She and her daughter Jan attended the School's gathering of alumni in Boston in February 2013 (second photo). Following the event, Jan shared some stories from her mother's early career.

When Doris was a junior and Hubert H. Humphrey was governor, one of her professors was also doing some planning for the City of Minneapolis. Her professor asked her to help design "homes for relief." She did three designs (one, two and three bedroom homes) for the project and was proud to be a part of that Humphrey initiative. To complete the project, she needed to live in Minneapolis and found home for a time, at a sorority in Minneapolis.


Around that time she was also working for architecture firm in Minneapolis. While there, Doris was part of a project team for one of their clients. When the project was completed, the happy client hosted a celebratory party and invited all the men in the firm to attend. Unfortunately, the women were not included. In protest, the women came to work the following week dressed in suit coats and ties like their male counterparts. To prepare, Doris needed to borrow a tie. To help out, one of her sorority housemates introduced Doris to her step brother, U of M business student Truman Bjorklund (BSB '48). Truman gladly provided Doris with a tie. Though there was no word on the reaction from Doris's male counterparts at the office regarding her change of attire, it was the start of something good... Doris and Truman were married in 1949.

Arline Alrick Castleberry

I am sorry that I can't attend the alumni celebration. I send a special greeting to any who may be in attendance from the graduating class of 1941.


I appreciate the University of Minnesota and the preparation it gave me in a field that was challenging and rewarding. In recent years I have been a registered architect in California with my own business specializing in residential new construction, remodeling and additions.

Scott Adams

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '80, BED '80

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Communicating with drawings.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

George Winterowd for his love of architectural history.

Robert A. Findlay

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '63, B.Arch '67

ISU - M.Arch '75

Oxford Brookes University, UK - PhD '96

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

The need to get beyond elitist notions of social change that were inherent in modernism as taught in the '60s and to honestly engage community and user interests in the design process.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

A visiting lecturer from Scandinavia in the '60s, who engaged students in rich conversations about their design work, making the link to its social importance and the students' experience.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

I have had four Peace Corps assignments through my career years; rural school construction in Colombia in '63-'65, disaster management work in Peru in 1970, the Cook Islands in '98, and El Salvador in '99.

John A. Madson

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '49, B.Arch '50

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Get the concept you want and then develop it in detail.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Don W. Brown, a classmate. We used to study together.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

The camaraderie of all us dumb men from the service. We had a great time.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

It was a five-man team for a medical office building using the site across the street from the Minneapolis YMCA. We had Hesson, Thorsen, Gibson, Madson & Brown. Brown was responsible for the design and he and I built the model. It was a great model. It was displayed for quite a spell afterward in the Museum of Art located in Northrup Auditorium.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Rendering, Harold Blewett, John Rauman, and Don Brown.

Darrick A. Mack

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '96, B.Arch '96, M.Arch '04

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

A visiting (at the time) professor, Renee Cheng, who taught a tectonics class that really opened up the way we should explore materials and techniques.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Traveling through Europe in spring of 1999 with Eric, Aaron, Donovan, and Chris and eventually meeting up with Arthur Chen to participate in the Port Cities study abroad class in Lisbon, Barcelona, and Venice. A very interesting and memorable trip through some of the oldest and most varied cities in Europe.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

A housing project for the Phillips Neighborhood with Arthur Chen. The studio worked with actual clients and a predetermined program of needs. It allowed us to really explore our (sometimes drastic) ideas about how to best provide community housing and to learn how to interact and respond to community relations.

Erica J. Boyles

University of Minnesota - BFA '05, M.Arch '11

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Associate Professor Ozayr Saloojee, because he introduced me to the idea that architects have agency in a much broader sense than just designing buildings. Architects have a responsibility to address issues of social justice, poverty, violence, and equality through their work.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

I remember Steve Weeks' comprehensive studio project as being one of my favorites. We designed mixed-use multi-family housing for a site near Stadium Village on the U of M campus, using one of three precedents for a jumping-off point. It was a fantastic studio and I learned so much from Steve about construction processes and details.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Public interest design and architecture as a major player in social justice/responsibility have influenced me most.

Sara M. Ibarra

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '05, Metropolitan Design Certificate '09, M.Arch '09

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Work like a crazy person.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Dissecting corn.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Louis Kahn.

Matthew E. Lunn

University of Minnesota - BED '03

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Alternative ways of thinking. 

