The University of Waterloo School of Architecture takes pride in its tight-knit culture. Working collaboratively with all our peers, building relationships with upper-years, and running into students in the hall are among many of the perks mentioned at the school’s open houses. The great sense of family in Waterloo makes it like no other. The University of Waterloo School of Architecture Campus; a place we will have to wait a little longer to visit (image...
At the Waterloo School of Architecture, the art of making is integral. Model-making and fabrication is a component of every studio course, often with a required final model. For some students, their interest has veered further towards the craft component of architecture. We wanted to interview these students to ask them—how can craft influence the design process? For part three of this series, we interviewed Melody Chen, one of our 3A students who is a...
By: Melody Chen & Riling Chen When the Bauhaus opened in 1919, it was a stark shift from the traditional form of teaching the arts. They believed that artists should return to craft and instead of the typical teacher and pupil dynamic, the school was filled with masters, journeymen and apprentices. Their philosophy was simple, students should be able to live in and build the forms that symbolize their environment. At the core of the...
Architecture school is full of intriguing characters – big minds, lots of wit, familiar faces that mask a stranger’s untold story. As a response to this great individuality and as a nod to the famed Humans of New York series, the Humans of Waterloo Architecture project was conceived. This week, Danielle and Melody got to know Rain Mäki. (more…)
Architects and the colour black go together like brick and mortar. As first year students, we (Danielle, Melody, and Riling) wondered why. Here is our investigation of this phenomenon. (more…)
Architecture school is full of intriguing characters – big minds, lots of wit, familiar faces that mask a stranger’s untold story. As a response to this great individuality and as a nod to the famed Humans of New York series, the Humans of Waterloo Architecture project was conceived. Today Danielle and Melody share the unique story of Michelle Sprackman and her brand OKO. (more…)
“I’d always painted before school, and for my interview to get into Waterloo actually, I brought in some of my paintings. There’s something very cool about doing something with your hands, there’s a freedom that I feel gets lost a lot from projects that we do at school sometimes. The focus is on the technology — sometimes you might find that when you’re designing something in your head, you’re limiting yourself to what Rhino can do,...
What’s something that’s been inspiring you recently? “One thing that I’ve noticed inspires me most is watching people make things without knowing what they’re doing. Basically, taking on a project having no idea what the outcome is going to be, and it turns out to be something extraordinary. It doesn’t necessarily have to be beautiful, but the experience of taking something on like that for the first time is, I find, very inspiring. When I do...
What are some things you’ve noticed while you’ve been here for thirteen years, anything you find stays the same or something that’s changed? “Well, mainly that there are a lot more students now then there were in the beginning. But it’s always been a smaller community, different from main campus. And every term we notice that there are new kinds of projects, new kinds of things we see hung up.” Is there anything in particular that you love...
A documentation series of the unique University of Waterloo School of Architecture community in Cambridge, ON.
