In this Article published by Indochino as "What makes some glad buildings?" architect Bruce Haden , principal at DIALOG Vancouver why some places feel good being and why some just have that awkward, quiet feeling.
award-winning architect and urban planner. Dad. Researcher on the happiest cities vs lonely. We talked to Bruce Haden on why some places feel good d be in, and some just have that awwwkward, calm feeling.
Bruce Haden was only an architect and a bartender. So ask him what he likes about it, and his answer is that he does not really know anything else. In high school, he did not want to choose between calculation and woodshop, so he ended up in a profession that is part art, engineering of the room (and a fair amount of politics). Now he is working on a number of large buildings, public. But he also spends a lot of time thinking about the happy cities and lonely. He talks about how to work with a client is like dating, why some buildings are worth and others are simply empty, and if by chance or luxury wins.
On dating and customers
"In all our projects, including a single family home, there is an element of trust. No matter how you are skilled or how strong are the criteria, creating a large building is part intuitive. If a customer basically not trust your judgment, they should not hire you. so if someone has not hired an architect before, i want them to speak at least two other architects. As with dating, when you know what is out there, it gives you more certainty about your selection. for many clients, they spend too little time researching and choosing the right architect, and too time-direct the design process once they have chosen one, instead of just being able to trust the architect. "
on planning surprises
"something that interests me is how to set up an opportunity where I can surprise people. Most people have strong preconceived idea of what features they want, or how they want the building to look at. But I want to create something that is not only a requirements checklist: as if you are dating someone who is really good on paper, but there is something missing magic. And I do not use the term "magic" lightly. "
building in spontaneity
" I did years ago a project for women who were in transition from prison; we built a sort of halfway house. These women had a total lack of personal security: most had been in prison, many had been in violent relationships. I spoke to a woman who has never lived in a place where she could lock the door. A main objective of this project was to create a sense of safety and security and privacy. And it was actually an easy target in some ways, because as a culture we really support the separation and control. And I began to realize then we do not also support the connection and the community as effectively.
years later, I was working on the townhouse complex that I live with a developer. We worked from the principle that all homeowners should be completely private, but also the child if something happens like someone is ill-we'd be able to know about it and could help. So we put in place so that we can see in bridges each other :. Not our living rooms but our bridges
More recently, we have combined our backyard. We have a great big barbecue and a series of tables, we can move together or separately. But no fences. So our children can run everything. I remember to open our door one night after putting the children to bed, and see a dinner party. My neighbor had about 15 people over, most filmmakers. They invited my wife and me more, and we had a glass of wine, and joined the conversation. In most places, it would be impossible.
On quiet violins
"When we share spaces, questions arise. Like, what happens if someone's child play violin and I'm reading? Sure. But I am more worried about what happens when the premises are empty and too quiet. "
The good and the bad space
" We do a lot of public buildings. And many of them in the past have too large public spaces, deserted. Philosophically, I try to remember that many evil things are done for good reason: we are super-critical buildings that date back 40 years, but many of these architects were motivated by utopian tendencies. The idea was that the public open space was good. And this is generally true. But I would say that even if some is good, when it is empty and windy, it's not good. Our firm is known for designing Granville Island, which has something called Triangle Square. I think is one of the best public spaces in the city, because it is small and trafficky with many people and buyers and buskers. "
On how a good conversation is not necessarily a deep one
" a lot of research shows that meaningful conversations are not necessarily so intimate or deep spectacular. They could be brief moments of social connections that increase our level of social trust. It's different from what you get on the Internet. There we can find the 14 people in the world who have the exact same breed of dog, and we think we'll be flooded with different opinions, but we actually just find people that build our own. Ironically, it can create the opposite of the community, because you often end up with lots of anonymous flames.
"We need to rethink public spaces-and I mean globally as elevator lobbies and airport lounges. Does our seating arrangements encourage talk face-to-face? "
on what being a dad taught him about unknown danger
"It is absolutely clear to me that the children were supposed to have many different varieties of social contact. We have this idea of the nuclear family. But I want my children to know my neighbors, and learn different things from them what they had to teach me. and I think, if not, I cheat.
"with children, the whole issue of protection is most important that the contact is in reverse. People are so afraid, and the children are considered fragile. My favorite is doing lately a book called Free Range Children . If I take my child, and I stick him to step before someone and leave him alone, how long would he sit there before there is a statistical probability that there would be removed? The answer is 750 000 years. Yes, terrible things happen. And there is always the question: "What if it is your child?" But still, things that kill children are cars and water. "
The likelihood of non-billable hours
" Of course, there is a risk to explore your passion-like mine on cities and not paying enough attention to billable hours. But I see the risk of not following your passions even greater. I had lunch with an old friend of mine recently. He is a senior lawyer, who worked in the same law firm for many years. He looked beaten. He looked burned. He looked tired and overweight. And I think that if in the end, you are not committed to a sense of purpose, the work becomes really exhausting. "
On that children teach us about the work
" I think one of the great gifts you give children a sense of humility. You're gonna screw it until you do, you might as well do what you think is best.
"In a sense, I spend time thinking about cities that I could spend with my children. And yes, spend time with your kids is important. But I think also model your own values is important. If I have a particular set of choices, which makes my children proud of me? "
on a lesson he learned
"I took a year off for the architecture school, and went to London and got a job bartending. I had the idea to spend a few months cycling from London to Athens. I wrote to my parents and asked if they could send me $ 5,000 to pay for it. My mother answered and said, "This is a fabulous idea! We support you completely. Here's $ 100. "I felt betrayed. But then I thought, 'What will I do?" Then I am a second job in an architectural office. I saved $ 3000, and decided that I could make the trip on that budget. After the trip, I had enough money to take the bus back to London, but not enough money to eat on the bus. So I asked for food from other bus riders. On this bus, someone gave me a couple of fries, and some whiskey got passed around. It was an awesome trip, despite the lack of luxury.
"This trip helped me realize this adventure is more important than luxury. As an architect, I have had more success than I had anticipated, and I ended up having a lot of luxury experiences. But the adventure is better. and often the two are in conflict. "
Bruce Haden is a main dialogue. He won the World Architecture Festival Awards Governor General and the Nk'Mip Cultural Center
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