Engaging Them.

Becoming Us.

An Architect’s Role.

Jason Klinker

Master of Architecture

Final Creative Project

Major Advisor: Dr. Wes Janz

Minor Advisor: Anthony Costello, FAIA

Submitted: May 04, 2011

Money is tight, hunger pangs are creeping in, the middle of December and that horrible

decision has to be made – are the kids going to be more upset if they are hungry, cold, or

without a present this Christmas. The painful truth is impossible to avoid – life can be hard.

As the vast majority of us will go through hard times at some point or another, it is important

to remember that the one resource we have plenty of in this world is that of human energy

– when life has pushed us down, our human energy is where we need to turn to carry on.

One of the main ideas that drew me to architecture was the ability to design structures

that would affect people on a daily basis. For me, that amount of interaction translates

into an unbelievable potential to have a positive impact on the world. It also means there

is a tremendous responsibility. This is a responsibility that I take very serious. Unfortunately,

our profession has only recently started to actively engage the potential of architecture in

the areas where it is likely needed the most – the Midwestern industrial town, the blighted

city neighborhood, the village recovering from natural disaster.

I am confi dent that architecture has a special role that it can play as a spark for these

areas, for the small Rust Belt town. That role is where I have focused my energy. I see many

of the current attempts at socially engaging, humanitarian architecture to be top down

master planning, often lacking the engagement at the base. With this fi nal project, I am

presenting a socially engaging architecture, and more importantly, a socially engaging

architect, starting at the base and working up. I have utilized this fi nal creative project as an

opportunity to immerse myself into the local Muncie community. Facilitating collaborative

efforts of clients, volunteers, and board members, we have made physical changes to the

dining room at the Harvest Soup Kitchen. Serving as an engaged case study, this project is

put into a taxonomy of architects that are dedicating themselves to similar work.

Abstract

I. Abstract

II. Table of Contents

1. Introduction (pages 001 - 008)

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Thesis Overview

1.3 General Methodologies

2. Literature Review: Understanding Perspective (009 - 029)

2.1 Questioning the Perspective

2.2 Understanding Them

2.2.1 Pecha Kucha Exercise

2.3 Becoming Us

2.4 The architect’s Role

3. A Model for Engagement: The Harvest Soup Kitchen Project (030 - 079)

3.1 Introducing the Cast

3.2 Researching and Understanding

3.3 Saying Hello

3.4 Establishing Core Friendships

3.4.1 Giving Cameras to Johnny and Loretta

3.5 Establishing My Place

3.6 Discovering Boundaries: Understanding Existing Social Structures

3.6.1 Giving Cameras to Regular Diners

3.6.2 Surveys

Table of Contents

3.7 Dissolving Boundaries – Challenging Existing Social Structures

3.7.1 Callout Meeting – Establishing the Dining Room Club

3.7.2 Redesigning the Dining Room

3.8 Personalizing the Relationships – Redesigning the Dining Room

3.9 Growing and Building Together – Remodeling the Dining Room

3.10 Observing the Response

4. A Shared Perspective – Practitioners Focused on Non-Traditional Clients (080-153)

4.1 Creating a Taxonomy

4.2 Profi le – Jason Klinker

4.3 Profi le – Ryan Ellsworth

4.4 Profi le – Hector LaSala

4.5 Profi le – Mike Halstead

4.6 Profi le – Emily Pilloton

4.7 Profi le – Bryan Bell

5. Conclusions (154-160)

5.1 Soup Kitchen Future

5.2 My Future

5.3 Taxonomy Conclusions

5.4 Academic Relevance

Chapter 1

Introduction

002001

Chapter 1 is an overview of the project, general methodologies and reasoning that are

behind this thesis in both formulation and execution.

Chapter 2 talks more specifi cally about questioning current accepted perspectives

when dealing with non-profi ts and potential clients who are not typically served by the

architectural profession. It also touches briefl y on developing an understanding of the

architect’s role.

Chapter 3 discusses in detail the project that took place at the Harvest Soup Kitchen. This

project is framed as a series of steps that I used as a method of engagement.

Chapter 4 provides further research in the form of six profi les of professionals trained

in architecture that are focusing their energy on non-profi t, homeless, and the type of

clients that I am interested in serving with my degree. This section will compare my own

profi le to the other architectural professionals working on similar projects in order to better

understand how my efforts fi t in to a broader body of work, as well as, allow me to better

understand how to pursue this interest further in my career.

Chapter 5 is a series of conclusions and predictions in terms of the Harvest Soup Kitchen’s

plans as a direct result of my project, my personal goals and aspirations, and the more

immediate steps I am taking as I transition into a professional career. It also will present

some conclusive evidence as to the academic and professional relevance of this project.

1.2 Thesis Overview

My initial interest for this thesis project was to gain understanding of how I, as a person

formally trained in architecture, can utilize these new tools to make a difference and help

people out. That said, this project has focused less on developing a physical piece, and

focused more on developing a process of engaging a local non-profi t, in this case the

Harvest Soup Kitchen.

As the semester progressed and I found some success in the project done at Harvest,

I became curious how what I was doing related to other folks doing similar work. I was

curious to see, if they too have gone through this process, how they’ve handled the

tough situations that undoubtedly arise when working with people and situations that

are fi nancially and emotionally stretched thin. As I looked closer into some of the other

architecture professionals in the world engaging in this work, I found that they all had

some pretty unique ways that they were taking a traditional degree and using it in a non-

traditional manor to achieve similar goals.

As I pushed further with the research, I began to put together a small taxonomy of these

people. In the mix, I have placed myself as a way to compare the things I am doing to

the established professionals. It also provided me a platform to formally layout some of the

things I have done, while challenging me to determine where I am personally going after

graduation.

1.1 Introduction

004003

My initial research included the review of standing theories in pedagogy and educational

systems, architectural and planning theories that relate to the role the physical environment

plays in community development, and theories of environmental psychology and social

organization regarding how people place value in their individual and communal lives.

Aside from these three, a base understanding was also sought in understanding some of

the works in sociology that focuses on community transitions, times relation to personal life

perspective, and perspectives of the leaders in discussions based on city decline and the

dynamics of social movement in our modern time.

From the beginning I knew that I had an interest in researching, and better understanding

the relationships and workings of neighborhoods and communities – specifi cally

communities in the Midwest that have a strong working class demographic. Being

brought-up with Midwest, working class morals, I wanted to understand how this group

can make the necessary transition from a predominately production based economic

model to one that is focused in the services sector and information sharing. I hope to one

day understand how these communities can maintain the strong morals that hold them

together, yet still fi nd their place as the world they once knew slips away. Understanding

that there is a complex system of forces at play in these communities, and with the people

that inhabit them, is what led me to such a wide range of investigation for my initial pass

at relevant literature. I feel as though this breadth of this exercise has played an important

part in developing a basic working knowledge of the situation.

Another reason for the range of this investigation was a response to the vast difference

in beliefs as to the role of the profession in addressing social issues. With the range of this

working knowledge, it allowed me to develop my own ideas into where architecture as

a profession and architecture as a physical environment fi t into these communities. From

this base, I have developed my stance that an appropriate position for architecture, if

it seeks to be successful and relevant to the shrinking Midwest industrial city, is one that

1.3 General Methodologies develops slowly and with a very high level of interaction with the community. I believe that

it is this dedicated approach, becoming a vested member of the project and involving

the members of the community, that will be the most successful way to empower these

citizens and arm them with the tools needed to succeed in a new world.

There are many critiques to this method of engaging a community, from others as well

as from myself. This method requires a drastically increased amount of time and personal

dedication, mostly due to a relatively small understanding between the formally educated

architect and the more simplistic perspectives of many blue collar workers. This lack

of understanding goes both ways. The important role that architects can play is often

overlooked as ‘fl uff,’ while architects tend to dismiss those less educated as lacking the

ability to understand what they want. We both have much to learn from each other. It

also becomes very diffi cult to support a professional career while doing this type of work

as these communities and clients often lack the funding necessary to pay for architectural

services.

Despite this skepticism, I fi nd that this method of dedicated engagement becomes vital to

the success of these projects. As many in the ‘working class,’ are feeling neglected by their

government, and in many ways their country, they need to be given a voice that allows

them to take control of their world. The ultimate goal is not for me to have control over my

environment, but to help provide others the tools, both physically and emotionally, to take

ownership of theirs. This project has shed some light on the potential roles the architect

can play. As I continue in my career, I hope to investigate these roles further. This ‘call to a

greater cause’ is what has drawn many students to the profession of architecture. I hope

to help the profession realize its potential to answer this call.

To balance the loftiness of the literature review and the seeming disconnect between

what was being said and the lack of what was being done, I began, and continue to

volunteer in the local Muncie, Indiana community. Originally I had identifi ed the Harvest

Soup Kitchen as a site for my research project, and ultimately found it to be a place that

could utilize my architectural skill-set. My initial observations gave me reason to believe

that there was some disconnect between the three primary groups in the social structure -

the board members, the volunteers, and the diners. Also, the physical appearance of the

dining room was tired and aged. It seemed more appropriate that this room have some

006005

excitement to its décor, even if only slightly.

Making these general observations allowed me a platform to start testing the theories and

understandings that I had been reading. I decided to more openly approach the people

at the Soup Kitchen, mostly the volunteers at fi rst, with this idea of doing a project in the

dining room. Having had several other volunteer groups (the boy scouts, church groups,

etc.) work on many of these small projects, the volunteers and board members seemed

to be comfortable with the idea. There was some hesitation though; as I began to turn

down offers from outside volunteer groups, and insisted that I wanted the people that

were dining there, the patrons, to be very involved in the process. I explained to Loretta

and Roseanne, the assistant manager and board president, that I had little interest in,

‘giving’ them a nicer dining room. It was important that the men and women that were

using the facility have some possession of the space. It was important, for at least a few

of them, to be able to point to something that was in a public place, and say, “that is my

work.” This idea for empowerment seemed to make sense to Loretta and Roseanne, but

their hesitation often came from the limited reality of actually making it happen. In many

ways, it felt as though they were still looking at our diners through a single lens - a mistake

that I have found can be fatal to these types of projects. Every person coming through

our meal line, much like diners at a local restaurant, is different. If you take the time to get

to know them, you very likely will fi nd good people with valid opinions and points of view.

My methods of engagement throughout the semester have been fairly organic in nature.

This was for various reasons - the primary being the need to negotiate my relationship

with the diners. Because my efforts at the soup kitchen were primarily from the position of

‘volunteer,’ there were preconceived perceptions of me as a volunteer that separated

me from them, the patron/diner. This was made clear when I fi rst attempted to hand out

cameras to some diners that I had seen coming through the line fairly consistently. Based

on the negative response, I understood that I needed to introduce myself in a much more

formal and engaging way. This was done with the disbursement of a survey that allowed

me to take that next step - having a callout meeting.

I decided that even though we had a fairly small group, two diners (Ron and Dave) and

me, it was important that we move forward with the project. The size of the core group

helped to keep the scope of work fairly minimal. The small scale and budget allowed us

to move along fairly quickly. In retrospect, I think this worked for the best because it kept

everything at a manageable scale. It also allowed us to start doing work, and let others

see the things we were doing. I noticed that there was a very big change in perception

towards me as I began explaining the changes we were making, and diners were able to

see that I was dedicated not only to Ron and Dave, but also to improving their space. We

were not focusing just on function or security, but looking at spatial quality and also making

efforts to get to some of the issues that were outlined in the survey results; specifi cally,

issues like being more accommodating to smaller scale groups, understanding that they

desired something that was new and changed, etc.

As the dining room project moved into the construction phases, I realized that the method

of engagement I had taken was proving successful. We were getting a project done for a

minimal budget and fairly quickly. Also, the project was doing most of the things that I was

hoping it would do. We were giving a sense of worth to Dave and Ron, as they received on

going compliments from their fellow diners, the volunteers, and the board members. It also

provided a conversation starter that was leading to an increased interaction between

volunteers and diners at Harvest, including Ron and Dave. The board, at least in terms

of Roseanne, was taking an increased interest in the day to day workings and began

making more frequent appearances at the kitchen. As her attendance increased, so did

the interactions she was having with diners and the volunteers – two groups that the board

typically was not having repeated interactions and engagements. It was truly starting to

bridge the gaps that were separating these various groups in that social structure.

I understood that this success was coming as a response to a very specifi c scenario at the

Harvest Soup Kitchen at that point in time. The outcome could have been very different

if there was a different board president or if there would have been a generally different

demeanor amongst the diners. This was part of the motivation to do some further research

on other professionals that were working in non-profi t type sectors. I wanted to better

understand how the things I was observing compared to what others were fi nding. As I

moved through this research, I found that they were all confi rming that the most successful

component in empowering and making a difference was through a high level of personal

interaction across the spectrum of non-profi t inhabitants – board members, volunteers,

and clients. This was also the case when larger projects were done that provided more

physical need than emotional need. In these cases, there was more focus on the middle to

007

upper end of the social scale, but efforts were still made to include everyone as possible.

