For my field observation assignment, I chose the Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture as the sight I wanted to observe and record. This was because most of my classes are there, as I am an architecture major. I really enjoy going to that building for class, so I was thrilled that I could spend more time there. When it came to take the prewriting observations, this was extremely easy for me. One of my hobbies is going to a space with a good amount of people, sitting down somewhere that does not intrude too much on the people I want to view, and I observe and think about them. Like the peer interview assignment, I could insert my personality into this paper too. Another thing that helped me write this paper with a great degree of flow was how I was already familiar with the place. There were not many hard ships to this project, but I would say that it was certainly hard to sit down and just do it. This assignment was done earlier in the semester when I was not as into writing as I am now. Like the research proposal, I procrastinated this one, although not as much. In doing this assignment, I did learn a lot about how to write and about my own writing style that I wanted to develop. This was one of the first essays I had ever done where I was very free to express myself. It was here where I earned, I could incorporate how I think into the paper itself. By this I mean I wrote the paper how I may speak, as to give the paper some personality and flow that I think it needed. I also learned to be much more descriptive in my writing, as to set the scene and make the reader feel they are actually there.
The Architecture Studio (Or as We Call it, The Stu)
From the outside, the Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture is an interesting but also depressing looking building. It has a lot of windows, something yellow on the roof, and this weird house thing on the edge of the roof. But what does it look like inside? Are its classrooms like those in Marshak? What even goes on in there? Well, to start off, architecture building is most certainly unlike any other school you will go into.
The biggest difference between the architecture building and other buildings is that we don’t have classrooms, we have studios. These are much larger rooms divided into smaller areas with big desks and bright lights to help us draw. There are six floors, three studio and three office, with a massive atrium in the center. Along the studio floors are places for students to hang up their work for review. The floors themselves are made from poured and smoothed concrete, speckled with all kinds of things like plaster, glue sawdust and other residue from drawing and model making. Around the hallways and terraces of The Stu are various contraptions for enhancing the creative process. I can see this covered and vented box for indoor spray painting and right next to it, a hot wire cutter for slicing foam. Chairs and benches are haphazardly scattered along the pin up areas, probably leftover from a pin-up. I walk down staircase B, from the third floor to the second, and I hear the humming and buzzing of the fabrication lab. Its laser cutters and 3D printers helping the students present their visions. And downstairs the wood shop with its array of power tools like the band saw and belt sanders.
Another major difference is that we don’t have tests or quizzes. At The Stu, we have pin ups, desk critiques and reviews. The desk crits as we call it are the equivalent of a quiz. It’s like a check up on the work we are doing. A pin up is something most architecture students will dread, but I on the other hand really enjoy them. It’s a time to learn about the drawing you made, and about how it can be improved. A review is like our version of a midterm and final.
In the freshman studio, which is where you can find me, the mess doesn’t end. There are building materials piled on every desk, with paper everywhere. I see models of plaster, chipboard and foam core, and in the center of everything a model that’s a five-foot black cube. The walls in here are also made to pin stuff to, so of course, there are drawings on just about every wall surface. On the desks there are drafting boards, which make it easy to do architectural drawings, rulers, compasses and triangles and so much more drawing equipment.
On a typical weekday at the studio, you can watch the architecture students pinning up work, presenting to a group of judges or hanging out with their classmates. But starting this week, I’ve observed a great increase in the amount of people staying at the studio after hours. This is because next week is mid reviews, where we must present all our work since the start of the semester. I’m looking around and I see people working on models, sanding plaster, doing drawings and discussing the project with their groups. It’s like watching everyone carryout their normal routines, only sped up. Currently the whole studio is alive, people rush everywhere. Going from the computer lab to the laser cutter and back to studio.
Late nights at the studio are an interesting and one of my favorite times to be there. This is after most of the students who commute to CCNY have left for the night, and as such the freshman studios become quieter. 10 to 20 people at most will stay behind and play some music while they work. Some of the older students might bring drinks like rum to the studio and have some while working. This is only for them, of course. The late-night studio is totally different from the afternoon times, it’s more relaxed, but focused. And the minimal amount of people there make the space feel like a little community, as with less people, we interact more. It’s usually the same people at this time, some of which are my friends. We work, talk, sometimes just take a break and hangout. A great thing about the floors in the studio is that they’re very smooth. So when we take our late night break, I’ll ride my skateboard around the hallways for a couple minutes, then get back to work.
The Spitzer School of Architecture is one of my favorite places to be, my home away from home. This is my passion, and the rooms inside are my temple for learning. This is a very bias opinion, but The Stu is one of the most interesting and breathtaking places to be on campus.
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