Andrew J. Sigfrids

University of Minnesota - B.A. Arch '04 

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

Design Objectives, such as having a small, simple list of design criteria and carrying them throughout every aspect of a complex design. I thank Ernesto Ruiz and that team of professors for that one.

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

Richard McLaughlin. Richard was my first year studio professor and he brought a realistic element to a flood of concepts that was probably the most practical perspective on design I didn't see for even many years after graduation. His energy was uplifting, always positive and he was the most down-to-earth of any teacher I ever had.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

Hanging out in studio with a group of students on an occasional Saturday night doing design work instead of being out at house parties and bars. We would have our own fun and I can't say our work was productive after 11pm or so, but it bonded us in a way that made the weekdays even more enjoyable. Great connections were made.

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

Mississippi Riverbank Redesign.

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

Renzo Piano's style had an effect on me because his work is conceptual enough in form to be respected in a school, yet practical enough to studied from a building construction perspective. SNU was a student group I was heavily involved with during school and design of practical neighborhoods was good experience on how to practically design for 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 once did a presentation to the first design studio I worked for in China about my university curriculum. Education is highly regarded in China and my Chinese colleagues were fascinated with how we learn design and the independent thinking we were pushed to do on each and every project.

Scott J. Newland

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '83

What was the most important thing/skill/concept you learned at the School of Architecture?
Lateral thinking, which is the process of looking at problems from different points of view and at different scales (as opposed to linear thinking) in order to approach a solution with as little carryover of initial preconceptions and prejudices as possible. As someone who tends to go toward the linear and logical, this concept of lateral thinking has proven helpful over and over since school.

Who made the most lasting impression (most influenced you) and why?
Two fellow students immediately come to mind: Elizabeth O'Donnell and John Rode. From each of them, in my first and second years of being in the design studio, I was fundamentally impressed with their designs and how beautifully they were drawn. I consider the experiences gained from interactions with peers more lasting than lessons learned from the staff.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?
Simply being in the studio with others, working on designs, and being able to share ideas and see different ways of approaching any given problem.

Please identify one (or more) memorable design project that you worked on while a student at the School of Architecture.
In 2nd year studio with Stanley Fishman, we had the assignment to design a replacement for the movie theater in Dinkytown; a new double-screen facility. It was memorable to me because I started feeling like I had a unique design solution I liked that received much encouragement and support from fellow students, and that I presented with what I considered innovative presentation board formatting. It was also a project that still shows the strong influence of Frank Lloyd Wright, a clear hero of mine at the time. Another project that was memorable was an early, abstract problem in 1st year studio with Ray Geiger. The problem, as I recall, was to develop a model that conveyed the essence of a wall, a door, and a window using architectonically-developed geometry. It wasn't like anything I'd done before and it was a good experience, with a solution that I still like.

What major forces (such as individual architects, design philosophies, rendering styles, research methods, etc.) do you remember influencing you significantly as a student?
Influential architects at that time, for me, included Rapson, Wright, Aalto, Kahn and engineers such as Nervi and Morandi. High tech design approaches were the most compelling to me, and it was hard not to be influenced to some degree by Post-Modernism. There were many drawing styles that had a profound influence on me in school, from Ralph Rapson and Frank Nemeth's renderings to some of the loose, colorful pen and colored pencil work of some students, to my professional mentor at the time, Michael Plautz.

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 Foreign Study program was formative for me in that the 2 1/2 month experience in China allowed me to experience a radically different culture and meet peers from the culture. From that experience, and from a return trip I made 5 years later on my own to follow up with 2 Chinese students, I have shared lessons both ways - publishing an article on Chinese architectural developments in Architecture Minnesota, sharing with my Chinese colleagues parallels and difference between our respective professional contexts, etc. Through all of this, I have been able to more effectively work with my own clients to whom the U.S. is not their birthplace, and to see our own community in a more global perspective, something that is increasingly important today.

Tom L. Hysell

University of Minnesota - M.Arch '87

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

Leadership and the ability to think critically through a problem.

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

Dick Morrill, for communicating that we need to love what we do.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days

Getting late night ice cream cones from the Big Ten for the studio (they didn't melt since it was twenty below) and the China foreign study trip in '85.

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

The interior of a hotel lobby and my thesis, Media Arts Center on the West Bank, were memorable due to the difference that scale does, and does not, make.

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

From outside lecturers and the influences of inside practitioners, we were able to know that the practice is broad and design really matters.

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.

Through my roles on boards of non-profit organizations, such as the Minnesota Museum of American Art, I have been able to give back by helping and bringing my architectural expertise.

Timothy D. Pellowski

University of Minnesota - B.Arch '83

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

Perseverance, teamwork and camaraderie, 3-D design investigation as a means to creative problem solving, and an appreciation for well-crafted and refined design presentation materials.

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

R. Buckminster Fuller who spoke at the Alpha Rho Chi Convention we had hosted at the school in '79. I was amazed by his energy and intelligence. He talked about sustainability long before the term was coined.

What is your favorite memory from your studio days?

I'm proud to have been a part of the '81 contingent from the School of Architecture that went to the People's Republic of China. We set up a studio at Tianjin University, traveled around the country, and learned watercolor painting from a master. The Chinese architecture students and professors we met were among the most considerate and thoughtful people that I have ever met.

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

I really enjoyed most of the projects I worked on in the studio. The Minnesota History Center Project in Grade 3 (1980) stands out. My studio crit, Dewey Thorbeck, gave me a lot of encouragement to follow through on the idea of building the museum as a bridge over I-95.

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

I gained a deeper appreciation of Ralph Rapson's renderings and the whole "Minnesota Style" in Professor Grebner's architectural drawing class. Professor Grebner also introduced me to Christopher Alexander's Pattern Language. Although I did not agree with everything Alexander wrote, it helped me organize my thought process and develop a stronger rationale for my projects. When I came to the U of M, I thought the world revolved around Frank Lloyd Wright, but Professor Dittmar introduced me to Alvar Aalto and a number of other European and Asian architects that significantly broadened my perspective.

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 remember that we often bemoaned group projects in the design studios. Yet, I feel those experiences have helped me be a much better participant in community groups and volunteer organizations. Specifically, I served a term as president of a cooperative apartment association in Washington, DC. My experiences in the school gave me the confidence to attempt building a consensus among members with divergent opinions and make many necessary improvements to an aging building.