More than one way to gain experience in the design field

Have you noticed everytime you go to apply for a design position ( on this post-architecture,interior architecture, graphic design) they ask about your experience? What if you just got out of school and have not had any experience other than an internship(s) that you have done on your third and forth year (maybe fifth year with some programs)? Make sure you have strong portfolio to clearly show what you can do. How do you know you have a strong portfolio? 

How to draw/sketch an axonometric floor plan with these easy steps

An axonometric floor plan displays a lot of features that a two dimensional floor plan could not show. Materials is one of these features (other then being three dimensional of course). Unless you do a rendered floor plan (or renderings) , a two-dimensional plan will seem flat and is more of a construction document. It will be a nice touch on a project for a client or put it on a board that you have to do for a design school project. Before putting my design projects on the computer (Revit, AutoCAD, ArchiCAD, 3ds Max, sketchUp etc), I draw/sketch my ideas on paper/sketchbook. Here are some simple steps that I take to draw axonometric floor plans and that you can apply to your own specific project:

Choosing a laptop for architecture school for your design needs

There are many options out there (as far as laptops) where you can run design software smoothly without any graphic problems. Most architecture programs will have their computer requirements on their school page. The laptop requirement for my school (UNC-Greensboro) was a macbook pro. It is a great computer however if you are running architecture software such as (revit,3ds max) you will need to add a copy of windows to it. ( bootcamp, or parallel) so the programs can run. (They make autoCAD for mac now). If you are just going to run sketchUp or adobe suite then you are going to be fine regardless of what you choose (again, depends how much memory space(ram, video card etc) you have on your computer) Check out these three steps when your making the decision on purchasing the next laptop (mac or windows (32 bit or 64 bit)

First,
  I would recommend to choose a laptop that is quad core,great processor ( intel 3rd generation i7 3630qm 2.4 ghz + is very good and also amd is a good choice (make sure you choose the latest) is another option.  

List of necessary equipment I needed for in architecture school

I graduated Forsyth Technical CC for architecture technology and then transferred to a four-year university where I completed two more years for interior architecture and earned my bachelors. Here is a list of necessary equipment that has helped me in my design projects and I am sure you will have to get them at some point of your school career in architecture.

1. Drawing Board
There are various drawing board sizes ( they could be 24 inches by 36 inches or 32 inches by 48 inches long, and 24 inches by 36 inches wide). Personally, I chose the 32 inches by 48 because at school you will have your own desk (cubicle or it could be open) and have the space to put it. The boards are these big sizes for more than one reason. the main one is that these sizes accommodate easily the work drawing sheet sizes. Check out the board for warping or bending surface. I had to look closely for these and the third board was the right one for me. The material was made of white pine and it was light to transport ( unless you have a two seat car, that would be a little bit of struggle to transport) The board will have a ruler (parallel bar) where you can secure your drawing so it does not shift when you working on it plus you can put other items (triangles, highly suggest having one of these next to you at all times while drawing on the board).

How did I make an architecture portfolio online

This is the road to making an online portfolio that has worked for me and helped in having a web presence in the architecture/interior architecture,graphic design field. Networking is key in our profession in the design field. After all, to is about location, location, location a little bit right? Let's get into the topic more deep.

First, decide what or how much work you would like to include on your portfolio. You want to include your best work at the beginning and also finish strong with a great project! Be proud of your work! You spend alot of time creating them and now it's time to showcase them! I am in now way, shape or form suggesting that in the middle of your portfolio, you should include not so good projects. One way to look at it that has helped me is by asking your friends, what they think of a specific project or how to make it better. Listen to their feedback, criticism and embrace it with open arms. It will help you alot and save time when you work on a project since you will know what to fix or get rid off.

Second, Look out for a website to host your portfolio that would fit your needs. Personally, I use Behance (it is free) platform to host all my projects. At one point, I turned my blogger page to a website where I posted my recent projects. There is Wix platform (also free) where you can make the portfolio too. Depends, on your preference and how comfortable you are using each website. you can try to make an account and test-drive each of these pages and see what would be easier for you to upload the projects. Let me know if you have any questions concerning any problems you might encounter during the process of making an online portfolio! I will gladly help with answering these questions. If you are not new to this process, how did you make your online portfolio?

New Day in the Design Field

Every since I graduated for Interior Architecture at University of North Carolina Greensboro, It has been extremely hard to find a position in the design field. Maybe it is location, location, location. I have a lot to offer and recently i have worked on a couple different freelance projects. Some of them were for different clients that I got in touch from networking and some where competitions that I have entered. The last work that I completed was the Smart Office competition that was sponsored from HP, Microsoft and Talenthouse. I had a good experience at Talenthouse and made me realize alot of things. I have to keep working hard and keep showcasing my work and talent that I have. Hard work pays off, and a position in the design ( architecture, interior architecture, graphic design, GIS) field will open with time and I will take every opportunity. Time will tell if everything will work out. Till then, every day is a good day that I will keep working hard, and today it's a new day.

Project 3[Historic Preservation]


106 Parrish Street, Durham, NC 27701 is the site address for project 3. We
documented and observed both building and site context thoroughly and analyzed and interpreted data observed in a useful and meaningful way to inform the conceptual design process that we are going to do. My group[3] looked at:

building’s structure/ codes/ ADA exploration)
-the zoning and building code details of the site


-in its existing state, consider the egress system and accessibility issues in the building


-ADA as it applies to the site


-the structural system of the building to examine what changes the building is ready to take in

-the other present problems faced by the facility and how it can be rectified


-constraints and opportunities of the site

-what is/ are the unusual/dominant feature(s) of the site

-show the existing building drawings illustrating the interpreted features


Capturing the city, shifting from urban to interior space

Environmental psychology is important in this space because lighting is going to support social interaction while affecting many social, cultural aspects. The steel columns holding the underpass together is an inspiration where we could use stranded fiber optics. The role of the design could be to support and facilitate public realm whether people walking through it or on bikes or rollerblades.

Thank you

Thank you for visiting my page. Currently working on couple freelance projects and will be posting new content every week! Meanwhile, check out my portfolio and/or other pages. Have a great weekend!