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Thoughts on Successful Advocacy |
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By: Rich Gribble, AIA, President
Successful advocacy can only be accomplished when we take action in support of our cause. Twice a year members of the American Institute of Architects Central Pennsylvania Chapter are asked to volunteer their time to meet with our elected officials in Harrisburg and Washington DC. At these meetings with our state senators, representatives, and congressman, our AIA volunteer advocates speak in support of relevant issues identified by the AIA. I have joined my colleagues on several occasions over the last four years as a volunteer advocate for the AIA, and have come to realize the importance of my involvement in this work.
I measure the success of our advocacy campaign by more than just votes on the house floor. Although some issues that we were asked to support have been accomplished in the legislature, I have come to realize that our advocacy was successful because we took the time to stand up and get involved. Of course there are many important aspects to consider such as showing up prepared and on time, being a good listener, being polite and saying thank you. Then there is the excellent research and planning of our AIA government affairs staff, to develop our goals into issue briefs that are clear and relevant to current topics in the legislature. However, there are also several other key factors which play a critical role in our success, and in some ways may even transcend the issues that we discuss with our elected officials.
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2012 AIA Grassroots Report |
| By: Wendy Tippetts, AIA, Vice President
Every year, the AIA hosts an annual Leadership and Legislative Conference late in the winter in Washington DC, Grassroots. Component leaders from around the United States (and the world) attend the conference.
Leadership Advocacy Communication Grassroots 2012 Theme:
The Grassroots Theme for 2012 was "Leadership - Advocacy - Communication". The focus of the discussions and presentations during the three day conference were efforts to "Reposition the Institute" to keep the profession of Architecture relevant; and the need to increase connection with Young Architects and Emerging Professionals. The AIA will be launching a Repositioning Initiative by working with individual components and "filtering" what they learn into a strategic plan for the AIA. For more information on new direction, the following link has been provided: http://info.aia.org/aiarchitect/
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By: Chris Dawson, AIA
Our 2012 AIA Central Pennsylvania Lecture Series kicked off on Thursday May 10th at Agricultural & Industrial Museum in York. Katsuhiro Yamazaki presented the work of his firm Atelier TAG, in a lecture titled "Path to Practice."
Katsu spent the beginning of the lecture painting the picture of Atelier TAG's history and their research into the role of the architect and architecture in the context of accelerated globalization. They have survived via Canada's approach to selecting design firms for civic buildings through competitions having submitted for 8 and winning 3 since the firm began in 1997. He presented the 3 winning projects (Municipal Library of Chateaguay, Vieux-Terrebonne Theatre, and the Raymond-Levesque Public Library) as well as an un-built Monastery design.
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The Arts and Economic Development in Downtowns |
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By: Tammie Fitzpatrick, AIA, Design Awards Chairman
2012 Architects Conference & Expo
and Excellence in Design Awards
Save the date for Thursday, October 4, 2012!
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Ware Center |
This year we are holding the Conference and Expo at the Ware Center in Lancaster, PA. The building itself is notable as it was one of Philip Johnson's last works. We will begin the day around noon with a tour of the building by the General Contractor, Benchmark Construction. He will give us a behind the scenes look at the building. This is a rare opportunity to learn how the building developed into what it is today.
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Lessons Learned by the Yeoman Architect |
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By: James Mehaffey, AIA
I am not sure what it was that really bugged me when I learned of Brad Pitt's increasing involvement in the architectural community. For some reason I was irked that he had become the face of a major redevelopment competition for the non-profit organization Make it Right. Perhaps it was because I still blamed him for dumping America's sweetheart, Jennifer Aniston. Or maybe it was for the 2 plus hours of my life he wasted when I sat through Legends of the Fall. Maybe it was just because he has absolutely no training in design and more people listen to him than to people like us. It likely it is the latter reason; and because someone like Mr. Pitt gets to use his money and influence to determine the new face of New Orleans.
It shouldn't bother me. After all, he plunked down 5 million of his own money into the project (a good 20% of his 2007 gross revenue, I learned). As far back as the 1990's I heard stories that Mr. Pitt liked to travel around Europe with a sketch book. This, of course, was relayed to me by a young woman who wanted to meet Mr. Pitt sketching in a piazza while we were in Rome for a semester. Then I learned that he had Frank Gehry redesign his wine cellar, and after that experience, he worked in Gehry's office for some sort of peculiar internship.
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Don't forget to check out the Lending Library. Click the image to see what materials are available!
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