Gregory E. Nook

University of Minnesota - M.Arch '81

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Creative problem solving.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Milo Thompson and Leonard Parker for their compassionate teaching skills and the ability to find ways to motivate diverse ideas and individuals. Mark Fisher (now deceased) because he cared so much. Craig Mulford because he was the most organized student that I have ever known! Always done thoroughly and ahead of schedule...by a full day!! Bill Chilton because he brought his friendship, talent, creativity and organization to all that he did. Roger Clemence and Steve Weeks because they cared enough to allow me into the school and guide me through it!

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

One Sunday afternoon I was in studio working on thesis with a half dozen or so students. Manos Ginnis was standing at the window looking towards Northrup and said, "There is a dead man in the bushes!" (Now do this with his accent in mind.) We all were detached and indicated "Yeah, sure."  Manos was persistent, over and over we would hear, "Hey you guys, there is a dead man in the bushes!!"  We still ignored him. This went on for about 5 minutes before finally he had us all at the windows looking and we concurred...that may be a dead man lying motionless, face down in the flowers across the street. Manos cautiously went outside as we all watched and carefully crept up on the still body only to have the physical plant employee get up, pull his arm out of the sprinkler valve pipe and announce gleefully, "One more sprinkler line turned on!" I got to say, we all were secretly a bit disappointed because we liked the distraction drama of a potential corpse. So next time you see Manos say, "Hey you guys, there is a dead man in the bushes!!!"

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Thesis and "Housing as Urban Regenerator."

 

Ryan M. Radzak

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '12

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Technical skills, such as AutoCAD and Adobe Creative Suite.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Working with peers of a comparable age. 

Richard A. Carter

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '82

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Problem solving.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Having Gunter Dittmar teach us how to draw a "straight" line the first day of Grade One. Garth Rockcastle's Grade Four studio where we had to draw with rapidogragh ink on vellum.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Staying up very late, making models. 

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

My thesis, the Downtown Minneapolis YMCA.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Jerry Zuber's trees and people.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

I have focused my entire career on Green Building and reducing climate change at building, organization, and community scales. My education at the School of Architecture and the people who were my advisers, including Garth, Mary Guzowski, Steve Weeks, and Julia Robinson, guided me in that direction.

Philip A. Bussey

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '08

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Parametrics.

Michael J. Joyce

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '73

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

The design process and the importance of drawing.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Dennis Grebner. He had a clear headed and logical approach to the design process.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Foam cor chair competition.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Thesis.

Julia W. Robinson

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '71

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

How to handle a large number of architectural variables at once and come up with an appropriate design.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Clare Cooper Marcus, Amos Rapoport, John Zeisel, Oscar Newman, Irving Altman and the other guests in the seminar on housing organized by Roger Clemence and Evelyn Franklin in 1975, I believe. I participated in this several years after graduating and it led to my study of anthropology and all the later research I have done on such topics as architectural programming and housing.

Phillip G. Koski

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '91

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Poche space.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Cynthia Jara made me read Norberg-Schulz. 

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

The Sound Machine.

Danny J. Welch

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '99

University of Michigan - M.Arch '03

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Critical thinking and design organization.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Ali Heshmati.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Staying up working all night with friends and classmates. 

Anthony S. Desnick

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '80

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Creative problem solving. 

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Jerry Allan who was a 3rd year design critic.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

My 2nd year Minnegasco competition for Nicollet Island Master Plan and Pine Ridge Reservation High School and Community Center, which was my thesis.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Services on many community organizations, such as Twin Cities Transit Leadership Group, Minneapolis Arts Board, St. Paul Ford Plant Planning Task Force, Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District Infrastructure Committee: Downtown 2025.

William G. Dohman

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '03, M.Arch '05 

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

How to tackle a problem from various avenues.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Andrzej Piotrowski.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Late nights with friends talking design.

Sophia F. Skemp

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '12

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Kirsten Paulsen's Studio III, Fall 2011: Design for the Cedar Lake Bike Trail.

Sarah A. Wolbert

University of Minnesota - M.Arch '09, M.S. Arch '10

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Don't quit your other jobs/hobbies! Those are what will build connections for projects when the profession is in a recession. 

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

There were a few that left good and bad impressions. The most consistent supporter and mentor for my projects is Dean Tom Fisher.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

When Piotrowski brought us cookies upon request. 

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Rethinking waste engagement installation in Rapson Courtyard. 