Being interested in non-profi t/volunteer based work programs, I was curious to better

understand how I could move into a career where I was able to support myself, while

also having the benefi ts of working with this sector -- being surrounded by people that

generally love what they do and seem more concerned with the promotion of better

living, not simply a bigger pay check. As I continued my research with the taxonomy, I was

fi nding that there were a variety of ways people were accomplishing these careers. From

college professors, to directors of non-profi t organizations, to more traditional architects

that were just really good at writing grants and getting through the process, there were

many avenues that I could take as I continued.

Chapter 2

Literature Review: Understanding Perspective

010009

As I am sure many have, throughout my life I have looked at architecture as a tool that I

could use to help people. By enclosing them within the right form, and by providing the

right details, I would inspire people to be everything they could ever want to be. Through

my designs, I would bring meaning to their lives. It is true that architecture is because

people are, and people are because architecture is. One cannot survive long without the

other. Architecture is important as it mediates and protects the delicate human body from

an often unforgiving natural environment. However, architecture as protector is different

than architecture as inspirer. Architecture as inspirer is in the details, but not in the way the

column connects to the beam. It is in the nuanced relationship between architecture and

person -- that is where inspiration resides.

I have struggled to understand how the details of my architectural work were that inspiring

to me, but seemed to leave others indifferent. I have grown to understand I had been

looking at the wrong relationship. I was looking at my relationship with the architecture

not their relationship with it. I was on the outside looking in, they were on the inside looking

out. It was the seeing of myself in the details that inspired me. It was having the ability to

manipulate the environment that empowered me. It was only after looking at the work

from a different perspective -- from their perspective -- that I realized that my relationship

with the environment was much different than theirs. I now see that if I want to really inspire

people with architecture, it is by giving them the power to go through the process that I go

through when designing. It is the process of critically evaluating an environment, then with

a creative, personal intervention, responding to that evaluation that is important. If I want

to inspire and empower people with architecture, I need to stand next to them. I don’t

need to explain my perspective of the world, but to challenge myself to understand theirs.

This thesis, for me, has grown primarily from two concerns. Early in the process, it was a sense

of discomfort that I found in the work I was doing, both collegiately and professionally.

Later in the semester, I began realizing that the discomfort was with me as much as it was

2.1 Questioning the Perspective the profession. In his essay ‘Poor Not Different,’ Wolfgang Sachs makes a statement about

poverty. “When the size of income is thought to indicate social perfection, as it does in our

economic model of society, one is inclined to interpret any other society which does not

follow that model as ‘low-income.’ In this way ‘poverty’ is used to defi ne whole peoples,

not according to what they are or want to be, but according to what they lack and

what they are expected to become (Sachs, 1992, p. 162).” This is a perspective that I feel

many of the people in our profession understand to be true. Until recently I would have

included myself as having this understanding. I was looking at situations of ‘poverty,’ and

not looking at people. If we hope to make legitimate, lasting progress in these areas of

society, changing this perception will be one of the key challenges, as this very personal

perspective often contrasts the ideas of popular culture.

“In many ways the challenge of changing our personal and professional perceptions starts

with our educations, “Anisur Rahman, an economist/planner, writes in an essay, ‘People’s

Self-Development.’ He continues with: “the best promise for development lay with the

initiatives of the ordinary people…As economist [planners] we were trained mainly in

this kind of defi cit and dependent ‘development’ planning. We had not learned how to

plan the mobilization of the human energy of the people, to plan to develop with what

we have, not with what we do not have (Rahman, 1992, p. 167).” This is, if anything, a

gracious description of my educational experience. I was rightfully trained in necessary

architectural practices (like spatial arrangements, materials, mechanical and structural

systems, etc.), but when it came to the social aspects of architecture, there was a huge

void: invented clients, fi ctitious sites, and buzzwords like “poverty,” “homelessness,” and

“community development,” were being used to superfi cially teach me these very complex

concepts. I was given client needs on a piece of paper, conveniently listed out. It is as

if we my instruction had missed one of the key components of architecture – people.

Many professors would express concern as a model would lack scale fi gures, but can we

really understand how to work with the multiple personalities of a church board, or how to

decipher the words of an ER doctor, by putting scale fi gures on a model?

There have recently been educational models that begin to challenge these common

perceptions in the university. The Rural Studio at Auburn University under the direction of

the late Samuel Mockbee and now directed by Andrew Freear, is one of the most well-

known of these programs (Dean & Hursley, 2005). Hector LaSala and Geoff Gjertson’s

012011

Building Institute through the University of Louisiana at Lafayette is less established, but still

very effective. As described on the Building Institute’s web site, the aims of these design/

build studio formats are addressing the gap that often exists between theory and practice.

This is achieved through hands-on service-learning, countering “theoretical detachment”

and nurturing “social critics.” They charge students to build, but even more importantly to

“act.” This stems from a belief that “the act of making meaningful architecture requires

students to take responsibility for their designs: cultural, social, political, fi scal and technical

responsibilities, to name a few. “[And,] the act of designing and making meaningful

architecture requires rigor and tolerance - from both faculty and students (University of

Louisiana at Lafayette, 2006).”

As students move through these curriculums, “they are placed into a social context that

they have rarely encountered in any meaningful way: the world of chronic poverty,

homelessness, addiction, mental illness, and the non-profi t agencies that are the

trenches of these societal battlefronts (University of Louisiana at Lafayette, 2006).” With

these encounters, students are developing understandings far greater than just building

techniques and design. They are developing an empathetic perspective towards people

living in poverty. This understanding develops not from the use of over simplifying terms

such as ‘homelessness’ and ‘poverty,’ that beg for a sympathetic relationship, but from a

face to face, empathetic relationship. This empathic perspective places value in the other

and challenges students to fi rst understand the people at the scale of “a fi rst name basis,”

and then respond from this understanding. This is a process that requires students to step

out of themselves, and be refl ective of the things they do from the client’s perspective.

Although this can be a very diffi cult thing, I feel it is an essential step in creating a truly

socially responsible architect.

It will take time and convincing, though, before these programs, or at least the essence

of social engagement, begin to really get implemented into standard architectural

education. There is a general lack of consistent, quantifi able evidence to support these

programs and with most efforts still relatively young, the ability to see results might take

some time. There is also an extremely complex set of forces at play when dealing with

“growing communities,” so incubator caliber results will likely never be available.

There have been attempts to create standard guidelines for ‘humanitarian architecture.’

An example of this is the SEED program developed by Bryan Bell and Design Corps. This

program is based on a collective knowledge, gained by bringing together a board of

individuals that have done engaging, successful work with the traditionally underserved.

Bryan is at the forefront and is the face of this program, but his goals and the goals of the

SEED Network are to, “build and support a culture of civic responsibility and engagement

in the built environment and the public realm (Design Corps, 2011).” Collaboration in a

regulated, yet open forum is one of the few ways I feel an effective method of propelling

national and international movements can be achieved, and these often are based on

very small scale, grass root efforts.

The SEED program establishes its network by fi nding people involved in all the design fi elds,

including architecture, industrial design, communication design, landscape architecture,

and urban planning. The participants are asked to, “take the pledge.” This pledge indicates

that participating members actively engage and promote the fi ve seed principles in their

work. The principles are based on the mission, “to advance the right of every person to live

in a socially, economically and environmentally healthy community.” The fi ve principles

are:

1. Advocate with those who have a limited voice in public life.

2. Build structures for inclusion that engage stakeholders and allow

communities to make decisions.

3. Promote social equality through discourse that refl ects a range of values

and social identities.

4. Generate ideas that grow from place and build local capacity.

5. Design to help conserve resources and minimize waste.

For those who are doing projects and wish to get some recognition or confi rmation that

their work is meeting the goals of the program, SEED offers the SEED Evaluator, “That

provides guidelines for pursing a design process by inclusivity and participation.” The

program also provides opportunity for SEED Certifi cation and guidelines for documenting

and submitting these projects. (Design Corps, 2011)

On a broader spectrum, there have been many efforts to establish a system for measuring

social value. One of the leading models is the Social Return on Investment (SROI). These,

014013

and many systems like it, are meant to be used by non-profi t agencies as a way to provide

quantifi able data to potential funders and as a base for grant funding selections. Defi ned

by Claudia Wood and Daniel Leighton in their paper, The Gap between Policy and

Practice,

SROI is an analytic tool for measuring and accounting for a much broader concept of

value. It incorporates social, environmental and economic costs and benefi ts into decision

making, providing a fuller picture of how value is created or destroyed. SROI is able to

assign a monetary fi gure to social and environmental value which is created. For Example,

New Economics Foundation (Nef) research on the value created by a training program

for ex-offenders revealed that for every [English Pound] invested, 10.50 [English Pounds] of

social value was created (Wood & Leighton, 2010, p. 21).

SROI is still in its youth, and is in defi nite need of refi nement, but I believe that the scale of a

measurement system of this sort will prove crucial in efforts to promote future work in ‘the

third sector.’

Muncie, Indiana, with a population of just over 65,000 people, is a classic example of

a Midwestern industrial city. Like most of these once booming Rust Belt cities, Muncie

has a shrinking population, -4.0% from April 1, 2000 through July 1, 2006. This decrease is

in stark contrast to the growing populations, 5.6% and 9.1%, in Indiana and the country

respectively. Hand in hand with the shrinking population is the humbling difference in

median household income rates from 2008. Muncie hovers at just over $26,000, compared

to a $52,000 national median household income, and has nearly 1/4 of the population

living below the poverty line (US Census Bureau, 2010).

Many of my experiences professionally, and even more so educationally, have determined

the aforementioned demographic description to suffi ce as ‘understanding’ the population

and the people that are Muncie, Indiana. I believe that there are some things to be gained

from these numbers, but as designers that are focusing on the scale of community, or

many times smaller, we need to gain that scale of understanding.

A relationship based from the data above might be appropriate when developing national

policy. It is not appropriate when working to stimulate a struggling neighborhood or design

an outreach center. If we wish to be catalyst in these cities and neighborhoods, we need

to start with the people that are there. The people and the existing organizations are the

foundations from which we must build. This means we must engage the communities and

with them design and develop community goals. Even more importantly, we need to work

with them in the physical creation of design interventions. These strategic manipulations

of the environment do not necessarily require great size or cost, but must prove to the

people that the power to change their communities lies in their hands. They need to hold

the hammers and push the designs that recreate their environments. I think that this is the

only way we will be able move these communities over the “I can’t” hump to understand

that “we can”.

2.2 Understanding Them

016015

To help explain this concept a little better, I am going to quote an excerpt from Paulo

Friere’s Pedagogy of Hope. Friere is a progressive educator that has done extensive work

with the oppressed working class in many South American countries. In this excerpt, he

refl ects on a presentation arguing for a “dialogical, loving relationship between parents

and children in place of violent punishments (Freire, Pedagogy of Hope, 1994, p. 23).” The

presentation was to a group of Brazilian workers.

My actual mistake was, fi rst, in my use of my language, my syntax, without more

effort to get close to the language, and syntax of my audience; and second, in my

all but oblivion of the hard reality of the huge audience seated before me.

….

When I had concluded, a man of about forty, still rather young, but already worn

and exhausted, raised his hand…and gave a talk that I have never been able to

forget.

…

“We have just heard,” he began, “some nice words from Dr. Paulo Freire. Fine words,

in fact. Well spoken. Some of them were simple enough for people to understand

easily. Others were more complicated. But I think I understood the most important

things that all the words together say.

“Now I’d like to ask the doctor a couple of things that I fi nd my fellow workers agree

with.” He fi xed me with a mild but penetrating gaze, and asked: “Dr. Paulo, sir – do

you know where people live? Have you ever been in any of our houses, sir?” And

he began to describe their pitiful houses. He told me of the lack of facilities, of the

extremely minimal space in which all their bodies were jammed. He spoke of the lack

of resources for the most basic necessitates. He spoke of physical exhaustion and

of the impossibility of dreams for a better tomorrow. He told me of the prohibition

imposed on them from being happy-or even of having hope.

…

He paused a few seconds, ranging his eyes over the entire audience, fi xed on me

once more, and said, “Doctor, I have never been over to your hose. But I’d like to

describe it for you, sir. [He goes on to describe what he understood to be Paulo’s

house]…There was nothing to add or subtract. That was my house. Another world,

spacious and comfortable.

“Now Doctor, look at the difference. You come home tired, sir, I know that. You

may even have a headache from the work you do. Thinking, writing, reading, giving

these kind of talks that you’re giving now. That tires a person out too. But, sir, it’s one

thing to come home, even tired, and fi nd the kids all bathed, dressed up, clean, well

fed, not hungry – and another thing to come home and fi nd your kids dirty, hungry,

crying, and making noise. And people have to get up at four in the morning the next

day and start all over again – hurting, sad, hopeless. If people hit their kids, and even

‘go beyond bounds,’ as you say, it’s not because people don’t love their kids. No,

it’s because life is so hard thay don’t have much choice.”

