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College of Design

Monday, July 29, 2013

Michael P. Sweeney

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '00

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?
I learned the importance of the social and urban aspects of projects. 

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

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?
Watching the sun come up through the windows in the the temp studios in Jones Hall, which was the sign to go to Al's Breakfast before the review started, building pizza box models at DCAUL, and touring the Winton house in the middle of winter and feeling the radiant floor-heating in the travertine.

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

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?
Frank Gehry and the book, "Planning to Stay."

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 particular, compared to Harvard where I went on to do my masters, the program taught me to look at architecture and design in a much broader range and focus. There was a refreshing openness to considering quotidian spaces, such as doctor offices, bus stops, small towns, etc., as equally viable opportunities for architecture relative to the other more valorized cultural spaces. That openness and ecumenical approach to design has shaped my continuing practice more than just about any other aspect of my education, anywhere.



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