William M. Wells

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '03, M.Arch '07

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Model building and 3-D rendering skills.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Tom Fisher.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Seeing people sleep under their desk.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Nicollet Ave redesign.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Steven Holl.

Kyle D. Van

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '08

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Iteration. 

Janis Blumentals

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '59

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

How to design a complete building.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Professor Robert Bliss. Bob was my adviser and helped this C student get through school.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Frank Lloyd Wright.

Teri L. Nagel

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '92

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Thinking three dimensionally. 

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

During thesis, going back and forth giving crits to each other.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

The music machines in the courtyard. Three days with no sleep. I've never been less literate or logical.

Joan H. B. Price

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '88

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Buildings should interact with human nature and foresee new technologies and all possible needs with simplicity to maintain a timelessness.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Patricia Mack for getting me involved with the all women's built Habitat for Humanity home project in Minneapolis.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Team projects where we built models - one was the mouse trap game and another was pumpkin carving, Pink Flyod the Wall came in first that year. These were interesting because of the discussions afterwards of the process different groups used.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Airline Convention Display. There are marketable designs and interesting designs that may or may not be marketable...if you can't get the backing of the money/funding then you haven't made that external human connection that will make it architecture. Sometimes that artful design has to get out of you and onto paper but if not marketable, it just stays art...that or you're just ahead of you time and the technology might develop to make it marketable.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

This one student who decided to draw one perspective a day and each day he started a fresh new one, leaving the one before it at whatever stage he had got to. Over the years his skill became masterful.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world

Educating developers on universal design and the benefits of one hundred percent accessible, instead of just the minimums, saves in the construction cost by producing in bulk. In having well designed features that are adaptable improved the desirability of the units and lessened turnover rates.

Jerry L. Peterson

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '67, B.Arch '67

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Design process.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Richard Morrill installed confidence, encouragement, and provided opportunity for two career changes.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

All nighters, juries, and fellow students.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Neighborship planned community. 

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Rapson rendering!

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Think of the big picture, not just the details. 

Jennifer D. Charzewski

University of Minnesota - M.Arch '05

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Theory, research-based design, precedent study, and integration of design at detail scale.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Renee Cheng for being the best possible mentor a grad student could hope for and Julie Snow as a visiting critic, a later employer, and a complete inspiration for practice.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

They mostly relate to a pervasive sense of place, romanticized by memories of cozy winter nights in studio with snow falling, an urban walk to campus with fall leaves, the downtown views from campus, breaks from studio to go to yoga or swim at the rec center, and of course the invention of various quesadillas on Nick Potts' quesadilla maker.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Bell Museum with Cheng in GD2 studio, Urban Infill in Mic Johnson's GD3 studio, and Pre-Fab Motel in Charlie Lazor's GD2 studio.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

The study of fabrication methods in application to design with Charlie Lazor, the research of multi-functional details as the heart of design with Renee Cheng for Graduate Research Assistant projects, and modern, elegant, sleek, rigorous architecture distilled to its cleanest elements in the practice of Julie Snow and the infused legacy of Scandinavian aesthetic in the area.

William B. Cavin, III

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '67

Harvard College - B.A. Arch '64

MIT - M.Arch '68

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Design process.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Fellow students and their dedication to architecture, Lonnie Hauser for the love of life, and Leonard Parker for design discipline.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Midnight parades around the second floor balcony.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Group display depicting the 1966 Rome trip.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

The beginning of interest in sustainable design. 

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Belief in the importance of education and travel in the training of young designers has led me to establish the Cavin Family Traveling Fellowship (see cavinfellowship.org). 

Nathan F. Knutson

University of Minnesota - M.Arch '95

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Design thinking and avoiding preconceptions.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

First year studio with Andrzej Piotrowski.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

The close friendships developed with those who maintained the same hours as I did!

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Tower and Bridge project with Vincent James and Julie Snow. The final jury had significant national jurors.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

In the era of deconstruction, the exhibit at the Walker Art Center of Russian Constructivism.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Architecture school, studio in particular, engages many different and diverse issues. I believe that those around me see that as a significant leadership talent that, for better or for worse, puts me in the firing line for leadership roles in the community.

