Death of a Salesman

the need for branding? 

the need for branding? 

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Architecture Theory reading week: 05 

Death of a Salesman by Edgar Mozo

ARCHITECTURE LIMBO: breeding grounds for wolves in sheep's clothing

WHERE DO WE DRAW THE LINE BETWEEN BRANDING OURSELVES IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH ONES CAREER AND KEEPING OUR VERY OWN ARCHITECTURAL INTEGRITY WITHOUT SELLING OUT? DOES IT HOLD TRUE WHEN YOU HAVE STUDENT LOANS TO PAY? MOUTHS TO FEED? BILLS TO PAY? This balancing act is so far from the interns’ minds that we do not bother to think about it. However, have you ever question your superior’s architectural integrity? Are we doing our profession a service by working for just a paycheck? I found this reading to be so liberating by clarifying the meaning of what architecture is set out to be or where it gets its notoriously ambiguity from. In this architecture limbo –free from any elite group or any governing style has allowed for salesman to infiltrate our profession.

One way to spot such vicious predators is to hear the way they describe their services. Two, how they find the need to personify the buildings they design and for their products to do something more than what they are intended for. Terms like, performing, breathing, efficient; and so on, get thrown around as they continue to make architecture that is something “more”. “Less is more”, “more is more”, “yes is more”, all this quotes start to sound like political slogans and ironically architects like biark ingles are very clear with their intentions by assimilating to figures like Barack Obama from his 2008 presidential campaign with his slogan “yes we can”. Bjark Ingels’ “Yes is more” manifesto is his way of saying: here I am and here is my brand and this is what I’m selling. It is extremely hard to say this and I continue to reject the thought that architects are just nothing more than glorified salesman, unfortunately in our generation that is the only thing that seems to be selling.

What architecture brand has our city not yet purchased? Mayor, so far we have a Calatrava, Gehry and a Prada. We should get one of the BIG’s he seems to be popular right now with our young generation of architects right?