This is class knowledge, I say now.

…

Even when one must speak to the people, one must convert the “to” to a “with”

the people. And this implies respect for the “knowledge of the living experience” of

which I always speak.

…

That night in the car, in the car on the way back home, I complained to Elza [his wife]

rather bitterly. “I thought I’d been so clear,” I said. “I don’t think they understood me.”

“Could it have been you, Paulo, who didn’t understand them?” Elza asked, and she

went on: “I think they got the main point of your talk. The worker made that clear in

what he said. They understood you, but they needed to have you understand them.

That’s the question (Freire, Pedagogy of Hope, 1994, pp. 24-27).”

Freire’s recognition and refl ection, although in a different time and context, is still very much

applicable to the work that we strive to do when working with the people in poverty. If we

really wish to have a positive impact on the lives of those people, we must fi rst understand

them and their world. As Paulo described the worker’s comments, “He spoke of physical

exhaustion and of the impossibility of dreams for a better tomorrow (Freire, Pedagogy

of Hope, 1994, p. 28).” This is a very powerful statement, and one that I don’t believe I

can truly understand. Living without a dream of a better tomorrow is something that is

very foreign to me, but for many of the people that came through the soup kitchen, I

don’t believe the idea is that strange. Therefore, it is something that I must be able to be

empathetic towards. To gain that empathy, I need to understand better the person that

018017

speaks the words. We have to know them as more than a number.

Freire’s two primary works, Pedagogy of the Oppressed and Pedagogy of Hope, shared

many stories like the one above. He wrote about fi rst hand encounters of engaging with

these groups; working to earn their trust and then fi nally opening up conversations in

regards to the oppression they found themselves. Many of the approaches I took at the

soup kitchen were based on the successes and failures Paulo shared about his work. In

his story telling, Paulo made it clear that he easily learned as much if not more from the

peasants and workers that he spoke with throughout his career, as they learned from him.

This is very much true with the work I have done at the soup kitchen. As I come to a better

understanding of that place and the people there, I fi nd that I more fully understand

myself. I have had to acknowledge that I, too, have preconceptions of people. I am

judgmental. I have a perception of the world that I think is ‘right.’ Through the semester

I have taken great strides to step back and look at myself, as Paulo did. I have pushed

myself to see myself and the things that I do through another’s eyes. From this thesis, this

understanding of and the practice of being self-refl ective, is easily a great accomplishment

for me personally (Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed , 2000) (Freire, 1994).

2.2.1 Pecha Kucha Excersice

The following excerpt is from an exercise done with the hope of developing a greater

empathetic understanding by imagining the world through another’s eyes. It was also a

way for me to begin grasping what these initial projects might look like in terms of scale,

while suggesting how people might fi nd the infl uence of and connection to their physical

worlds different than I would. The challenge was to create a 20-second story for each of

twenty images. The story would be from the perspective of a person who had a strong

connection to a specifi c physical space, and was to describe that connection, why it was

important to the person, and how that connection had come to be. The images were

from a set of shots I have taken in various places over the years. I wanted to push myself

to see a built environment from another person’s perspective, not from my perspective as

a designer.

020019

A short morning rain rinses the dust from

the produce. The clean, vibrant colors

seem to shine in contrast to the dull gray

plaster. On mornings like this I will often

take a moment and remember years ago

when my father taught me to carefully

stack the crates. “These must look good”

he would explain, “this fruit shows the city

who we are.”

I order coffee as I sit-down, this is my fi rst

time at a Downtown Business Owners

meeting. Started my shop last week and

my membership came with the lease. The

head of the group looks at me across the

table, the window decorations look good

– we are glad you our part of the group.

The rest gather in with compliments.

“Cool lock, did you have to pay extra for

the color?” “Ya, it was a couple bucks

more, but I don’t know man. I mean I think

it looks pretty cool. Plus this way people

know this is my spot. They tell us what to

wear and what to do. They don’t let us be

us ya know, I got them though, because

this right here, this is me, colorful!”

Dad kept nagging about not having

enough space in the shop. Of course he

is too busy keeping up on orders, so here

I stand with Grandpa. You have to make

sure that line is taught he hollers, thats

how we keep the damn thing straight. He

ties the knot and walks over; let me tell

you a story. I never knew my grandfather

had been a mason.

Live in handyman for the summer doesn’t

sound bad, as it turns out they needed

a gardener. This is the third time I have

planted these pots since my plane from

O’Hare landed in Philly. I don’t know

anyone here and had been worried that

I would not last the summer. They look

delightful the old lady grins. You know I

think I like it here.

022021

March 23. It is cold and rainy. My hands

shake as I pick slowly at the weathered

letters. This had been our spot – I have

countless memories to prove it - our fi rst

kiss, conversations under the stars, the

after, after-prom, it was in here where I

asked her to be my wife. It has been 3

years since she passed; I always leave a

fl ower for her.

I hate the violence. I hate the anger.

Today, you and I are going to start

an artistic campaign. We will let the

city know that we no longer want the

negative any more. From here on out, we

are going to look at the positive, and we

are going to challenge to everyone else

to do the same.

I stand back and admire my work. Some

of the paint is mine, but most of it comes

from my friends. My buddy and I set up

this spot for emerging artist. We often

will gather around, have small concerts,

compliment and critique our newest

additions. It was just an old warehouse;

we wanted to give people a voice. I

wanted to be heard.

I have read, listened to, and talked with several people this semester. They all echoed the

importance of “working WITH not FOR” a person, and in their own unique ways, explained

how they accomplished that task. At a glance the concept of with not for, seems

pretty straight forward. As my advisor, Wes Janz, pointed out in our correspondence this

semester, “it’s respecting another person, believing all people have intelligence that you

don’t, moving lightly yet substantially and critically through the world, these, and many

more, approaches are necessary.” I found that it was much more challenging than I had

anticipated.

I believe that one of the biggest misconceptions, and most diffi cult things that I have

faced this semester, was accepting the realities of the situation. I have been doing work

with people in the lower economic class, on and off, for a few years now, but it had always

been through organizations like Habitat for Humanity or Rebuilding Together. In these

situations I was always one of many volunteers that were just like me, and my interactions

with “those in poverty” were minimal. They mostly took place from the comfortable

position of being in the majority. I had always tried to convince myself that I was doing this

work with these people, so by default I had to be free of prejudice and of preconceptions

towards them.

This semester I have really pushed myself to be aware of the way I feel as I work on these

projects and interact with people, whom in my mind were very much different than me,

these “people in poverty.” My fi rst step was to accept the fact that I did possess these

prejudices. They had made themselves clear many times in my life, but I paid them no

attention. They were the fear and judgment, irrational or not, that ran through me when

I would walk down the dark alley home of “social misfi ts,” or when I would encounter a

group of young black men with saggy pants and bandanas talking loudly on the train.

These feelings re-emerged when I fi rst approached some of the diners in regards to the

cameras. This was really the fi rst time that I had moved out of my comfort zone while at

2.3 Becoming Us

024023

the soup kitchen. It was the fi rst time that I had stepped out of my socially given ‘place of

authority.’ This is when I realized that I had a lot to learn about myself before I could ever

fully work WITH the diners at Harvest.

Hector LaSala, a professor of architecture at the Building Institute at the University of

Louisiana in Lafayette describes this situation for many of his students as they worked on a

small outdoor performance space with inmates. He explains that the inmates were part of

a work release program and were selected because they had been on ‘good behavior.’

“They actually wore the striped suits when they came to the site,” he explains. “You know

the ones you see in cartoons. It was initially a shock to them, the students. It was about

11:30 when they showed up. We had gotten some pizza and drinks, you know, we fi gured

they had probably not had a good pizza in a while. Of course, when we saw them with

the striped suits, it really freaked them out. So there was some of that initial stereotype that

these are inmates. Yes, yes there was at the beginning, but it did not last for long.” Hector

continued in the interview that many of the inmates had been carpenters or had other

experience in construction before getting caught up in drugs. Describing that most of the

residents of the half-way houses and the students lacked these construction skills, “the

inmates were the ones that were teaching our students and the residents there (LaSala,

Interview, 2011).”

I believe that these feelings and fears of what is unknown are to be expected from most

people in these foreign experiences. For many, it’s a perception of a potential problem

that becomes a real and insurmountable fear in one’s mind, and in that way, far more

diffi cult to overcome. Fear tends to defi ne attitudes and reactions. As a profession that

is striving to work with the “the landless, the homeless, the schooless, the foodless, the

jobless,” to borrow terms from Friere, it is not enough to simply work on behalf of them,

because ‘they’ are only half of the situation (Freire, Pedagogy of Hope, 1994). The other

half of the situation is us. It is me. Pushing through these uncomfortable times at the soup

kitchen, Hector’s students pushing through the shock of working with the inmates - these

are the steps that teach us about ourselves.

Understanding that we are uncomfortable, as I mentioned, is half of the situation. The

other half is for those we are engaging. For me, at Harvest, it was the clients that come

through the line. Ultimately, these patrons are the ones that benefi t the most from the work

I will do as an architect regarding the soup kitchen. It is important for me to get ‘real,’ data

and information from them. For that to happen, they must trust me. I have come across

many different approaches to gaining this trust, but most of them contain a lengthy period

of adjustment and the need for the client/patron to perceive a genuine commitment.

In one example, Paulo Freire developed this trust by fi rst completing a general survey to

determine what the peasants liked to do - which was play cards on the weekends. His

small group then spent the next fi ve months playing cards with these peasants (Freire,

Pedagogy of Hope, 1994, pp. 128-131). Hector LaSala recognizes that in many cases, “a

much bigger need of them is to see that somebody cares (LaSala, Interview, 2011).” So

his group was able to develop this trust when the residents, “saw the students…working

that summer. They were just in awe. That these young kids were actually sweating and

building this thing in the middle of the summer (LaSala, Interview, 2011).” Mike Halstead,

an Indianapolis architect, explains that the relationship will often develop naturally as,

“they see that you are still doing work [when not getting paid early in a project] and

suffering alongside them (Halstead, 2011).” Loretta, a cook at Harvest and the founder

of the Sunday Supper, realized the importance of the clients being familiar with her face.

She knew she had to put in time as a regular volunteer for that to happen (Parsons, 2011).

The ideas of becoming us and working with not for are very real and very achievable,

but these will likely not happen without us understanding and overcoming the prejudice

that is inherent when referring to people with umbrella terms. “People in Poverty,” as a

term, has a place and scale at which it is appropriate and sometimes necessary. There

are certain needs that are not being met for those struggling to get by fi nancially and

often are outcast by society. However, we will likely never have a substantial and lasting,

positive effect on them until we push past the umbrella terms and begin working on a fi rst

name basis.

026025

2.4 The Architect’s Role

As an underlying theme through my work at the Harvest Soup Kitchen and my research this

semester, I have been trying to understand what my role as an architect is or can be. My

professional experience has taught me that I have very little interest in doing architecture

for clients that are large retailers, developers that create suburban strip centers, and

cookie cutter stand-alone buildings around which we place parking. As I have found,

this disinterest has little to do to the physical nature of the structures, although I don’t

care much for it either. My largest disconnect from this work is the relationship it fosters

with the client, and in the cases listed above, the lack of relationship between myself as

the designer and the ultimate user of the space. I believe that the process of designing

architecture needs to be an engaging experience for the architect, the client, and the

user. This is one of my largest motivators to working with lower income clients. I understand

that for many of them, the process of having a voice and a hand in the creation of their

physical world is very important. From my experience, this is much less the case when

working for the regional manager of construction for an international retail chain. Thus, this

thesis and creative project aims to better understand the architect’s potential and role in

engaging a client that typically cannot afford architectural services.

In an essay featured in Out of Site: A Social Criticism of Architecture, Margaret Crawford asks

the question “Can Architects Be Socially Responsible?” With a summary of architectures

current structure and past attempts to involve the profession in the role of dealing with

social dilemmas, she supports her argument that “Given the situation, the answer to the

question…is, as is presently constituted, no. Both the restricted practices and discourses of

the profession have reduced the scope of architecture to equally unpromising polarities:

compromised practice or esoteric philosophies of inaction (Crawford, 1991, p. 43).” She

describes architecture’s past attempt, carried on the shoulders of Walter Gropius and the

Bauhaus, to address low-income housing and other areas of society that were falling short.

She proceeds to summarize some of the critiques of modernism in application to social

needs. She explains that situations where radical architects would attempt community

development and social empowerment with participatory architectural design, would

fail. The community involvement would often lead to the identifi cation of the personal

taste of the masses in the terms of a past style or a particular color palette – even then,

these ‘decision makers’ often lacked the ability, fi nancially and socially, to have much

of an impact on the fi nal architectural product. As Crawford states, “radical architects

replaced modernism’s welfare state with a marketplace, in which, unfortunately, their

ideal client did not have the means to purchase architectural services (Crawford, 1991, p.