Herbert B. Polachek

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '56

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Learning how to think for myself, taking charge in team situations when leadership is needed, and working as a team member in joint situations.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Robert Poliss was patient, understanding, and inspirational when needed. Walter Virett had a spirit of panache and vitality. Fred Koepper's vast knowledge of architecture history inspired me to travel and see the world. As a result I have visited 67 countries on 6 continents observing life, history, and architecture, as well as taking thousands of photographs. Rob Ceray inspired me to improve and work harder at design.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Working long days and nights to meet project deadlines, advice and criticism by fellow classmates in the absence of instructors, and several visiting lecturers such as Siefred Gideon, Oscar Storonov, Bucky Fuller, and others. A Grade 5 design sketch problem in '66 to design a reviewing stand for the city of Brooklyn, New York, after winning the 1955 World Series against the Yankees. We were a group of 12 students that came up with a platform suspended by colorful helium-filled balloons on twelve 24x30" illustration boards connected with a large 4' high, 18' wide mural. We all got A's.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

During Grade 2, a union resort on Pelican Lake with a group of 4 students working together for a month. We had great cooperation and spirit, and there was travel involved to the site and research. Also, thesis project in 1955-1956 while recently married and I worked in a cramped apartment, as well as school. A real project I worked on was a funeral home in Winona for my friends parents funeral home.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

I was in awe with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Walter Groupius, Frank Lloyd Wright, Charles Eames, and Alexander Girard. Hugh Ferris for his black charcoal rendered and Lou Angelivis for his tempera color renderings. I was impressed by firms that contributed to school with literature, magazines, and samples. Our library was a valuable resource for background history and inspiration. 

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Over the years I have served on the planning commission and board of zoning appeals in Golden Valley, served on an advisory committee for a northeastern Wisconsin Methodist Church, been a member of AIA and president of NE Wisconsin District AIA, lectured students at AIA meetings in said meetings and various technical schools, and was a member of the board of trustees for Caloreftes in Green Bay and Golden Valley. I also lectured students at the University of Minnesota department of Interior Design from 1974 to 1985.

Charles A. Kubat

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '70, B.Arch '70

MIT - MCP '77

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Organized thinking and problem solving in a creative way, and communicating that thinking.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Ralph Rapson for his leadership of the school and open minded approach to design, Dewy Thorbeck for his introduction to creative collaborative interdisciplinary practice, Roger Clemence for his leadership of the community outreach studio and mentorship of us as first participants in a new and mind expanding experiment, and his quiet and supportive personality. Also, Professor Iskander opened my eyes to "planning," Dennis Grebner for his attention to drawing and design, and Milo Thompson for his focus on design.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Our late night (mid-morning 3am) marches and antics around the upper level of the main courtyard to break up a long over-nighter. Everyone spray gluing tissue to boards in the hallways 30 minutes before final presentations and the sounds of Janus Joplin and Creedance wafting through the studio late at night.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

A master plan and urban housing for the island in the Mississippi River in downtown St. Paul, 

an interdisciplinary regional commercial development master plan for the suburb of Hopkins, the Europe study tour showcase of Spain (our location that year), various projects for the Minneapolis Model City Program in our outreach studio including my thesis for a Communications System and Coordinating Center for the Program

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

My experience in the studio seeing the rendering and sketching work of Ralph Rapson and older students inspired me to master my own technique. My trip to Spain with our class was the beginning of a monumental summer travel and personal growth experience that has influenced the rest of my career and life. My experiences in the outreach studio led me to help found and work in a Community Design Center in Denver and has influenced my entire career in working with clients, neighborhoods, and larger communities.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

I see my education as having prepared me to not just design buildings, but to influence the creation of great neighborhoods, villages, and entire planned communities both as a designer and a client for creative community solutions. These have opened the opportunities for richer lives in the places I have helped create in Kingwood, TX; Memphis, TN; and Las Vegas, NV.

Rolf M. Kemen

University of Minnesota - B.LArch '73, BED '74, B.Arch '76

Harvard University - M.Arch '79

New York University - MBA '85

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

The most important learned skill was the development of a process oriented approach to solving design problems and identifying solutions. I applied this process orientation to many different types of non-design problems to generate rational alternatives and optimal solutions.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Design critics as a group. Their focus was to develop the ideas and concepts that you were working on, however rudimentary and poorly conceived, into a rational and well-developed design.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

All-nighters. Fun at the time, but realizing today how productivity drops exponentially during all night. Design charrettes helped me develop a more result-oriented work discipline so I could avoid all-nighters during my career.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Architectural thesis on the Coca-Cola site on the riverfront in Minneapolis. It has been fun to see the riverfront develop over the past 30 years.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Working in a studio setting. The role of collaborative work and exchange of ideas in a studio setting fosters new concepts and improved strategies for implementation. I have used this experience to my benefit many times throughout my career.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

I developed the methodology and analysis that enabled the administration of the Minneapolis Public Schools, after 40 years of trying, to confirm to the Board and the taxpayers of Minneapolis that it was more cost effective to build a new headquarters facility than remain in the four locations that were being used to house HQ functions.

