Today is progress.
One of the most refreshing parts of design reviews, is having fresh perspective from people who have never seen your ideas before. It’s can be easy to become attached to something that enraptures your soul, and drags you like a siren through the long hours of the night previous to a critique. So much so that a new perspective is like a gulp of fresh air as you climb out of the hatch of your submarine and rediscover the clarity of the world. But then you realize that your still in the middle of the ocean, and need to climb back in and find land.
Today is when we begin to look for land.
To take another metaphor form the sea, our critique on Wednesday showed us both the excitement of our ideas, and the need to pull them into land and determine whether its a good catch, or just flotsam and jetsam. Clearly each one of the 6 design teams chose a different focus – whether it was structure, programming, wall systems, etc. – and from first glance it may seem difficult to comprehend how these various pieces and parts could work together. Indeed, some wont and they will need to be cast aside or radically altered so as to bring the soul or concept without the problems. Others will likely be embraced for continued development. Whatever the case though, the team needs to be clear on the mission of the project and the needs of the client. This is our plumb line – the concept needs to address the goals of the client or no matter how pretty it is, the project will never be a success.
Today is where we move forward.
I’m excited to meet with the studio today, bring in local architects, reestablish our mission, and begin to mill down the projects to their soul for adoption into what will be Crop Stop 2.0 – a place that helps small farming communities grow.
Today is progress.