39).” This becomes an obvious problem if a profession is trying to support itself.

In her closing statements, she offers some suggestions for the profession. First she suggest

that, “the architectural profession must establish new connections with the existing

technical and economic practices of building…that are based on an analysis of existing

material conditions rather than on idealistic projections of future technical capabilities.”

She then offers some words that defend the ability of the profession to play a role in the

social arenas that are often untouched by the profession. In opposition to generic masses

the modernist sought to impose mechanical design, too. She suggests that we fi nd specifi c

groups where architectural services can be utilized, but currently are not. She makes

the claim that, “Identifying these ideal clients is an important fi rst step toward creating

a discourse adequate to the enormous tasks faced by the architectural profession if it

accepts the challenge of reshaping society and the built environment (Crawford, 1991,

p. 44).”

Additional research and my experiences lead me to agree with Crawford, both in her

assessment of the current, popular model of architecture, and her suggestions for the

profession. I feel that there are many trained architects that are stepping up to the

challenge Crawford laid out in 1991, twenty years ago, in her essay. Firms like Halstead

Architects in Indianapolis, as I profi le more thoroughly later on, are doing work with many

in the non-profi t sector. This work, although being funded primarily by grant money, is

establishing a name and signifi cance for architecture with this “ideal client.” Although

many of the projects done at the fi rm may not be featured in design magazines, they

are connecting to a client base much larger than those whom actually read design

magazines. Firms similar to Halstead Architects are out there, and I believe are growing in

number. As a broader spectrum starts to understand the value in having an architect as

part of an overall construction process, the market will likely begin to become more self-

028027

supportive. It is diffi cult to do at these early stages because our skill sets are often diffi cult

to qualify.

Regarding Crawford’s, “esoteric philosophies of inaction,” educators, following in the

footsteps of Samual Mockbee and The Rural Studio, are pushing the limits of the current

educational model. Hector LaSala at the Building Institute in Louisiana, and a growing

number of others, are calling for and implementing design/build studios early in the

educational process. They are actively engaging an “ideal client,” by providing volunteer

service, based on student participation, to outreach centers, soup kitchens, and community

markets. In an essay, “Beyond Design-Build,” LaSala describes the important role of these

relatively new programs when he describes how they, “deliberately place [students] into

a slice of present day America where physical and societal conditions are at a crisis point.

While their motivation, initiative, design and constructing skills generate the most visible

outcomes, this should not diminish the impact that these participations have had on their

capacity to refl ect on their culture, social conditions, and communal needs. This sustained

encounter has altered our students’ critical and ethical thinking in ways that are hard to

measure but are real nevertheless.” As I described in the “Becoming Us” portion of this

work, one of the core issues that must be addressed is the ability of young professionals to

enter the world with an empathetic viewpoint. Only when they have this understanding of

the world are they going to be up to the challenge of engaging these larger social issues

(University of Louisiana at Lafayette, 2006).

If we want to be serious about giving attention to these issues – we must do so both in

debate and scholarly refl ection, but also in on the ground action. Mark Taylor speaks

to this case in The Moment of Complexity: Emerging Network Culture. “All of these [60s’

social and political] efforts failed because they lacked constructive programs of social

engagement and political reform. In hindsight, it is clear that criticism alone is not suffi cient;

what is required is the articulation and formation of alternative systems and novel networks

that can function creatively (Taylor, 2003).”

In my humble opinion, I believe that the profession of architecture can benefi t greatly by

reaching out and engaging in the lower economic sector. Not only will it undoubtedly

teach us about ourselves and develop a more holistic and adaptive professional, but it

will open up the doors to a much larger market where the skills of a trained architect can

be utilized. For me personally, I have found that working at the Harvest Soup Kitchen, face

to face with both the clients and users, has been very rewarding. Consequently, this is a

sector that I plan to work for some years to come. I cannot guarantee to what extent my

career will be the physical creation of buildings, but it will use my skill set none the less. A

rule of thumb that M. Scott Ball provides in his essay, Expanding the Role of the Architect,

“if it looks like it could use the help of an architect, it probably is architecture (Ball, 2004,

p. 140).”

Chapter 3

A Model For Engagement:The Harvest Soup Kitchen Project

032031

3.1 Introducing the Cast

Roseanne is the board president for the Harvest Soup

Kitchen. She was in attendance for the call out meeting of

the Dining Room Club (described in more detail later), and

has played a critical role in the logistics of the changes at the

soup kitchen.

Loretta is the Assist. Manager and cook at Harvest Thursdays,

Fridays, and Saturdays. She also started the Sunday Supper

at the soup kitchen (meal 3rd Sunday of the month) after

her husband Gary passed away. She is retired from the Ball

Corporation where she was an inventory manager. She

earned a business degree from Ball State.

Johnny* has been coming to Harvest for several years now.

Originally a more traditional diner, he has transitioned to the

‘morning security,’ assisting Deb and Loretta as they arrive.

Johnny is a Vietnam veteran and has spent time in several

states. Johnny was born in the south then moved to California

when he was a youth. He was raised there until joining the

army.

* Johnny requested not to be photographed. This image is of Willie, another diner.

Angie + Deb have been working

at Harvest for 16 and 10 years

respectively. Deb is the Manager

and cooks Mon-Wed. Angie

volunteers Mon and Wed. Angie is

the comedian of the group, Deb

her more reserved counterpart.

Doug + Bobby have been

working at Harvest for 6 years

each. They grew up together,

worked in the same factory for

years, and now are the core for

the Thursday volunteer group.

These two are hard to separate!

Ron is a regular diner at the Harvest Soup Kitchen. He is

relatively reserved and soft-spoken. He was one of the three

primary members of the Dining Room Club (described later),

providing insight into the daily activities. Ron is a lifetime

Muncie resident. He was laid off from Borg Warner and

currently is unemployed.

Dave is also a regular diner. Outgoing and spirited, he played

a critical role in the Dining Room Club (described later)

offering his artistic hand in the painting of the mural. Dave

has worked on and off in construction as a laborer. He has

plans to either apply to art school or attend a trade school,

ultimately owning his own HVAC company. Dave attended

Ball State for one year where he studied psychology.

Jason (me) volunteers on Mondays, Thursdays, and

Saturdays at the Harvest Soup Kitchen. He currently is studying

architecture at Ball State where he will earn his master’s

degree at the end of the year. Jason started the Dining Room

Club (explained later) with the interest of better understanding

some of the diners that he was serving.

034033

3.2 Research and Understanding

Early in the process I had established that I wanted to discover how I could be an

architect, and help people at the same time. By default, it seemed like the best way to do

that was to work with homeless people. So I began doing research on different homeless

shelter projects and community centers. I had acquired what I believed to be a decent

understanding about working with the homeless, at least in terms of doing architecture. As

I began getting deeper into my research, however, I found that most people were talking

about the importance of small scale projects. Working from the ground up and being

engaged. I was still using the blanket terms and looking at ‘designing a community center

that would bring people together.’ Engaging and developing a real understanding of the

people I was going to be working with, I found was very much lacking in my understanding.

This led me to shift my focus from ‘designing a building,’ to ‘understanding people.’

I stuck with my original clients: the homeless, underemployed, and in general, society’s

‘misfi ts.’ Based on my experiences through my life, I understood that I would likely run into

issues that I generally lack a personal familiarity with: Drugs, prostitution, psychologically

unease, mentally and physically handicaps, heightened crime and violence, etc. I found

that in many ways, my lack of understanding with many of these issues, despite the fact

that they likely are all around me, began to push me to really engage and understand

them better. Based on this growing interest in these people that I felt I did not understand

and the fact that I was approaching a topic that many were saying can only be done

by getting your hands dirty, I decided that I needed to have closer contact with that

community. I was not sure if I was going to do a project or just gain some understanding by

doing it, but I needed to stop looking at this from behind a computer and books.

The following information is a selection of components from my work and experiences

while volunteering at the Harvest Soup Kitchen. The arrangement is intended to be a series

of steps taking as I moved through the process. They are primarily in chronological order,

but due to the necessary organic nature of such a project, some components appear

in this description out of place in the actual time line. (Please see the inserted graphical

timeline of my presentation boards for this project.) This was an additional attempt to put

on paper how I moved through the last few months and how my interactions and actions

infl uenced myself those around me.

soup

charlescharles

walnutwalnut

madisonmadison

harv

est

harv

est

t

charlescharles

hackleyhackley

Bal l StateBal l State MuncieMuncie

kitch

enkit

chen

Site Location Keyplan

036035

3.3 Saying Hello

So I took the next step and dove in. I established a location at the Harvest Soup Kitchen in

downtown Muncie. This was a good place where I could be un-intrusive as a volunteer, yet

still immersed into the culture. I approached the soup kitchen understanding that I needed

to do so with respect and sincerity in my efforts, I did not want to simply be there “studying

people.” I also recognized that I was essentially going into someone else’s house, and

more importantly, someone else’s life. From reading Freire’s experiences, I assumed that

I would be seen as an outsider, and would need to therefore fi rst establish trust with the

people there. In these early steps, I did my best to keep quite the fact that I was doing a

thesis project and basically trying to gain an understanding of homeless people. I worked

instead to let myself be there in the moment the same way I would have been if I was just

volunteering with no affi liation with school.

My selection of The Harvest Soup Kitchen was not based on an exceptional amount of

research about the organization specifi cally. From their very limited web presence, I was

able to gather that they offered some free meals, Monday through Saturday between

9:30am and 11:00am. I was able to gain some very general demographic information

about Muncie, Indiana, but nothing specifi c to the neighborhood that the soup kitchen is

located. My assumptions, based on a few afternoons spent driving around the area, was

that this was on the lower end of the economic scale for Muncie. These trips revealed that

the housing stock was in fair to poor condition with a fair number appearing vacant as

windows were either boarded up or broken out. I am sure some of the people living in these

structures are housing squatters, but was never able to determine anything more specifi c

in that regard. My conversations with Loretta and others revealed that we primarily serve

the ‘working poor,’ and only a few are without a place to sleep at night. My assumption

is that many more are residing on couches and in the garages and spare rooms of family

and friends.

The soup kitchen is located in the basement of the old St. Lawrence School on the corner

of East Charles Street and South Hackly Street in downtown Muncie. To the south of the

building is the Mid-city plating plant. The soup kitchen shares a parking lot with the St.

Lawrence church and a small children’s’ clothing store. There are roughly four other

churches within a four block radius, plus the Minority Health Coalition and the United

Daycare Center. The area is primarily residential, with a few scattered empty lots including

a rundown parking lot to the east of the soup kitchen, and a grassy lot just to the north of

that. To the north, there is a cluster of two houses with a shared fence. From what I have

been able to gather, there is some informal ‘taking in,’ going on there. They have recently

started to plant their large garden that is just to the east of the houses.

The existing building is three fl oors total. The basement extends about 3’ above grade with

windows providing natural daylight. Grading on the site is pretty consistent creating a fi rst

fl oor - about 4’ of stairs to enter in the front entrance. The main fl oor is home to a thrift store.

The store is open for longer hours than the food kitchen. The drop-in center has a small

offi ce in the basement next to the soup kitchen. They run the same hours, but are closed

on Saturdays. The upper fl oor of the building houses a voucher based clothing center for

school children. The drop-in center is an extension of Meridian Services, a larger provider

of mental health services and other services to the community. The drop-in center has an

on staff police offi cer and psychiatrist. They usually will show a movie in the mornings and

offers free haircuts on the third Thursday of the month.

038037

3.4 Establishing Core Friendships

This step came fairly naturally for me. It began my fi rst day at Harvest. Johnny, one of the

diners, had intercepted me at the car and warned me of the dangers of some of the

individuals at the kitchen before I had gotten in the door. I was to fi nd out later that Johnny

comes with a, likely warranted case of paranoia and cynicism. Once I was inside, I met

Loretta. She is one of two managers and cooks Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Johnny

stuck around for about an hour, telling stories and taking out the trash. He is a ‘client,’ that

has been coming around for a couple years now. He shows up every morning, Monday

through Saturday, and provides, in a sense, a secure male fi gure early in the mornings.

Deb and Loretta, the two managers, usually will show up a little earlier than the rest of the

volunteers. Johnny considers their protection to be a priority on his daily list.

My conversations and relationships with Johnny and Loretta grew fairly quickly over the

next month or so. I was receptive to Johnny’s stories, and I provided a reliable volunteer for

Loretta. I was there three days a week. These two became the core of my initial relationships

at the soup kitchen, and were able to provide insight to their respective places there.

Johnny knew the ins and outs of most of the clients as he was, involuntarily, a signifi cant

part of their world. He lives down the street from many of the other clients and frequented

many of the same social service institutes as they did. Essentially, he was their neighbor.

Loretta had the scope on most things volunteer and quite a bit about the members of the

board. Her personality was warm, accepting, and in general positive – although now and

then a “So and so drives me nuts,” would slip out.