John L. Weidt

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '67

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Teamwork.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Really impossible to single out one individual, especially with the benefit of years of hindsight. Ralph Rapson, of course. Dewey Thorbeck for his team approach, integrity, design skills. David Bennett, Dennis Holloway, Tom Bender, Hosni Iskander for encouraging me to look to non-traditional environmental approaches to architecture. Last but not least, Lance Lavine, the first written thesis at the school, a tireless educator of environmental ethics and action.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Working with fellow students and APX brothers to complete projects. 

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Working with Mark Beckman on our thesis, with Tom Martinson's invaluable assistance in the darkroom, on Archiecoframe.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd Wright, Malcolm Wells, and Charles Gwathmey.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Founded a firm that has provided assistance on millions of square feet of building construction to significantly reduce their negative energy and environmental impact.

Ross Asselstine

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '83

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Question everything. Try to work on the most challenging projects possible. Find a passion and learn as much as possible all the time.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

The men I worked with on construction sites and my engineering professors. I love architecture but the others guys made me unique in the field.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

The camaraderie. We were all close like no other degree because of the process.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Energy and transport issues were a great parallel on some assignments and the Marble Mover was hilarious.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Wright, Johnson, and Hippie Naive architecture.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Architects have to lead teams. Group projects pretty much suck, but they are absolutely essential because if you can't lead and learn to lead, you will never be an architect.

Wayne B. Holtan

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '77, BED '77

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Design organization and process.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Third year design studio of building methodology and how to approach and resolve design problems.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

My thesis project, which was good and bad. The many hours in the studio on hot June days and nights with someone installing a "through the door" AC unit in the studio space.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Working on the "green" house before sustainable design was an advertising buzz word in an environmental design class.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Our study abroad trip to Italy in our 4th year design studio in '76, chaperoned by Ralph Rapson. What a memorable opportunity that was to have personal time with the head of the school and learn a little more about his personal career, his quick wit, hearing stories of his escapades at Cranbrook, meeting some of his previous graduates in Rome, and always his sketches. I appreciate it more now on reflection than when we were actually there.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

In some small way, and some bigger than others, I think every project I have done had a positive impact on our community. We learned to design, not just take the first solution, and work to the best solution possible.

Joel H. Goodman

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '66

MIT - M.Arch '68

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

I learned how to develop architectural conceptual ideas into designs that can be realized and associated communication techniques.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Ralph Rapson accepted me into the School of Architecture at Grade 3 design as a transfer student from the University of Illinois. We met in his office over the steak restaurant and he said, "Come on." There was not much bureaucracy at that time. The University of Minnesota architectural education environment at that time greatly influenced me, and Rapson for the most part organized and formed it.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

The educational sincerity, atmosphere of integrity, and camaraderie with students and faculty in the architecture court building.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

The University of California at Santa Cruz Arts Theater Center thesis project.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

To search for a synthesis of structural-material logic and non-whimsical aesthetic forms. A lasting and important influence was the quality of the architectural court building design. I think I was overly influenced by Rapson's grease pencil cartoon drawing style. Most students, as I did as well, tried and followed the rendering styles that were in fashion at the time. However, looking back it was the quality of the architecture court building design and the vibration of earnestness from the cumulative efforts of the faculty and students that has had the most lasting quality influence. The School of Architecture court building, as I realized years after my student and teaching days at the U of M, is an outstanding and rare integration of the influences of the minimum slim steel clean spaces of Mies and the hyperbolic shells of Candella, North and South, unified with the daylit court pedestrian square, all wrapped in the unpretentious humility of Midwest brick masonry. It touched me in my formative days like no other building has. Is it John Rauma that we have to thank for the design of the School of Architecture court building?

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Environmental regeneration as a basis for urban design and building integrated active solar energy research.

