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Beyond the Ordinary

The world is full of extraordinary. Join me in exploring all that sparks creativity and change.

latest inspiration posts

July's Architecture Educator of the month: Geoffrey Taylor

Designing for the next generation is an important trend in architecture and design. A forward-thinking architectural educator that I admire is Geoffrey Taylor, Dean of the School of Building Arts at The Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). A Harvard and SCAD graduate, he is a Doctor of Design and a major contributor to Savannah's innovative design sector. Geoffrey believes that the responsibility of architects is to make good buildings that meet human needs while also addressing the impact of construction on the environment.

Two Cautionary Tales About General Electric for Our Times

I have had tons of experiences working with Fortune 100 companies over the years. On capital projects ranging from $50 to $500 million, we are usually collaborating with the C-suite team members. Looking back over 35 years of doing business, I found that I could tell from these encounters, or should’ve been able to, whether a company was going to excel or deteriorate. Some of the great companies I worked with include Centene, Express Scripts, Microsoft, and Amazon. The planning, the energy, and the professionalism were evident throughout our exchanges and collaborations. A couple of companies I worked with that didn’t do so well were Venture and a large brewer, and you could see the handwriting on the wall.

How the World Really Works by Vaclav Smil

We know climate change is altering our planet. How the World Really Works is a much-needed reality check reminding us that before we can tackle problems effectively, we must understand the facts. This is a thought-provoking book I recently read that looks at the importance of energy for humanity. Written by Canadian energy expert Professor Vaclav Smil, the book explains the fundamental realities governing our survival and prosperity. These include fossil fuels and food production, globalization, and the future of the environment.

May’s Artist of the Month: Lauren Halsey

Lauren Halsey is one of the most exciting young artists working today. She produces standalone artworks in sculpture and mixed media, and site-specific installations, particularly in the South Central neighborhood of Los Angeles where her family has lived for several generations. She has the vision of an activist, and her work explores the relationship between architecture and community engagement in urban centers. Her sculptural environments and flat works combine imagery from contemporary life in Harlem and LA with ancient Egypt, outer space, technicolor, and funk.

The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir

If it wasn’t so scary, the book The Room Where it Happened: A White House Memoir would be a good read as a novel about what leads the world into chaos and even the darkest of war scenarios. It’s an authentic memoir, not a novel. This is an intriguing book I recently read that offered exclusive insights into the workings of the White House. Written by former President Trump’s National Security Advisor John Bolton, his integral title related to U.S. safety gave him insider information and access to the Administration’s affairs. He spent many of his 453 days working right in the room where everything happened (and the facts speak for themselves). Die-hard fans of Bolton’s former boss quickly try to ignore or discredit him, as Fox News seems to forget that he was a daring foreign policy hawk for a long time before his tenure with the former president.

Willis Tower Transformation

One of the reasons I love Chicago so much is its magnificent architecture. There are few buildings as iconic as the revamped Willis (formerly Sears) Tower. When it was completed in 1974, it was the world’s tallest building – standing at 1,450 feet and 110 stories. Willis Tower remains the highest point against the beautiful Chicago skyline. The one problem with the spectacular modernist tower was its disconnectedness from the city. In 2015, EQ Office, a realty company owned by Blackstone, bought the property. The company hired Gensler, the largest architecture firm in the world, in collaboration with SKB Architects and OLIN, to inject new life into the tower and weave it into the urban fabric.

ARCHITECHT SPOTLIGHT

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Beyond Book Club

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Cover of the book "Engineering in Plain Sight" by Grady Hillhouse, featuring a colorful illustrated landscape with bridges, tunnels, cranes, roads, and power plants representing various elements of the constructed environment.

Engineering in Plain Sight: A Book That Makes You See Things Differently

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Inspiration

I have always had an insatiable curiosity

What causes me to get out of bed every morning is driven by inspiration. Ever since I was a little boy, I was inspired by my insatiable curiosity, which caused me to be a reader, a thinker, and a dreamer.

I can remember being inspired by seeing Bobby Kennedy on TV and watching videotapes of Martin Luther King Jr., and being deeply saddened by their assassination even though I was only 10 years old when I experienced all of this.

As a little boy, rocket flight was a big thing. I remember being fascinated by the moon and the stars and the astronauts exploring them.As humans we are achieving remarkable things that only a handful of years before were just in the imagination.