As my schedule became more routine after the holidays, my core group expanded a

little further to include the regular volunteers from Monday – Deb and Angie. There were

always one or two other semi-regular volunteers on Mondays, but the less consistent nature

of their time resulted in less intimate relationships. The crew on Thursday’s, Loretta, Doug,

and Bobby quickly became a good fi t. Doug and Bobby were old high school and then

factory working buddies. They always had good stories to tell and were a lot of fun to work

with. Their knowledge of the soup kitchen was mostly limited to the things that happened

on Thursdays, although they would have something to say about the larger concerns,

i.e. the trustees not mopping when they came in. The trustees were a group of ‘good

behavior,’ convicts and people that are behind on payment to the city. They were used

as labor for the general upkeep of parks, cemeteries, and other city run agencies. Bill, the

man leading that group, was a member of the Harvest Soup Kitchen Board.

As I moved through the fi rst few months at the soup kitchen, I was a volunteer, and in many

ways friend, fi rst and foremost. I kept my school work and thesis ideas relatively quite as I

did not want them to see me as just another student that was doing a school project. I am

not entirely sure how they would have responded differently if I would have been more

open about my ideas from the beginning, but this method seemed effective so I think I will

be conscious of this as I move into these scenarios in the future. I have been questioning

if it is best that these relationships form fi rst or if it is ok to have a project and through that

work the relationships form. My relationships with Ron and Dave, the two gentlemen I was

most involved with in the dining room project, had developed around a project and they

seemed to become suffi cient as well, so I would say that this order probably plays a fairly

insignifi cant role, as you are sincere in your general development of the relationships. The

project, similar to volunteering, becomes the framework for those relationships to develop.

Loretta - Assist. Manager & Cook (Thurs, Fri, Sat - 6 yrs)

Angie (L) - Regular Volunteer (Mon, Wed - 10 yrs)

Deb (R) - Manager & Cook (Mon, Tues, Wed - 16 yrs)

040039

3.4.1 Giving Cameras to Johnny and Loretta

The following is an excerpt of a Saturday journal entry. It describes the process of providing

Johnny and Loretta with disposable cameras and asking them to take images of what is

important to them. Also, just to clarify, Loretta is the assistant manager and cooks Thursdays,

Fridays, and Saturdays. She is the fi rst person I had contacted at the soup kitchen. Johnny

is a regular client that comes in and helps Deb (the manager Mondays, Tuesdays, and

Wednesdays) and Loretta early in the mornings. He does not get along with many of the

other clients and so usually will stick around and talk for a little while then head out before

others arrive. This step, giving them the cameras, allowed me to establish a very good

working relationship with Loretta. It also pushed my relationship to a new level with Johnny.

The images that were developed from Johnny and Loretta’s cameras can be found on

the upcoming pages.

January 15, 2011

The idea for the cameras had come up a while back, actually really early in the semester.

My initial thought was that I could use this as a way to have people give me a somewhat

candid peak into their lives, while still maintaining some of the privacy that the unwritten

boundaries between people provide. I did not want to intrude on their lives, but I wanted

to learn about them.

No matter what the situation is, there is always a period of time that things are required

to marinate before you can start feeling comfortable around someone. For Loretta and I,

this took a few days working together. My relationship with Johnny has progressed with a

couple ‘moments’, where I was able to tell him, in a very subtle way, “I am here because I

care about you as a person.” It was giving him attention when he was telling a story, fully

engaging in the conversation. It was seeing him standing by the door in the cold waiting

for Loretta to show up and yelling over to him, “Come sit in the car while we wait – it is cold

outside!” I had never been this physically close to Johnny in the past; we were sitting in a

small car together. I was, at that point, fairly vulnerable, and so was he. The discomfort is

there, as always with uncharted territory, but it was not overwhelming.

Today I chose to push the relationship a little further - this time it was with the presentation

of the camera assignment. I have been very anxious about the approach of asking

someone to do me this favor. Asking them, even if only slightly, to lower their guard, and

let me see into their lives. I am a middle class, white man that is working on a master’s

degree in architecture. Not too often do people of my background and standing have

interest in being part of the life of someone that is on the lower ends of society. I knew

that it would be awkward to approach the situation with the six unfamiliar volunteer faces

sitting around the table, so I waited till Johnny went out into the hall to take out the trash.

I had to act fairly quickly before he departed for the day. I grabbed a camera and the

hand written questions and headed to the hall.

“Johnny, I have a favor to ask of you man. I am trying to do this thing for a school project,

and maybe more importantly, out of my own interest. Could you take this camera and

take some pictures for me?” He seemed hesitant, but accepting, so I continued. I walked

him through the directions: 2-pictures of things in your life you are proud of that you would

show a friend that is visiting, 2 of what is important to you, 2 of places you like to be, 2 of

places you don’t. The rest, well, just have fun and take pictures of anything you want.

He looked at me puzzled for a minute. “I don’t know man, I don’t have anything to take

pictures of, everything that is important to me is the people in that kitchen, Loretta, Angie,

Deb. It is the people at these other places that help me out. That’s what I have.” I had to

catch myself, I had always had a hunch this was the case, but to hear him say it almost

takes your breath away. “Johnny, that is exactly what I want from you – take pictures of

what you want, bring the camera back next week, I will get them developed, and then I

want you to tell me some stories.” He laughed. “Stories, now that I can do!”

I had talked briefl y with Loretta last Saturday about the idea to bring in the cameras. She

knew when I walked out there I was planning on doing that. When I got back in, she asked

me if I gave him a camera. I told her I had and she seemed pleased. I asked if she would

be interested in taking one of the cameras and doing it too. I explained the list of things I

would like her to look at, and with not nearly the surprise, I got a similar response. “When

do you need it back, my grandson and everyone will be over next weekend. Everything

thing that is important to me is going to be there.” She happily agreed.

042041

The following exert of a Saturday journal entry describes the process of providing Johnny

and Loretta disposable cameras and asking them to take images of what is important

to them. That Saturday we were joined by a group of six from Erie Insurance. They usually

volunteer one Saturday every 4-6 weeks. This was the fi rst time I had met them. Also, just to

clarify, Loretta is the assistant manager and cooks Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. She is

the fi rst person I had contacted at the soup kitchen. Johnny is a regular client that comes

in and helps Deb (the manager Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays) and Loretta early

in the mornings. He does not get along with many of the other clients and so usually will

stick around and talk for a little while then head out before others show up. I provide

this fairly descriptive account as an attempt to illustrate some of the personal diffi culties

I faced when trying to push these boundaries past their comfortable points. This may

or may not be the case for others that have pursued to push these relationships. Either

way, these were important steps for me as I moved through the project. In the appendix,

there are the images that came from each of the two cameras and some summarized

transcriptions of the interviews that followed. This step allowed me to establish a very good

working relationship with Loretta. It also pushed my relationship to a new level with Johnny.

Johnny’s nine images and the discussion that followed, focused primarely on stories from his past. These stories developed from introductions of the people important in his life now.

044043

Loretta’s seventeen images and the discussion that followed, focused primarely on things that were happening in her life right now - friends and family mostly. Most stories of her past were in reference to her late husband Gary who passed away a few years ago.

046045

3.5 Establishing My Place

After volunteering for about 2-months, consistently working three mornings a week, I

established my place in the hierarchy of the Harvest Soup Kitchen. I had begun to speak

more to Loretta about my interest in community development. I explained to her that part

of my motivation for volunteering was to gain an understanding of the non-profi t sector of

the Muncie community and also to understand the inner workings of a place like the soup

kitchen. She invited me to sit in on the next board meeting.

Early in the board meeting they had me briefl y introduce myself. I explained that I was

working on a Master’s of Architecture and my thesis was focused in the role architecture

can play in community development. I explained that I had been volunteering a few days

a week at the soup kitchen and was at the board meeting just to gain understanding of

the operations of a non-profi t. I then listened for the next few hours. As the meeting was

drawing close to an end, I chose to speak up.

They had been discussing a set of plans that were completed by a class in the family

consumer science program at Ball State. They were options for remodeling the kitchen.

The board seemed interested in doing the work proposed in the kitchen and were talking

about having one of the board members write the grant. They all seemed to be relatively

inexperienced with any construction processes, and seemed to be taking the drastically

under developed plans as a fi nal drawings. After reviewing briefl y the submittals, I asked

them I they had considered the possibilities of hiring locally, or even hiring clients that

might have had construction experience in the past. I suggested looking around Muncie

or creative materials that could add something fun and local to the project. I also made

remarks with regard to the board’s concern over their fi nancial situation. I had suggested

the possibility of drop boxes or collect cans to be dispersed around the city. I mentioned

that these could get their relatively unknown name into areas where they would be able

to draw greater amounts of donations. I referred to the success that the Muncie Mission

was having with their advertising campaigns around campus.

Everyone seemed very excited about these ideas and as the meeting concluded, several

board members came over to discuss them with me a little further. Not wanting to get in

over my head, I provided a little more information, but did not want to be put in charge of

these efforts when I was limited to the duration of a semester. This has shown me that there

is both a need and an interest for my skill set in this environment, and it is likely something

that I will try to pursue a little further after graduation.

My position was set with the board, including the new board president, Roseanne. My

position had also been established in the kitchen as one of the regulars. All that required

was for me to be consistent, reliable, and respectful. The third group that I was interested

in getting to know was those ladies and gentleman that came through the serving line

and ate lunch. Ultimately, my research was indicating that I needed to be engaged with

this group. Despite being looked at as another server, and only occasionally having small

conversations with some of the patrons, I had a relatively meaningless relationship with

most if not all of our diners. I was running into the limitations my role as a volunteer would

offer just by being there and doing the job. I realized I was going to have to make the

push, or this would be as far as it went. I would be serving food to some underemployed

and homeless people across a table.

048047

3.6 Discovering Boundaries - Understanding Existing Social Structures

For me, this step was the most critical in the series, and it proved to be one of the

most challenging. For this reason I believe it is the step most neglected by our current

architectural efforts. My crossing of these boundaries, as a citizen and as an architect

remains one of the cores of this thesis. If we are to truly understand and empower others,

including the lesser class, we must fi rst understand the culture and social construction that

exist in that world.

In the case of the soup kitchen, the boundaries that exist are again, class boundaries. I

refer to them as the relationship between servers and served. This is a socially established

boundary. It is nuanced, complex, and often loosely defi ned. It can be as literal as the

placement of a table that physically separates the space, or as abstract as “no, you

are only allowed one doughnut.” It is social construction of power and hierarchy. It is

constantly negotiated and can vary from individual to individual.

The challenge is crossing this boundary. It is interacting with a ‘them’ in the same way

that I interact with an ‘us.’ This has and will continue to demand that I confront some

established stereotypes that are a result of my life experiences.

The most appropriate approach to crossing this line varies based on the specifi c situation

and my personal comfort level. For me at Harvest, my fi rst attempt was by handing out a

camera and asking some of the patrons to take some pictures of things that were important

to them. This attempt was ultimately not successful, but still revealing. I will provide more

on this later.

After refl ecting on the outcome of the camera exercise, I came to the following conclusions.

First, presenting the guys with a task as a way to ‘break the ice’ was not a good idea -- at

least not a task that required such a large commitment and personal exposure into their

lives. Second, the context in which the conversation was presented was not appropriate.

The two gentlemen I approached were eating their lunch, and I interrupted them. It is like

having a door to door salesman interrupt a family dinner. The other thing that I noticed

was that by being face to face they were forced to respond, and this can add a lot of

pressure, especially to people with more reserved personalities. I had several hesitations

when I fi rst considering doing the cameras, but I went against those hesitations and ended

up putting myself and the others in a very uncomfortable position.

A positive to this was that I had pushed up to that boundary, and could now try again with

a different approach that would need to be less formal. I had considered a conversation

based approach, but in a much more casual manor. After thinking about this, I felt it

would still create the discomfort of requiring a response, and would likely take a lot of time

to produce any meaningful conversation. Instead, I chose a more standard approach of

a survey.

The survey questions were introduced by a few paragraphs about of me, what my

intentions were, and why I had these intentions. I was giving the patrons and staff members

my name and my background, but more importantly, I was establishing that I wanted the

information so that I could make our space better. I was interested in doing a project, and

most importantly, I was interested in getting to know them. I was simply putting myself out

there, and had to wait to see how they would respond. The survey method had relieved

the pressure of forcing someone to respond, and allowed the subjects to do the survey on

their terms and at a comfortable pace. As some of the clients are unable to read or write,

this extra space that I was giving them was likely pretty important. In terms of wording, I

made sure it was simple and approachable, and also a little revealing about me. I tried

to use a tone that conveyed I was willing to open up to them, and I was hoping they

would do the same. The information collected helped me to move forward with the dining

room project as I will describe below. In many ways, I was more satisfi ed when I received

generally positive response. As I overheard the diners reading and explaining the surveys

to others, I knew that there was a sincere concern for what I had handed them and the

things that would happen in the space where they ate most of their meals. Their willingness

to complete the survey was an indicator to me that they trusted me enough to take that

next step.