Nicholas A. Hofstede

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '03

Rice University - M.Arch '07

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

I believe that for me, the seeds for a continuous strive for clarity in an idea were planted at the U; that there must be an engagement, ambition, and intensity for architecture to advance design and influence impact into the built environment.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Thomas Fisher influenced me to instill a positive and inquisitive attitude, thoughtfulness in work and goals, both personally and architecturally. I was always impressed by Tom's sensitivity and wisdom. Robert Adams and Dawn Gilpin had a very lasting impression of instilling clarity of thought, intensity, purpose, and quality in ALL work. My fellow students in the Honor Program, and our shared commitment to the discourse, collective skills and knowledge, and pushing each other to think and do better.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

There are many! One, having the last big Beaux Arts Ball parties in the old architecture building before the renovation. Ralph Rapson and previous deans were there waxing poetic about parties there in the 60's, and we "shut the building down." Our class was displaced in four buildings around campus, and our adoption and adaptation of these old classroom spaces in these buildings made for a memorable time. Our temporary locations also made it easier to get questionable Chinese take-out food in Dinkytown before almost every studio.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

My studio projects, and especially the drawing projects, were all quite memorable and valuable. But the most valuable project for me and the one I still think about often was my Honor's Thesis Project, which in most respects was a complete disaster in its effort to approach something so broad with such shallow focus. This failure was a valuable tool for me and the lessons learned are something I continually use as I approach a design project or idea in order to achieve clarity, depth, purpose, and intent.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Most influential to me was drawing, more specifically a technical means of drawing and diagramming taught by Adams and Gilpin. Although I draw or diagram now quickly to communicate ideas to a client or design team, the precision and understanding of drawing as an architectural construct, a way to communicate, an artful medium, and a means to show a great underlying depth in thinking, provided a strong method that could be applied to any idea and transcend any preference of "style" being taught at a certain time.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

That is still in process and I would argue that instead of being specific about the impact, I would say that the education and base provided me only a positive impact and betterment of our environments, as it's our charge in society as architects and designers to better what I know best; the spaces our community, city, nation, and world inhabit. Every design project I approach with the goal to invest as much thought, strength quality, foresight, radicalness, and skillfulness into its outcome to advance architectural ideas. My education and experience in its totality has instilled these drives and continually inspires me today.

Amy L. Meller

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '00, M.Arch '02

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

How to think conceptually and outside the box, and then apply to in-the-box design problems.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Greg Watson - You learn more from your failures than you do from your successes, and often the solution exists in your previous attempts.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

The studio culture.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

The Music Education building, which was my M.Arch thesis project.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Lance Lavine for introducing me to phenomenology; Ali Hesmati for how to physically model and manipulate space; Greg Watson for teaching how to design and the importance of using different media in creative thinking; Steve Weeks stating that building materials and details do matter; and Bob Mack for historic preservation and its role in a "modernist" society.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

My career focuses on historic preservation and the sustainable reuse of existing buildings and structures. My work reflects the core values I began fostering while at the University of Minnesota. Reuse solutions are often subtle, requiring creative thinking and a blending of past building techniques and modern technology.

Jared M. Eder

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '03

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

I didn't know it then, but those were the years where I started to see things differently. I looked at things a little bit more critically, observed my surroundings, and appreciate the little things that "worked."

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Charlie Lazor's summer furniture design studio. Summer studio was a different animal and to focus on an object of that scale and produce a final product was something I had never expected to do in undergrad. It was great to focus in on the smallest details of furniture and design. Katherine Solomonson and her suburbia course are lasting memories, and Leon Satkowski's course on Gothic cathedrals was incredibly interesting and his knowledge was incredibly impressive.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Creating a bond with my studio mates and of course, "social gatherings."

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

We studied the Milwaukee Avenue Historic District in Rob Goods studio as an exercise that contributed to our design of a multi-generational housing concept. I still have the model. Again, summer furniture design studio with Charles Lazor.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Being there while the addition was getting constructed created a lot of discussions that were very valuable. Also, I didn't appreciate it then but Rapson Hall (the original building) is a great place to study architecture and far exceed facilities at other schools.

