[ugly] buildings [ugly] people

ugliness is subjective. what seems ugly to me might be totally beautiful to someone else.

case in point, i think the salk institute is one of the most beautiful buildings i've ever seen, my mom thinks it's one of the ugliest.  this difference in opinion has always fascinate me.  do i think it's beautiful because i studied architecture and i've been told it's beautiful? or is it, in fact, an ugly, cold, pile of concrete?

to answer this, or any question whether a building is [ugly] or not, i like to judge buildings against the same traits i find ugly in people.

-dishonest
-inappropriate
-unorganized
-negative

i don't think it's any stretch of the imagination to say that if someone had these qualities, they might not be getting "swiped right" too often 'cause they are indeed ug-ly.  i find the same holds true with buildings.

i think dishonest buildings are ugly.  if a building promises or eludes to one thing on the exterior and it's false once you get inside, that's an ugly quality.  if a building uses fake stone or brick as a material, to me it's the same thing as someone lying to my face.  false windows, false fronts, faux this, imitation that...all just lies.  the more lies told, the uglier it becomes.

i think inappropriate buildings are ugly.  i'm not a huge traditionalist at all, but if someone were to build a sleek and modern glass house in between a block of historic brick townhouses, i would find that inappropriate and therefore ugly.  the building doesn't have to be traditional but it should pick up some cues from it's context.  i feel buildings should be appropriate for their surroundings.  there are times and places to be loud and flaunt it on center stage and there are times when you need be quiet and blend in.  a building should know the difference.

i think an unorganized building it is ugly.  granted i know many people who are unorganized that i wouldn't call ugly, but when someone is organized....it's just so damn sexy!  seriously, when a complicated program can be organized into a simple plan, it's one of the most beautiful things in the world; an unorganized plan is the ugliest.  lord knows an unorganized plan will only lead to an unorganized elevation, and then there's no hope for this ugly beast in front of you.

i think negative buildings are ugly.  buildings, as well as people should always leave this earth better than they found it.  whether a building does that by creating a better space for people, use less energy, encourage alternative forms of transportation, give a new perspective to a view or simply make it's occupants smile, a building should have a positive impact on this world.

people come in all different shapes, colors, heights, widths, types and styles and buildings should too.  there are however some core traits i feel make people [ugly] and the same can be said about buildings.

so, looking at that criteria, yes mom, the salk institute is in fact a beautiful building.


and you're a beautiful person.

please check out other architects view of [ugly] with the links below



Lee Calisti, AIA - Think Architect (@LeeCalisti)
ugly is ugly

Lora Teagarden - L² Design, LLC (@L2DesignLLC)
Ugly Architecture Details

Jeremiah Russell, AIA - ROGUE Architecture (@rogue_architect)
unsuccessful, not ugly: #architalks

Eric T. Faulkner - Rock Talk (@wishingrockhome)
Ugly is in The Details

Michele Grace Hottel - Michele Grace Hottel, Architect (@mghottel)
Ugly

Brian Paletz - The Emerging Architect (@bpaletz)
Ugly, sloppy, and wrong - oh my!

Jeffrey Pelletier - Board & Vellum (@boardandvellum)
Is My House Ugly? If You Love It, Maybe Not!

Nisha Kandiah - ArchiDragon (@ArchiDragon)
the ugly truth

Keith Palma - Architect's Trace (@cogitatedesign)
Behold

Jim Mehaffey - Yeoman Architect (@jamesmehaffey)
A Little Ugly Never Hurt Anyone

Mark Stephens - Mark Stephens Architects (@architectmark)
Ugly or not ugly Belgian houses?

Ilaria Marani - Creative Aptitude (@creaptitude)
ArchiTalks #30: Ugly

Larry Lucas - Lucas Sustainable, PLLC (@LarryLucasArch)
Die Hard: 7 Ugly Sins Killing Your Community

gone [maine]ing

i've fished more this year than i did the last decade living in wichita.

this year i've fished twice

just in case you were curious.

there must just be something about maine.  i'm not sure if it's the whole state, or just the people i've become friends with, but nearly all of them enjoy fishing.  this summer, one of my friends offered to take me and another guy out on his boat.  as i can totally enjoy the summer weather, while drinking a beer and holding a stick, it didn't take long to convince me to go.

we left early in the morning and headed out into casco bay.  we threw our rods in and starting catching tons of fish.  i was reeling them up three at a time!  i had never fished like this back home! i was having a blast!  come to find out, we were merely catching the bait....that's right, we were catching fish to catch other fish! a first for me.

having a full bucket of bait we went in for the larger fish, some stripped bass.  this ended up being a slower process than the bait fishing was, but once i hooked one it was a thousand times more exciting.  i was able to reel in two different stripped bass that day, both about 30 inches long.  we held on to them long enough to get pictures but then set them free to live another day.  the bait fish, that had thrilled me earlier in the day, unfortunately did not receive that same fate.

as we motored back to the shore that day i was curious about one thing. am i becoming a mainer because i fish, or am i becoming a fisherman because i'm in maine?

 

the [shack] supper

when you're here...you're family.

after the wedding my family stayed in town for another week.  when my wife and i got back from our mini honeymoon, we were able to spend some quality time with them before they headed home.  one particular night, they all wanted to experience a true maine lobster shack.  as i've only been to one a quick google search pointed us in the right direction.  thirty minutes later we were all sitting in the rising tide restaurant, which ended up being a legit lobster shack.  we all ordered various seafood items from the menu, with a few people even going for a whole lobster.

between the cracking of lobster tails and the squirting of lemon slices, people told their favorite stories from the wedding reception.  i had to laugh, not only at some of the hilarity i apparently missed at my own wedding, but because i looked around and realized i was in the middle of something my family does extremely well, telling stories, laughing and enjoying great food.

though we aren't all directly related, this group of people is my family...

and i was so excited to have that group go up in population by one with the addition of my wife.

catching up with [new] friends

someone once told me, no matter where you travel you should always make friends.  it's a small world and you might just run into them again.


three years ago i wrote about spending my birthday with 10 strangers, who by the end of the night had become friends.  you can read it here.  at the end of that post i fully acknowledged i might never see those people again. 

that wasn't the case.

even though we only spent six hours getting to know each other, most of the people i met that night became facebook friends with me, allowing all of us to stay updated with everyone. one of the ladies i met that night, hit me up last month to see if i'd be in portland one particular weekend.  through facebook she knew i had recently moved here.  Her and her boyfriend were on a summer long cross country trip through north america and would be traveling through portland on their way to canada.  i was in fact going to be in town that weekend so my fiancee and i made plans to met them out for drinks.  meeting up at one of our favorite bars we started chatting and catching up.  questions were asked, stories were told and small talk evenyually turned into actual conversations. one drink led to another, which led to another, which led to trying out another bar and more drinks. somewhere during the night four random people became friends and we all had a great time!  so much so they decided to stay in town for a few days and enjoy a few fourth of july parties with us.  both she and her boyfriend are incredibly wonderful people and turned the weekend into a very memorable one.

i absolutely love when life makes little connections like this.  a completely random meeting of people three years ago helped make a fourth of july weekend three years later a wonderful time.

be nice to people out there folks, it makes for a better and more enjoyable world.