050049

3.6.1 Giving Cameras to Regular Diners

The following excerpt is part of a journal entry from the day I had fi rst attempted presenting

the cameras to a few of the patrons at the soup kitchen. I did this later on the Saturday

that I had given Johnny and Loretta cameras, as I described above. The discomfort here

was the same as when I approached Johnny about the camera. This time slightly worse,

as I was walking up to a group of guys that I only knew from the few times a week I would

see them come through the line. These men, as I later found out, were Clifton, Mr. Hibbs,

Bruce, and Willie.

January 15, 2011

…My next challenge was…well it was a challenge. It was going on 10:00am, and we were

past the early rush. I noticed a couple of guys that come through pretty regularly. They got

their food, went in and sat down to eat. I grabbed a couple cameras and a sponge to

wipe their table. I then started some small talk about some the coffee that was spilled and

nervously asked: “Hey guys, could I ask you for a favor” I sat down next to one of them,

camera and list in hand. “I am a student over at Ball State and I am trying to understand

some of the people in Muncie a little better. Clifton introduced himself, and nodding to

the gentleman across the table, he introduced Mr. Hibbs. From there the conversation

proceeded, uncomfortably. I explained briefl y the nature of what I was trying to do, going

through the list. Mr. Hibbs sat quietly. Clifford hesitantly played along. “What’s important to

me? Shit man, it is Mr. Hibbs here, maybe my bicycle outside there.” I tried to explain that

those were the things I was looking for without getting into a lot of detail about having an

interest in trying to be socially responsible in architecture. I told him that I believed that

most of the things in many people’s lives were the other people around them. It was not

specifi cally a physical thing or place.

Another gentleman came in the room and sat down. I could sense that the conversation

with Clifton was getting moving towards uncomfortable for all parties involved. I said, well

Clifton, Mr. Hibbs, I appreciate your time. Before I fi nished, Clifton directed me to the man

that just sat down. “Ask _____,” [this was Bruce, but they gave me a different name] he

said. He might take some pictures for ya. This new fella looked at me and asked me to

explain my ideas just as Willie walked in. A bit more outgoing, Willie started immediately

talking to Clifton. My current conversation was now being led by this other guy; he was

asking me if I was religious. My most earnest reply was that I believe in God, but I don’t

necessarily follow an organized religion. He responded with, “So you have the higher

power?” I looked at him puzzled and asked what he meant. He sort of shook his head,

“ahhh man, ask Willie over there about the higher power.” At this point, the situation had

become very uncomfortable. Their mannerisms neared mocking; I clearly was, at this

point, outnumbered, and way out of my place.

None-the-less, I pushed forward as I did not see an easy way out of this situation. I

proceeded to ask Willie about the higher power. As the mockery toned down slightly, they

explained to me that “the higher power” was a feeling. It was not material, but a feeling in

your gut. Willie said, “Well that’s what they tell us.” They then moved into a playful dialog

with regard to this other gentleman’s ‘break from that’ for a little while. Understanding that

the Muncie Mission is one of the primary institutions in town that provide for men needing

a boost, and that the Muncie Mission, based on what I found on their website, strongly

encourages a ‘get well’ process that is based strongly on faith. I fi gured that this was the

basis of both the inquiry to my religious standing, and the subsequent dialogue.

As the talk about religion dwindled down, the conversation turned back to the camera

project. This new guy was asking Willie if he wanted to take some pictures for me. He

looked interested, at least interested enough for me to explain what I was doing. He gave

m, what seemed a good 80% of his attention as I went down the list of things to take

pictures of. At that point I was happy to just hand him the camera. I asked him to bring

it back next week sometime. As uncomfortable as the whole interaction was, after some

‘cool-down’ time, I realized that I was pretty excited that I had a camera in the hands of

one of our clients. I had taken the uncomfortable step, and now it was just a matter of

seeing what comes of it.

My aim with this journal entry is to provide a little more insight into the discomfort that

comes with trying to cross some of these boundaries. I am not sure if there is a better way

to go about this. Perhaps there is one that is less challenging, but I am not sure what it is.

052051

I can say that, although I never got Willie’s camera back, my relationship with these guys

has improved. As I have moved through the dining room project, I have also moved to

becoming on more comfortable speaking terms with these guys. Bruce and I speak now,

but I still initiate those conversations. Mr. Hibbs approached me a few times regarding

the project and we occasionally have short conversations I have not seen Clifton since

that initial interaction. Willie and I are on good terms. He always acknowledges me with

a cheerful hello. He eagerly helped with the dining room project by gluing a piece of

cardboard to the wall.

The camera project had been successful in, at least, advancing my relationship with both

Loretta and Johnny, but I had failed to make any substantial progress in getting to know

the diners that I had a lesser amount of interaction with. As described previously, my next

step was to administer a survey. The survey was handed out on a relatively slow day when

60 diners came through to collect lunch. I received a total of 30 responses that day. This

was indicative of what I considered to be a good response.

The next few pages provide a copy of the survey administered as well as the summary

pages that were put together to share the results with volunteers, board members, and

was a key component for the call out meeting for what would become the Dining Room

Club.

3.6.2 Surveys

054053

Harvest Soup Kitchen Dining Room Improvement Survey

Hello Ladies and Gentleman. My name is Jason. You have probably seen me around. I am the younger gentleman that helps serve soup Monday, Thursday and Saturday mornings. I have been volunteering down here for a couple months and plan to continue through the rest of the school year. I am an architecture student at Ball State.

The Harvest Soup Kitchen board has been talking about doing some improvements to the kitchen space. If some of you are interested, I would like to try and organize some improvements to the Dining Room and Hallway as well. This improvement will be on a very limited budget – I know we are all familiar with limited budgets so we will need to be creative!

I am handing out this survey to get an idea if any of you would be willing to help out. Also, I would like to better understand your perceptions of the dining room and how you would like to see it improved. By filling out the survey, you are NOT committing to anything, nor will any of this information be distributed or tied back to you. It is completely anonymous. I simply enjoy doing projects, would like to improve our space, and would love to get to know some of you better.

SURVEY (Circle Appropriate Answers then place in box marked “SURVEYS”)

1. Your sex? MALE FEMALE

2. How old are you? ________________

3. How many times a week do you visit the soup kitchen? 1-2 3-4 5-7

4. In addition to you, how many people usually come with you? 1-2 3-4 5-7 8+

5. After getting your food, do you stay at the soup kitchen to eat? YES NO

Why or Why Not? __________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. If you stay in the building to eat, which space do you use the most and why?

THE DINING ROOM THE HALLWAY THE DROP-IN CENTER

Why? ____________________________________________________________________________________________

7. Would you like to see the Dining Room and Hallway spaces changed? YES NO

8. If yes, briefly describe changes you would like to see. ____________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9. Would you be willing to help make these changes? YES NO

10. If yes, what times are you most likely to be available (circle all that apply)

MORNING AFTERNOONS EVENINGS

PLEASE CONTINUE TO THE BACK FOR A FEW MORE QUESTIONS!

SURVEY Continued…

11. Describe briefly what things you LIKE about the Soup Kitchen:

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

12. Describe briefly what things you DO NOT LIKE about the Soup Kitchen:

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

13. Any other comments or suggestions on how we can make our Harvest Soup Kitchen better:

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thank you for taking the time to fill out this survey. Hopefully this information can help us to improve our Soup Kitchen experience! If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask me. Again, my name is Jason, I am the young man that is in on Monday, Thursday, and Saturday mornings.

Please return your completed survey to the box marked “SURVEYS”

Thank you! Have a good day and try to stay warm

Client Survey - Front Side Client Survey - Back Side

056055

Client Survey Results Client Survey Results

058057

3.7 Dissolving Boundaries - Challenging Existing Social Structures

Like the cameras, the surveys were another moment when it was important to be critical

in my position, and respond based on my assessment of the relationship that existed

between the diners and me. It’s very likely that it would have been unsuccessful if I’d

tried to do the project right after the camera exercise because we weren’t comfortable

enough yet with one another to work together. Since the survey responses were positive

overall, and expressed interest, I decided to move forward in the direction of doing a

project in the dining room. It is important to note that if there was generally no interest -- if

surveys were not returned or the feedback would have been generally negative, then it

would have been the correct decision to stop and not try force a project. If I would have

gotten a negative reaction, I likely would have read it as either their general lack of trust or

respect towards me, or that there were truthfully no interest in changing the space. Since

this was the essence of the response I received from the cameras, I needed to reformat

my approach before continuing. Another, larger-scaled failed attempt would have led

me to a different type of project. For the sake of the thesis, I likely would have returned to a

larger-scaled project that focused less on engaging the diners and more on engaging the

volunteers in redesigning the kitchen, or potentially a larger-scale master plan for a social

service campus in the existing structure and the empty lot to the east.

I think this is one aspect where we, as architects who are from a different class, often

struggle and need to improve. It again comes back to the idea of working with not for. It

might seem convenient that when working with a soup kitchen, many of the ultimate users

of the space are either volunteers or those who are considered social misfi ts. I fi nd that

both groups usually lack the social weight, the voice, to have an active say in larger scale

choices regarding facilities and program. This leaves the door wide open for architects to

come in and design nearly free of restrictions. Presentations to board members are often

met with little critique from an audience generally lacking experience in architecture. A

few glossy images to ‘sell the space,’ and we are free to experiment within the budget.

More glossy images in a magazine supported by the standard feel good explanation –

“increases ownership, improves the community, and improves the lives of those most in

need.” We conveniently lack the tools to quantify social gain from these projects, so we

ultimately can only critically evaluate their worth based on those glossy images and the

published words that support them.

Too often, I believe, we will push forward and do a project despite a lack of interest. We

justify the progression on the premise that we know best, assuming that these people in

poverty don’t understand what they want and need. Most likely there will not be a large

amount of resistance, but there will also be a lack of engagement with the people who

are supposed to be benefi ting the most from the change. The lack of resistance can

likely be traced to the servers/served relationship. In most aspects of their lives, the people

in the lesser classes are served not in terms of being waited on, but in terms of being

directed what to do. This controlling is the essence of oppression. We dismiss the general

‘disinterest’ as if they do not understand what is best for them. We push forward because

we ‘know best’.

My time at the soup kitchen has taught me that we, as a profession, can do better in

this regard. I want to practice architecture on the premise that I can bring a technical

knowledge to the table, and experience in the logistics of building, but ultimately my

knowledge and experience is only a component of a large body of understanding. As a

facilitator, it is my responsibility to help others articulate their ideas. It is also my responsibility

to understand that sometimes an architectural response is not the correct response.

I believe in the power of architecture and design, but I also believe it needs to be a

component in the human lives that it affects. I am trying to understand to what extent of

engagement is possible with this new client base. That said, after some time I received a

nod by way of the surveys, indicating that these clients are on board for now. With that

understanding I moved forward discussing with Roseanne and Loretta, and then setting

up a callout meeting for what would become the “Dining Room Club.”

060059

3.7.1 Call Out Meeting - Establishing the Dining Room Club

The fi rst Dining Room Club call out meeting was a success despite having a relatively small

turnout. That meeting included, as pictured below, Rosanne, Ron, Dave, and me. I had

planned the meeting with the expectation of introducing myself and speaking in front

of a crowd of 20-30 people. That was the number that expressed interest on the survey.

With the smaller group, I quickly realized that the format of this Dining Room Club, and the

projects that would likely come from it, would be small scale and very informal.

I handed out copies of the survey results and the four of us discussed the results. We

discussed the general feeling of content with the space, staff, and overall service the

soup kitchen was providing, but agreed that something small scale would be appropriate

as many had expressed that they would like to see some change. I suggested that seat

cushions had been expressed and would be a small scale addition. Also, I explained that

painting would likely be within the grasp of our small group. Dave offered up to the group

that he had previously won an award for a painting he had done in Richmond, Indiana. I

asked him if he would be interested in doing a mural. He eagerly agreed, explaining that

he had always been interested in doing something at the larger scale, but never had the

opportunity. Sensing that he was already taking ownership of this portion of the work, I

told him that he was ‘in charge of the mural” Before leaving, he was measuring the wall

and had decided that he would do a 10’ x 6’ mural near the center. He wanted to do his

impression of the biblical scene - The Feeding of the 5000.

During the meeting I had also brought up an interest in breaking the space into smaller

components to accommodate a greater number of smaller groups (5-7 people) who

were typically using the space. They agreed, and understood that the space, as it was

currently arranged, was set up for a large-scale, banquet style dinning. Although the

meeting participants knew a fair number of the other diners, they explained that making

smaller spaces would be good for people that do not get along with the others, or wish

to eat by themselves. We agreed that over the next few weeks we would put together

a design for changing the scale of the space, further defi ne the mural, and develop any

other designs solutions that seemed appropriate. Roseanne asked that we present our

ideas at the next board meeting. We agreed, and laid out the generic schedule that can

be found on following pages.