Emilie Schmitz

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '09

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

To be self-critical of my work and to see the beauty in simple design elements.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

My first studio professor, Dan Clark. He taught me how to take my ideas and edit them, refine them, and then present them in a clear diagrammatic way.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

In my final studio my professor, Dale Mulfinger, made us go to a site visit in Northern Minnesota. We had to rent snow shoes and hike around our sites for two days. I never realized how hard snow shoeing was! Between that, having Dale's wife's home cooking and hanging out with studio mates for two nights, that northern adventure became one of the most memorable trips of my undergrad.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

My first studio project, a row clubhouse, because I had to hand draw everything and made one of my favorite scale models completely out of basswood and rice paper. When it was picked to be put on display for an AIA convention, it was one of the proudest architecture moments of my undergrad. I still have the model, it is one the few that I've kept.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Architect, Peter Zumthor.

Duane E. Blanchard

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '62

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

I learned the ability to organize planning thoughts and ideas into a design solution. I also learned about the concept of space and the importance of space in building design.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Ralph Rapson was the most inspiring faculty member. He seemed to do more and accomplish more than other faculty or local architects. He also had a fine quality of humility and I was deeply disappointed that the National AIA did not give him the Gold Medal he so richly deserved.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

My favorite memory from the studio days was moving from the main engineering (Lind Hall) attic to the new architecture building.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

My thesis project was a golf course clubhouse at Braemar Golf Course in Edina. Later, HGA designed a clubhouse, before I joined the firm, that had many similarities to my thesis design.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

I think the Miesian (Ludwig Mies van der Rohe) philosophy of design, "Less is More," was the most influential force on me as a student.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

The School of Architecture provided me with the training and development as a young architect so I could grow and participate in the design of significant buildings that help facilitate research, education, the manufacture of medical devices, and the medical treatment of people.

Doug P. Westby

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '73

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Creative analytic problem solving.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Tom Hodne saw some potential in me that he encouraged.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

I made life long friends there.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

The Spring quarter study abroad in Europe was an eye-opener for me. It was by far the most memorable activity from my school days.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Ralph Rapson was a giant influence on the school and my development as an architect.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

My career focused upon the design and planning of hospitals which wasn't a glamorous building type, at least when beginning in 1973. Eventually, evidence based design studies verified that attention to architectural features, such as clear organizational planning, daylighting, artwork, plant materials, etc., will crate a positive physical environment that can positively impact a patient's recovery and well being! The benefits to staff are also well accepted now. It's all that an architect wants to hear!

Bruce Toman

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '76

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

The importance of quality design, the abstract beauty of the plan, teamwork, quality, interdisciplinary teamwork, and Friday night at "The Mixers."

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

My classmates, Ralph Rapson's inspirational leadership, and an excellent broad cross-section of fine Minneapolis architects on the faculty such as David Bennet, Thomas Hodne, Joe Blair, John Rauma, Milo Thompson, Leonard Parker, and Carl Graffunder. Also, committed professors John Myers, George Winterowd, Walter Vivrett, and Gunter Dittmar. They taught me knowledge, design, style, and quality.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Charrettes, teamwork, and camaraderie.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Student housing replacement facility on the East Bank of the U of M and 

Architectonic projects.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Being taught to draw and letter, which is a lost art that architects still need to be able to do despite the development of BIM and even if it is mastering the art of drawing well on an iPad. Ralph Rapson's drawing ability was our inspiration. Alonso Hauser told us, "If Ralph can draw so well, you all can learn to draw, just like Ralph did." Although I did not work as a "project designer," three years into my career the ability to plan, draw, and render a plan and section made it easy for me to become a licensed architect (pass the exam in the days of a 12 hour design and draw exam design exercise) and to illustrate the principles of the technology of architecture for which I have become most valued. My appreciation for design made me an integral contributor to the projects on which I worked in the aesthetic development of the details and technology of well executed projects.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

I have spent most of my career working on large teams and developing large scale projects in detail. That has transcended into the detection of the technical development of projects and leadership of younger architects in several firms. My impact on this world has been in trying to influence as many architects as possible to understand the importance of the abstract beauty of everything we do in the technical execution of projects, all qualities of design which I learned at Minnesota. As our profession has transitioned from drawings into building information modeling of highly sustainable energy efficient buildings, I have managed to remain a leader of our transition and a trainer of young architects who are producing good buildings. Many of my contemporaries who did not have the advantage of the design, process, and team training which I learned at Minnesota have faded or are fading from relevance in our industry. We as American trained architects remain the leaders of high quality design and performance buildings throughout the world. Based on what I learned at the School of Architecture I understood why Rem Koolhaus wanted to express the user program and interrelationships which generated the shape of the CCTV tower in Beijing. When my firm was hired as a consultant to Rem to develop the vertical transportation systems (elevators) within the CCTV tower, we understood the aesthetic parameters in fitting the required number of elevators within the tower space available, but this was no small challenge. I understood the design requirements of this technical challenge and in my small part, a radical new building form resulted. On the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, I understood the importance of the design statement which Richard Meier was making in my work developing the design and details of the enclosure system for this historic landmark museum which will perform for 50+ years.

