1. Bottleneck Condition
Design Ffunnel (yes, with two F’s, pronounced “FUH-funnel”), a
self-described “virtual community of design enthusiasts,” is an events
clearinghouse that draws together calendar items for architects,
interior designers, engineers, and contractors—and it’s fast becoming a
hub of AIA chapter activity. So far AIA Northern Virginia, AIA New
Mexico, AIA Las Vegas, AIA Albuquerque, AIA Oklahoma City, AIA Fort
Worth, and AIA Kentucky have joined in the first weeks of the site’s
launch. “The localized geographic aspect is really key to this endeavor,
and working with AIA chapters has been essential to understanding
regional developments,” says Libby O’Malley, former executive director
of AIA San Diego, who founded Design Ffunnel this year. “Market to
market, we’re trying to be as inclusive as possible, and this site
intends to be a real bridge, connecting the entire built environment
community in a way that hasn’t been done before,” she says. O’Malley
aims to cover the top 50 U.S. architecture markets by the end of 2014.
Learn more at www.ffunnel.com.
2. Arquitectura Viva
Colombia is home to more than 47 million people—the third most-populous
country in Latin America. And the country’s architectural output has
grown in the last decade to match the scope of its growing housing
needs. Recognizing both of these things, Architecture Center Houston and
AIA Houston’s exhibition “Colombia: Transformed/Architecture =
Politics” examines 11 contemporary projects around the country that
address community and migrant rights, racial justice, and social
improvement through public housing. The exhibition is currently on view
and closes Jan. 10.
Learn more at aiahouston.org.
3. Bucking Inertia
For the past two years, the University of Pennsylvania School of Design
has sponsored a series of conferences, lectures, and publications
centered on the topic of how architectural systems can manage energy
production and consumption in the built environment. Next month, the
school will host “Energy Accounts: Designing the Future” (Jan. 23–24),
which will build on 2013’s investigation into how climates and regions
influence each other and 2012’s coverage of how a building’s performance
can determine its looks.
Learn more at architectureandenergy.com.
4. Coming Into Focus
Navigating the early years of architectural practice isn’t easy. Some
paths—through licensure or through internships, to name two—are clearly
marked. But there are plenty of other variables that influence how
architects are educated, trained, and tested on the macro scale (take,
for instance, the economy’s recessionary hangover) as well as on the
micro scale (such as balancing work and family, not to mention carving
out a couple hundred hours to study for the Architect Registration
Exam). On Jan. 24–26, the AIA, the American Institute of Architecture
Students, the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, the
National Architectural Accrediting Board, and the National Council of
Architectural Registration Boards will hold an Emerging Professionals
Summit in Albuquerque, N.M., to devise better ways to support more than
37,000 associate members and newly licensed members.
Learn more at aia.org/professionals.