Roseanne - Board President

Dave - Regular Diner

Ron - Regular Diner

Jason - Volunteer (me)

062061

Dining Room ClubFirst Call Out Meeting

WHEN This Thursday at 10:30 a.m.

Feburary 24, 2011

WHERE Harvest Soup Kitchen

In the Dining Room - There will be a sign!

WHY Improve Your Dining Experience

I am looking for a group of people that want to help make some simple improvements to the dinning room and hallway.

Bring your ideas!

Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.Helen Keller

Thank you!Jason Klinker

Call Out Meeting Poster

Enlarged Dining Room Plan (Existing Arrangement)

Basement Floor Plan (Existing Arrangement)

064063

Existing Dining Room Existing Dining Room

066065

Call Out Meeting

Discuss plans, progress on material collection, general planning

Start working on some mock-ups, have paint or some funding located

Group to present ideas to board

Construction

Complete Construction

Observe Reactions?

Complete Project

Thursday, Feb. 24

Thursday, March 04

Thursday, March 11

Wednesday, March 16

Thursday, March 24

Thursday, March 31

Thursday, April 07

Thursday, April 14

plan

ning

build

obse

rve

Preliminary Dining Room Club Schedule

Project schedule determined at call out meeting

The next couple of weeks went well, but not quite how I had planned. When the schedule

had been created, Ron, Dave and I would come together on Thursdays after lunch, and

we would have discussions much like during the fi rst week about design decisions and how

we would proceed. We would work together to fi nd materials, some on our own and some

collectively. Also, we would work to develop some presentation materials for the board

meeting. These would include some sketches and diagrams that we would work together

on. I would supplement these with computer graphics. With materials located and some

collected, we could work together to build mock-ups of proposals etc.

In reality, the soup kitchen fl ooded twice over the next two weeks, eliminating two of the

six days. . Dave didn’t make it to the meeting on the 4th, and Ron was not there on the

11th. Realizing early during the second week that these things were not going to pan out

exactly as I had thought they would, I went ahead and developed some quick design

concepts: a platform with partial height walls to break up the space, cardboard squares

in a checker pattern to both frame the mural and tie the smaller seating arrangements

together, and a bright colored paint to make the children’s area more fun. Each Monday,

Thursday, and Saturday, I would come in with some sketches and ideas. I usually would

run into Ron and on occasion Dave. I would run my ideas by them. Ron helped me work

through some details for the platform -- the platform could have a wall, but there still must

be clear visibility for Jeff, the security guard, to see through the space. It needed to be

movable for a variety of reasons. In the nights leading up to the board meeting, I hustled

to locate and construct a full-scale, partial model of the platform (pallets and plywood).

I put together a preliminary cost estimate based on paint and the little bit of plywood I

would need to buy. And most importantly, I modeled the dining room to illustrate where

the new paint would go, the effects the cardboard squares would have, the location and

scale of the mural and platform relative to the rest of the room. It was a tool to allow them

to see what we were explaining at the meeting.

3.8 Personalizing the Relationships - Redesiging the Dining Room

068067

As the board meeting snuck ever closer, I was starting to feel a little guilty. Outside of a

few 15-minuite talks here and there, I had completely eliminated Ron and Dave from the

design. I felt like I was falling into that same old trap of designing for them. Then the 16th

came along. The board meeting was schedule for 5pm at the soup kitchen. I contacted

Loretta to see if she could run over and let me in the building so I could set up the pallet

mock-up and drop off some of the other materials. We went over around noon, an hour

after the soup kitchen closes. I had been worrying about Ron and Dave working on the

project at all, let alone showing up for the board meeting. There they sat; on the stoop of

the soup kitchen, waiting for me to show up. For the next hour, we had our second group

meeting. We assembled the pallets, talked about the model and the paint colors I had

found. Dave showed us the sketches he had been working on of the mural.

The way those two weeks played themselves out was a glimpse of what my role as the

architect, and the facilitator would be. Getting input from them as I developed designs,

having them involved in the development of the schedule and the overall plan, and

trusting Dave to develop the ideas for the mural were enough to keep them involved.

(Opposite Page) Some quick perspectives were developed to describe the idea of the cardboard squares to Ron and Dave. (Above) Thumbnail sketches as we worked through ideas for creating smaller scale spaces. (Right) Images from the board meeting. Ron sits next to a board member above, the board discusses fi nancial concerns below.

070069

3.9 Growing and Building Together - Remodeling the Dining Room

The weeks that followed the board meeting was where my relationship with Ron and Dave

grew. We spent the next few weeks working together. Joined by one of my colleagues,

Emily, we primed and painted, glued cardboard, and constructed a platform. During that

time, there was growing support for the project. Ron, Dave and I received an increasing

number of compliments from diners, volunteers, and board members. Other diners

frequently offered help as we were hanging cardboard squares during lunch. Some would

pass squares up to me on the ladder. Others asked if they could glue a piece on the wall.

Ron quietly expressed some concern when Dave eagerly accepted the mural job. “I don’t know man, some of these artist, they are crazy with the stuff they make,” he would mumble. As Dave’s mural progressed, I would frequently catch Ron discreetly admiring it as he would walk by. His comments became less doubtful and much more proud as the mural was getting wrapped up.

Willie, a regular diner was eager for a photo shoot with Roseanne. Willie helped glue up a few squares. He also still has one of my disposable cameras!

Dave recently was asking me if he could put images of the mural in a portfolio for an art school application. I am not sure if he will get in or not, but applying is a start!

072071

Cardboard Squares and Mural (Nearly Finished Above, Progression Sequence on Opposite Page)

074073

Kids Area: Chalkboard Paint and Cardboard Paint(Finished Above, Progression Sequence on Opposite Page)

076075

Pallet Platform and Base Paint(Nearly Finished Above, Progression Sequence on Opposite Page)

077

3.10 Observing the Response

Unfortunately, we have had some unforeseen events in the last couple of weeks. Insurance

is covering having the fl ood damaged fl oors cleaned. Since those workers have been in

and out of the space during the last few weeks, there has not been time to administer

any formal observations like surveys and interviews. Based on the responses that we have

gotten informally, I would assume that people have enjoyed the process and the fi nal

product that has come from the work The Dining Room Club has done.

I believe that the soup kitchen project has done much more than the physcial results

that are on the walls and fl oors. I believe it has sparked a lot of interest in doing projects

at the soup kitchen. The board has put together a committee that is working on either

doing extensive remodeling of the kitchen, or looking into buying a different facility that

is ADA accessible. Dave has been excited by the response he has been getting and is

feeling motivated to apply to art school, or if nothing else, pursue art a little more seriously.

I mention to Ron now and then that he will have to take charge of getting some plants in

the top of those pallets because I am leaving after the school year. I hope to still volunteer

on Saturdays, so I am going to see if I can get him to help me get some in there.

When there is a chance over the next few weeks, I hope to administer another survey

similar to the one that I had done originally. This follow up survey will focus on quantifying

some of the positive responses we have gotten.

Chapter 4

A Shared Perspective:Practitioners Focused on Non-Traditional Clients

082

4.1 Creating a Taxonomy

As I was wrapping up much of the work in the dining room, I found that I had developed

what seemed to be an effective way of moving through one of these projects. At least at

a small scale as an academic study, fi t within a semester. I was comfortable with many of

the social relations and the what was seeming to work and not work in terms of engaging

and motivating the diners and the people in need. I had even managed to understand

better how to engage clients that are typically carry an incredibly heavy stereotype. I was

curious though how this would apply all of this in a professional market, make money to

pay my bills and support myself, and still manage to continue doing work that I found to

be meaningful.

The following was my approach to better understanding the professional possibilities. I

identifi ed and profi led fi ve people, in various stages of their careers, which I felt were doing

work that I could do and still feel I was meeting my personal goal of helping people and

doing socially responsible architecture. Against that, I have put the work I have done at

the soup kitchen and in the past through Habitat for Humanity, ReBuilding together, and

through Freedom by Design. Freedom by Design was a project I co-captain for my third

year of architecture school. Jamie and I organized a group of about twelve undergraduate

students and led them through the design and construction of an enclosed canopy over

a wheel chair ramp and remodeled a residential bathroom to make it ADA accessible.

The goal of this juxtaposition of me and my work to the others was to better understand

where what I was doing fi t into that larger body of work that was being done.

084083

Jason KlinkerHarvest Soup Kitchen

Mission:

Using architecture as a tool, I work to actively engage

people, providing them appropriate support as they move

to shape their worlds.

Location:

Muncie, Indiana

Education:

MArch, Ball State University (2011); B.S. Architecture, Ball

State University (2008)

Professional Experience:

Architectural Intern [4 Years]

Community Volunteer Work [2 Years]

Introduction

Currently I am a Masters of Architecture candidate at Ball State, where I have pushed

my focus to include a better understanding of the social dynamics of architecture. Being

interested in both construction and volunteer work, I have volunteered with Habitat

for Humanity as a general laborer. I have also done work with ReBuilding Together in

Chicago. There I was a general laborer, assistant house captain, and a member of the

logistics committee planning for their one day building blitz. I fi nd that I enjoy working for

these organizations as it surrounds me with others that are volunteering. This translates into

people that are excited to be there, not there by force.

My forth year at Ball State, while working on my BS in Architecture, I co-captained, with

Jamie Owens, the Freedom by Design chapter. Freedom by Design is a component of the

American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) that focuses on bringing design solutions

to the handicapped and elderly. Our group located a client on the south side of Muncie,

14-year old Chase, who had been hit by a car and was consequently paralyzed from his

waist down. We worked with Chase and his mother, Penny, to defi ne a scope of work,

design a solution, and complete the project. For this case, we built an enclosed canopy

over Chase’s existing wheelchair ramp. Also, we remodeled their bathroom, installing a

roll-in shower and ADA compliant sink, toilet, and grab bars.

My professional experience has included several years of work in a small Fort Wayne

architecture offi ce. I also spent a year working with a fi rm in Chicago. With this experience,

I have realized that I enjoy most components of the architectural process. Likely my future

professional work will be at a small scale fi rm offering a more holistic experience. One of

my goals for the next 5-years is to get my professional license.

086085

Jason | Questions

1. How can an architect, with a relatively limited amount of time on a project, come to

really know the place, the people that the design is impacting?

After doing the work at the soup kitchen, I would say that in many ways it is more important

to focus on earning the trust of those you are working with than trying to gather information.

It seems like as the people there would gain trust in me, they would allow me to see more

of who they are. This is a pretty straight forward concept, but I think we overlook it and only

focus on getting information.

2. When the culture of a place sees relatively no value in Architecture (design), but basis

its survival on architecture (shelter), what is the role we play as architects? How do we

negotiate this line?

Early in the semester, I thought I had fi gured it out in a way. No one was openly upset with

the way things were and the soup kitchen was operating pretty effi ciently for the most

part. My initial response was that ‘it meets the basic needs,’ that is all these people seem

to care about. Now, after seeing their reaction to changing the dining room, I see that

there really is a place for ‘nice things’ in these scenarios too. I still am not sold on the idea

that the specifi cs are that important. I think it is more the idea that people are making

effort, they see the potential for things to get better and they are moving in that direction.

I think our role, early in these projects, is to be the person that takes that fi rst step. I think

people will naturally follow, assuming that you continue to walk with them until they feel

comfortable doing it on their own.

3. As a college graduate, a person of privilege, how do I earn the trust of someone who

lacks most, if not all, social privilege?

An example of this, when I fi rst attempted to talk to Mr. Hibbs it was when I was handing

out the cameras. My focus was getting them to provide me information. It failed. I realized

that I was in “their house,” and they were going to be the ones that set the rules and the

pace. I knew that Mr. Hibbs was going to be a good way for me to really see what it took

to earn this trust. That fi rst interaction, I was given a couple sentences from him, at best.

Since that moment, I was sure to engage him, by name, every time I saw him. Last week I

had a 5-min conversation with Mr. Hibbs about the changes in the dining room and if he

liked it. It was mostly small talk, but relative to the fi rst interaction, that level of trust is much

higher.

4. What is a method for engaging; empowering and exiting that will maintain ownership

and drive in others?

I think the main thing, again, is getting them to trust you. Once you have earned their

trust, then it becomes almost a game of confi dence building. My assumption is that most

people these days can use a little support now and then. It is good to be critical, but if you

want them to take ownership, you want to make them proud of what they do. That does

not happen when you take the paint brush away because they ‘are doing it wrong.’

5. What comes fi rst, the relationship or the project?

I think it needs to be a back and forth. The relationship, most times, should precede the

project if the goal is to build a sense of ownership. You have to establish enough trust to get

them to work with you, then a small scale, faster moving project seems to be a wonderful

way to grow those relationships. Spending 10-hours painting a room with a couple guys

becomes a great time to learn about one another.

6. How do you determine an appropriate amount of work?

This seems like something that you just have to feel out as you go. Hector had mentioned

the importance of this being a very organic process. In many ways you just do something

small and then one thing leads to the next. If you focus on getting the fi rst steps right. I think

the rest will just come naturally.

