a dose of [kansas] architecture

over the past couple of months, i helped re[vitalize] ar34.

it was originally a publication reviewing kansas architecture. however due to time and lack of budgets, it fell out of circulation a few years ago. wanting to help revive it, a co-worker and i, set out to figure a way put something together, with no money.

the idea we had was to create a user supported, digital magazine. the idea being that anyone with interesting stuff, would submit a project. we'd gather them up, arrange them onto a layout, and have a magazine. it sounded simple enough.

so a call for submissions went out last september asking people to send in any architecture, or art they wanted to contribute. the idea being that anything and everything was up for consideration, as long as it somehow related back to kansas. we had photos from interns, projects from firms and former kansas students, as well as sketches and renderings from students and professors. overall a great variety for the first issue.

attached is a link to the magazine. now it's no "dwell" but i thought this would be a great way for everyone to keep up-dated with the architectural "happenings" and "going-ons" here in the sunflower state.

click on the picture, to open the pdf.

hope you enjoy...

[purple][red][black]and [blue]

i'm not a "football guy".

i'm just not.

the only action i ever saw on a football field, was back in the high school marching band. but there's something about this time of year that just isn't complete without attending at least one college football game, which was just about my average during college.

i traveled up to lincoln, nebraska last weekend to see my alma mater take on the corn huskers. as it was an early game, a friend and i drove up the night before, and stayed with friends, husker fans no less. waking up early and traveling to the game it was a completely different feel then the little apple. the stadium is in the downtown area, much different from the vast parking lots and fields i was use to. decked out in my k-state gear, we walked to the stadium. during our trek the crowds were full of red, i did my best to keep up with the football jargon, throwing out terms like, "touch down", "running back"and "bcs bowl". i believe i eluded any suspicion of my limited knowledge of this sport.

i'm not going to go into the details of the game. one, because we all know the outcome, and two, i'm really not the type of person you want explaining the game. but as the score went up, and the k-state fans slowly left, i stood my ground, cheering on my team with pride until the game ended.

although it was a different city, although i was with different people, although we lost horribly, the whole experience was very nostalgic. i found myself reminiscing about better times, most notably the weeks surrounding our win against nebraska, november 11, 2000. a beautiful, and exciting season, that i'm thrilled took place during my stay in manhattan.

times change, people change, seasons come, seasons go, sometimes you win, sometimes it feels like all you do is lose, but you try you're hardest to look forward to the next season.

thankfully, we'll always have the memories.

GO STATE!!!

pie[canned]

following up our debut last year, my firm once again decided to participate in wichita's [can]struction event.

being the most excited in the office about it, i was elected team captain this year, which basically meant i was voted to receive a lot of e-mails. throughout the past month, i had everyone in the office submit any ideas they had on what object we could sculpt. the list grew and grew, however nothing really stood out as "the one". that was until a suggestion from our secretary. an idea i loved from the moment i heard it. an object i could get excited about sculpting! an object i wanted to see built!

a giant piece of pie!

now what kind of pie to build, led to another week long discussion. a lot of people wanted your traditional apple pie, there was even some discussion about pecan. rhubarb discussed. blueberry was in the top spot for a while. however when the dust cleared, it was decided that the lattice work atop a cherry pie would be the most artistic venture.

a trip to the grocery store and we found our palate. FMV pear slices for the bottom crust, kroger kidney beans for the cherries. (yes it would have been great to use actually cherries, but they were too expensive) and packages of creamy chicken ramen noodles for the the lattice work.

there were five firms competing this year, which made the build a bit more competitive, as no one wanted to reveal what they were building. as the build continued however, the secret was eventually revealed. all the firms had great entries, but for some reason i was partial to ours. maybe is was the most creative, maybe it was the best use of labels, maybe it was the most artistic, or just maybe it was because it was a giant piece of cherry pie!

[fashionable] architecture

i was coming home late from work this week, making my usual trek, not really paying attention, when i nearly ran into the largest spider web i've ever seen. i flipped out, i really did. i hate spiders.

i took a step back, and shook off the "willies". staring back at the spider's web, i'll call her charlotte, i noticed it wasn't complete, but she was in the middle of making it! i was amazed! the precision, the delicacy, the accuracy. it was beautiful. before long i found myself standing and watching for a while.

my mind must have still been in "architecture mode", because as i sat there, i started to critique the web. it was very minimalist. she only used one material, silk, which seemed natural, and it was only placed where it had to be. it seemed to be extremely functional. the structure is primarily used to catch food, and it would appear that a "web" is the right shape and style to use. it seemed to be incredibly sturdy as the blowing wind didn't have much effect on it. the scale seemed to fit for the size of occupant, it wasn't one of those "mcwebs" you see being built in the suburbs. it wasn't gaudy, but instead blended into it's environs very well, yet still stood apart. i'm not sure if she was going to apply for LEED certification or not, as it seemed to be pretty self sufficient.

it wasn't all praises, however, as i did want to question her and ask if this was just "fad" architecture. i mean really, with halloween being so close, and the structure's originality, come on, couldn't she have though a little outside the web, just a little...

but those critiques fell by the wayside as i realized that i was witnessing instinct at work. charlotte was born with it. she wasn't thinking of any of that when she started out, she was simply doing what she knew how to do, and it was beautiful.

of course this whole story would have been much shorter, and less inspirational, if i would have stumbled upon her in my closet.

i woke up the next morning, almost hoping that she had written "happy halloween" onto the web, but when i went down and checked, it was gone.......

probably found a better site.

like a little [sundance]

well, i've lived in the downtown area of wichita for well over a year now, and i'm finding that i'm starting to look forward to certain events. this past weekend was one of them.

the annual tallgrass film festival.


i attended last year and loved it! i was amazed that wichita, a city that isn't exactly topping any cultural center lists, put on a film festival showcasing independent films, shorts, documentaries, and foreign films. i know i wasn't the only one to enjoy it, as the festival grows every year, quenching the people of wichita, thirsty for a little something different in the theaters.

needless to say i was excited to attend again this year. not only for the films, but i thought it would be good professional move on my part to be seen hobnobbing with some indie directors, trying to boost my totally imaginable and made-up career as a film actor.

the films were at a number of locations around town, i however stuck to the old town theater, where most of the films were playing. this year i attended a documentary called "twisted" which follows eight people and records how becoming a balloon artists has changed their lives. next was a series of shorts all falling under the theme "truth and fiction", films that blur the lines between reality and imagination. "i met the walrus" was amazing. Finally a documentary called "blood on the flat track". a documentary about the sport of women's roller derby and the rise of the rat city league in seattle. more interesting then the movie however, was the fact the audience was filled with girls from wichita's own roller derby leauge. something i had know idea even existed.

all the films were interesting, i'm not sure i'll be standing in line when the dvd's are released, but i still enjoyed them all. what i love more then the films, is the event itself. it's a little jewel that almost disappears in the small shadows of our downtown, but once you find it, it's wonderful. to those of you that say there's nothing to do in wichita, i say nay! it may be harder then other cities where culture almost bursts at the seems, but here in the ict, you have to look and pursue interesting things to do, but once you do, it's worth it.

...and hey if indie films aren't your thing, there's always roller derby!