Craig A. Hess

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '72

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Problem solving, which included thinking outside of the box.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

This is a toss up between Ralph Rapson due to the depth and breadth of his experience as a modernist architect and Roger Clemence due to his commitments to students and the community through his involvement in the Urban Education Center/Community Design Center.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Being in the second floor studio space above the Steak House at Oak and Washington Avenues that included many late nights or all nighters. It was a small studio group and close to each other.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

I was on a team and perhaps became the defacto team leader for the small group one summer who won an AISC design competition. During the summer, we had to execute the steel lattice structure we designed. We were unsuccessful in completing it due to our design not accommodating all the intersections that had to occur. In spite of an unsuccessful completion, I still found this to be a significant and meaningful learning experience.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

I was in awe with many students who had much better free-hand sketching and rendering skills than I did. It drove me to strive to improve my own skills. Without a doubt the social turmoil of 1968-1970 disrupted the learning experience, but in itself was a learning experience. It had a huge impact on where I thought design skills needed to be used.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Immediately after graduation, I worked for 2 years at the Community Design Center and provided design services to many inner city and some rural MN clients who would not have received such service without the CDC. For the last 15 years I have been heavily involved in delivery of multi-family housing projects including many in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area. These help build communities and families.

Mark D. Larson

University of Minnesota - M.Arch '93

St. Olaf - B.A. Econ '88

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

The design process.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Professors Steve Weeks, Lance Lavine, Harrison Fraker, Sharon Roe, Gunter Dittmar, and Denny Grebner for passion, commitment, and character. Visiting lecturers Frank Isreal, Ralph Erskine, Rem Koolhaus, and Frank Gehry for amazing work. Also my fellow students and Jean (Rehkamp) Larson, my wife and business partner, for life, kids and a dozen years in business together.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Rolling Michael Roehr's VW Bug up the front steps of the building to be used as a found object on our Mexico trip exhibition.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

Sounds machine.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Using the school wood shop and scrap lumber to crank out last minute models the morning of a critique.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

We designed (pro bono) two houses for the Eco Experience building at the MN State Fair seen by 250,000 people, showcasing green principles, sustainable practices, new products, and salvaged materials. Both buildings have since been reassembled and are in use as retreats in the north woods.

John M. Maternoski

University of Minnesota - B.S. Arch '12

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

The design process, including collaboration with colleagues. 

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Julia Robinson and Jim Lutz. They were just both incredible professors and introduced me to the things I am passionate about today. Julia introduced me to the social aspects of architecture which I have had the opportunity to study in greater detail since graduation. Jim really introduced me to sustainability, which led to my pursuit of additional sustainable design education in Oregon.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Model making. Minnesota has a great wood shop and lab that were great resources in model making.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

The re-design of the Cedar Lake Bike Trail with Professor Kristen Paulsen.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Marc Swackhammer once challenged me to think in section rather than plan. Such a simple challenge, but I've thought about that in every project I've designed since and it's led to significantly better results every time.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

I haven't had the chance to practice yet, but the rigorous work ethic I learned at the School of Architecture has carried over to my time in grad school and I know I've gotten numerous compliments on my design ability and work ethic, which I have been able to share with my colleagues. I attribute these skills to the education I received at Minnesota, and teaching them to my peers has definitely made a positive difference for them.

Jennifer A. Roets

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '01, M.Arch '05

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Perseverance. 

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

The Chicago trip in GD1.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

The Glass Bank for the city of Green Bay, WI. 

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

I was really influenced by sustainable design, especially daylighting.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

I'm a part of the Downtown Mainstreet Design Committee for the city of La Crosse, WI.

Gail D. Manning

University of Minnesota - M.Arch '84

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?

Hard work and speaking in public.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?

Lance Lavine for his gregarious, interested demeanor. 

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Support of friends and colleagues.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.

UM Itaska State Park buildings.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?

Iterative nature of the process.

Cite an example (be specific) that illustrates how you used the education you received at the School of Architecture to positively impact (or better) your community, city, nation or the world.

Education served to better represent building owners.