Re: Re: Fees? What Fees?
massamann, such a design review process exists in the UK, offered by Design Council CABE (formerly just CABE) This process has its own pitfalls, most obviously, that some people may not wish to be “educated” (I must also add, even as an architect, I find the idea that we must “educate” the lay man a bit patronising, we spend 5yrs in college studying what makes good design, I’m not sure we can just, say, show people a flip book of do’s and dont’s and expect them to “get it”, whatever it is they are supposed to be “getting”, that being said, every effort must still be made) The design review is often resented, especially if someone is already paying architects fees for design and then have to pay additional fees for design review. Another complaint is a perceived bias against certain styles of architecture. Furthermore, and probably most damning is that despite the review process, a substantial amount of crap still seems to get built on an industrial scale.
But, I do agree that the biggest issue is the public perception of architects (or indeed any group of people), events like Open House are great, however portrayal in the media is the most problematic. Most often when a new building is considered significant enough to warrant mention in the press, or in marketing a new development, the architect or construction team are left out; in UK copyright law the architect (or author, etc) has a “moral right” to be credited in a publication of the work, although this never happens in practice (although perhaps it’s only intended to apply when the client is trying to promote it rather than for the purposes of public information?)
I haven’t seen much of Dermot Bannon since I moved to the UK, however from what I remember the show didn’t necessarily do much to improve the image of architects (I recall one show where the builder was aggrieved that he had taken too long to issue detail drawings) Taking part in the show has been a very shrewd move on Mr Bannon’s part, he’s pretty much guaranteed himself work for the coming years, however I think it would have a better service to the profession if the programme showcased the work of other firms, such as A2, Donaghy Dimond, Boyd Cody, ODOS, etc, perhaps someone new each week; although I see the appeal of Dermot as a safe, everyman architect rather than some award winning “name” practice that may be intimidating and seem unrelatable to the public.
As far as websites go, I don’t necessarily agree with you teak, I think simple is fine, but a general ban on Flash would go a long way.
