Action Item Area: Architecture Class Materials (ARCH X 467.17A: Design Communication I at UCLA Extension)

Reason for Item: In order to complete my online course assignments, it is essential that I have all of the materials listed on the class page.

Notes: I already have half of the items on the list, either because I took another architecture course which required them or because I have already taken the steps to buy them.

Resolution: Look over my list carefully and find all of the items I need. I must be sure that the items I already have or bought meet the exact requirements. Check and see if there are any other preparations I must make before my class begins.

 

Action Item Area: Independent Barn Redesign Project

Reason for Item: As the majority of my week will be spent outside of class, I will be spending most of my time working on an independent project involving redesigning my family’s barn–which has not been put in use in decades. I am not looking to seriously “fix” my family’s barn–the project is simply to spend independent time learning the ins-and-outs of SketchUp and working to completely translate a design from the physical to the digital. I may even spend time drafting floor plans, whether on paper or also on the computer.

Resolution: I already have SketchUp downloaded on my laptop. The main task will be to find a system of measuring the actual barn. I will have to ensure that I own a sturdy tape measurer that can reach far. Translating the barn into SketchUp will be a difficult task, but one I am willing to spend an extensive amount of time completing.

 

Action Item Area: Meeting With & (Potentially) Visiting Architects

Reason for Item: As an aspiring architecture student, I find it important that I connect with real, working architects. This will allow me to understand what paths I must take, and what the life of a working architect is truly like. This could teach me about the differences between how the architects I interviewed experienced college in comparison to how I will experience it. If possible, I may even make plans to visit small architecture firms around the city. I would like to see what real, non-academic architecture workspaces look like.

Resolution: I am already in contact with some architects both from New York City and other parts of the country. I plan to, at the beginning of April, begin scheduling Zoom interviews with them. Over Spring Break I will come up with questions about architecture school, the process of becoming a licensed architect, and the life and career of a working architect. After the interviews, I will record my findings in some way so that I can present on what I learn during the Senior Project Presentation.

 

Action Item Area: Required Book (Zaha Hadid. Complete Works 1979–Today. 2020 Edition by Philip Jodidio)

Reason for Item: It is required that each student chooses a novel. Plus, I have always wanted to learn about the details of Hadid’s life.

Resolution: I will be reading a biography about my greatest inspiration–Zaha Hadid–who inspired my interest in architecture. Her book, Zaha Hadid. Complete Works 1979–Today. 2020 Edition, is a combination of a portfolio of all of her works and a biography on her life. I would like to know her life story and learn how she, as a woman of color, dominated the architecture field and became the first woman to ever receive the Pritzker Architecture Prize. I already own the book.

 

Action Item Area: Independent Project Mentor (Jessica Prohías Gardiner)

Reason for Item: Students are encouraged to have independent project mentors which oversee their work and give them advice and feedback on how to move forward.

Resolution: Jess will be my independent project mentor. Whenever I have taken major steps in my barn redesign, we will meet on Zoom to discuss where I am and what my next steps are.

 

The most major changes I have made to my project plan have been the additions of my independent project and my required reading. I am glad to have made them, because I was originally concerned about how I would be spending my time outside of class. I have found this blog post to be extremely helpful for project planning. Even while writing this post, I realized how important yet difficult measuring my family’s barn will be.