7. Implementing formalities of codes, insurance, liability, etc. in a very informal situation?

I still am not sure how to handle this situation. Hector had spoken about just sort of going

out and building stuff, never having insurance or anything. I think you just have to be

responsible, if it seems dangerous, then you need act appropriately. I believe that getting

a grasp of this is something you just develop over time. I have an understanding, but I

have a lot more to learn in terms of construction, structures, etc. before I am ready to

take on projects much larger than the soup kitchen. I think getting my license is maybe an

087

indicator for me that I am ready to start stepping out a little more.

8. As you do more of these projects, is it ok to establish a ‘routine,’ or does each start the

process open ended?

I think you can routinely make it your goal to approach the situation with an open mind,

earn the trust and get comfortable with the people and the situation, and then you can

respond appropriately. I don’t think it is a good idea to go into a situation with a solution

or project in mind.

9. How do you approach the timeline of projects? What is a good pace to move through

the process – not to push to hard, but avoiding stagnation and loss of interest?

I think that the pace I worked at the soup kitchen actually worked out really well. There

has been some confl icting things, me in school, the fl oors being stripped and waxed, etc.

that are slowing that pace a bit. I am starting to get the sense that most of us are ready to

‘cut the ribbon’ on the project. One of the mornings when it fl ooded, Johnny and I were

mopping up the water. He stared getting frustrated when we had worked for a couple

hours and had no visual improvement. He said, “I need to see that what I am doing is

changing something.” I think that is a good rule of thumb for pace. If it is something larger

that is not going to show a lot of change in the short time, then you want something small

to give that sense of accomplishment as you are working towards the larger goal.

10. How does the work at the soup kitchen relate to larger scale issues?

I think that the work that I am doing at Harvest, and really the work that everyone I have

profi led is doing, it has a direct impact on larger issues. At Harvest, there is clearly a

developing sense of worth, confi dence, ownership. We have also created a lot of bridges

between people where no relationship previously existed. I think anytime you are able to

co-mingle with various age, race, and social classes and move in a positive direction, you

are working on the larger issues.

088

Jason | Images

089

Jason | Wordle Diagram

A Wordle is generated by taking portions of text and sorting it out by word count. The

larger words are words used most frequently in the body of text. It is a helpful tool because

it provides a graphic snapshot of a theme. In this case, I have utilized it as a method of

analyzing for six designers, including myself. Each Wordle is comprised of a range of text

from the designer’s body of work. This provides a more general theme for the designer.

My wordle, based primarily on my abstract, has an emphasis on community, project,

people, and architecture. I believe this is a pretty accurate overview of my focus at this

point in my career. This abstract was done early in the process, so it will be interesting to a

compile a Wordle of my fi nal manuscript. I feel that I have sense used more names, Ron,

Dave, Loretta, Roseanne, Willie, for example. These, and more specifi c terms like Harvest

and dining room should replace generic terms like project and community.

090

Jason | Characteristics Diagram

Jason Klinker

publicity

/promotio

n

work focuse

s on

creating fu

ture

practitioners

energy focused on relationships/understanding

place

time

with

clie

nt“l

ivin

g w

ages

” fro

m

prod

uced

wor

k

openly address

larger social issues

scale of early

humanitarian

projects

focus on discourse

characteristicslarger circle = greater level

091

Ryan EllsworthAmeriCorps at Greater Muncie Habitat for Humanity

Mission:

To practice as a registered architect specializing in

affordable housing, design for aging, and community-

based projects and to use architecture as a means to

serve the unique people and places in which I live.

Location:

Muncie, Indiana

Education:

MArch, Ball State University (2010); B.S. Architecture, Ball

State University (2009)

Professional Experience:

Architectural Intern [1.5 Years]

India Based Architectural Experience [1 Year]

Teaching Assistant Cultural and Social Issues [1 Year]

092

Introduction

Ryan is a recent graduate with his Master’s degree in Architecture from Ball State. He

currently is working with Habitat for Humanity in Muncie, IN. As part of his service through

AmeriCorps, Ryan is assisting with green building initiatives, designing neighborly housing

options, and leading volunteer construction teams. Although currently looking for a more

permanent position in a fi rm, Ryan expresses an eager liking for his current position at

Habitat. He has described an interest in a position that puts him directly involved with the

action, on site learning and building relationships with people. It is not surprising that a

position where he is building houses and “kicking in doors” of abandoned houses fi ts well.

Aside from his current work with Habitat, Ryan spent a year in India as a Volunteer

Intern Architect through the Engineering Ministries International. As part of this position,

he produced architectural renderings for new schools, health clinics, orphanages, and

administrative buildings. Aside from producing documents, he had signifi cant contact

with and become part of a local people. This was facilitated through the leading of

programming meetings and client presentations, while also volunteering with several

humanitarian efforts in the community.

Ryan’s time in India further expanded his already sensitive world view. As he describes

it, “this was the perfect place for me to cultivate ideas in architecture regarding cultural

sensitivity, sense of place, regional identity, and the importance of human relationships to

the built environment.” These concepts are the basis of much of his undergraduate and

graduate work including two papers, “Changing Neighborhoods & the Importance of

Place,” and “Architecture for Critical Relationship.” This work qualifi ed him for a teaching

assistant position in a series of Cultural and Social Issues where he presented class lectures

on cultural interaction and social issues through design.

093

Ryan | Questions

1. Your work to date expresses an obvious concern and fi ght against what you term a

“global sameness.” Could you provide a few examples through your career where this fi ght

was specifi cally challenged? Were there moments when you have had to compromise on

this idea?

I’m going to drop some quotes on you here just to help spell out a defi nition of place,

global sameness, relationships, etc.

“To love a person means to see him as God intended him to be.”

- Fyodor Dostoyevsky

“Beloved Architecture! In the end, it’s materials, it’s origins, it’s own relatively short life span seems so

human and so touching that we are bound to consider it affectionately.”

- Aldo Rossi

“What makes architecture particular? The possibility of building anything anywhere is architecture’s

greatest crisis and challenge.”

- Michael Sorkin

“Region inspires and grounds the American experience. Whether we are drawn to them or fl ee from

them, the places in which we live etch themselves into our memory in powerful, enduring ways.”

- William Ferris

I’d say my experience with global sameness just refers to a stabbing feeling in the gut

when I feel like decisions are made to the built environment that have only to do with cost

and profi t margins and do not consider the people for whom they will serve. It also has to

do with the environment. Building the exact same tract house in Indiana that you would

build in Florida just because air conditioning will make up the difference does not pay any

attention to place. Sprawling suburbs and McGalliard Streets are another example. Mass

094

produced building materials that are available in every corner of the country... (not much

you can do... and it’s convenient...i dunno... i digress).

2. Many ‘humanitarian efforts’ in architecture and design focus on international causes.

In your opinion, do you perceive these efforts as being more helpful or harmful? How do

these efforts fi t into your understandings of place and cautions of a global sameness?

I believe that everyone, rich or poor, has the ability to take the resources available to

them and use them to help others. In that light, I believe it is good that architects should

desire to take their professional knowledge to help other people in different places and

cultures. Humanitarian efforts however have the power to hurt or to help. Nobody going

into a new culture for the fi rst time should presume to know what it will take to provide

“help.” Effective humanitarian aid comes through long-term commitments and careful

relationships. It takes a long time to really understand what it means to be from a particular

place with its history, culture, climate, etc. Those willing to really invest themselves in a

particular place will in time be able to be helpful.

3. At these early stages in your career, what are your goals and objectives? Are there

certain projects, fi rms, or opportunities that you are looking for and those you are avoiding?

How have you been able to distinguish between them?

At this point I am really looking to build experience in a traditional fi rm setting with the

intent to be ‘more helpful’ in the future to other people and places. I’ve never been much

of a corporate ladder climber and I prefer to work on relatively small-scale projects that

impact local people and communities.

4. How do you view yourself and the work you are doing as part of a larger humanitarian

effort? Is your role, a part of a larger whole, something you frequently consider, and if so,

how do you adjust yourself to respond to these r¬¬efl ections?

I would say that the work I am currently doing for Habitat for Humanity is very much a

part of a bigger whole. It is about mobilizing the entire community toward a greater goal

or purpose. Habitat helps to bridge income and racial barriers; it also helps to provide

awareness of Muncie’s ongoing needs. I do consider the impact of my role quite often. I

would probably have a hard time if I felt like the work I was doing did not have a bigger

purpose to it.

095

5. You speak frequently of the importance of ‘place’ and ‘rootedness’. At what scale do

you consider these themes to be relevant? Do you feel that this scale changes as we

become what many refer to as a ‘shrinking world?’

I think the ideas of place and rootedness apply to every scale. To one’s own household,

to ones neighbors and neighborhood, to city, state, and country. Basically, I think that

while we become a more and more global society and the world continues to shrink, it

makes some sense to try to maintain a sense of identity. I think every scale of place comes

with its own culture. When one culture comes in contact with another, they change. And

I think that’s a great thing. I would defi ne rootedness as ‘having a sense of one’s self in a

specifi c environment.’ It seems to me that as we embrace a more global culture, it can

be easy to lose track of some of the simple things that link a person with a particular place.

Capitalizing on the uniqueness of one’s identity within a place can be a great way to add

meaning. For architects, capitalizing on place and roots adds richness and depth to a

project and provides the client something they can truly identify with.

6. As a recent graduate, do you fi nd personal fi nances something that causes concern on

a fairly regular basis? What are some of the careers you have considered that will provide

the funding you need to support yourself, but also allow you to do work that focuses on a

client base that generally cannot afford typical design and architectural fees?

Well, working or volunteering for Habitat is a great way! Perhaps another way is to simply

understand that a traditional architecture fi rm exists because it can generate income.

Working for a fi rm, or starting a fi rm, that values ideas such as ‘public architecture’ or social

needs, can be a great way to channel resources into something you care about.

7. What methods have you put into practice to evaluate the success of your work both in

meeting personal goals and professional goals?

8. Do you feel that you have a ‘partner,’ professional or personal, that helps you to manage

what, for me, seems to be a pretty intense life path – humanitarian based practice?

Well, having a wife that shares similar values is a tremendous help and blessing. We have

very different professions, but in a way our outcomes are the same. Building relationships

with people and learning from them tie it all together. Also, a strong mutual interest in new

places and cultures means that we both have a desire to live overseas again at some

point.

096

9. Last question, if you could paint the perfect picture of yourself in 30-years, what would

it look like?

Honoring God, loving my family and friends, serving people. If I can still manage to do all

of those things well in 30 years, I’ll be doing pretty good. If being an architect is still a part

of that deal, so be it. Really you can have those values in any profession... I just happen to

like building and buildings...

I might also add that there is nothing too scientifi c about my thoughts on place and

rootedness. It starts from feelings and refl ections and it’s a way to try and make sense of

it all.

097

Ryan | Observations

Ryan, like several others I have profi led as part of this work, is an inspiration to me, in

many ways, maybe the largest of the group. Earning his Master’s in Architecture from

Ball State only a year before me, I have had the privilege of sharing a classroom with him

as we participated in a discussion based elective course led by Professor Olon Dotson.

This course explored the depths of what Dotson refers to as “The Fourth World,” – third

world conditions in a fi rst world country. We touched on topics ranging from the effects of

shrinking cities and sprawl to racial and class tensions. Ryan was passionate and insightful

in his input. The following year, I sat in on several of Ryan’s thesis reviews where he did a

wonderful project on senior housing and the importance of place making.

The work Ryan has done in India and the work he is doing now with Habitat has a heavy focus

on creating a sense of place while also addressing some of the larger issues that plaque

those in poverty – a lack of identity and a place that is their own. It follows in many of the

principles that have been outlined as key components to developing communities and

empowering the people in them. The work he has done with the organizations focuses on

participatory design that develops based on local material, sustainable building practices,

vernacular architectural language. The construction and implementation of these designs

have frequently been done by local workers. One thing that I fi nd to be lacking ever so

slightly is the application of a broader scale set of conditions that are consistent with work

similar to this in other locations. Working to build a database of successful work based on

an agreed upon quantitative and qualitative criteria, will help to build a stronger case for

doing these locally based works.

It is diffi cult for me to be critical of folks like Ryan. I fi nd that he possesses an incredible,

unfortunately rare, personality that pushes him to always search for an understanding

of all people and things around him. Being rather reserved, I cannot imagine Ryan ever

reaching the international or even national acclaim of a Bryan Bell or Emily Pilloton. This

speaks not of an inability or lack of intelligence, but to an uncompromised dedication to

098

personal beliefs of place and rootedness, and to the people around him. I consider Ryan

to be an underrated, almost ‘dark-horse,’ in the movement of humanitarian design. His

dedication to those around him is at the essence of what this humanitarian, grass roots

ideal is about. He is that one small voice that simply amplifi es all the voices around him.

099

Ryan | Images

100

Ryan| Wordle Diagram

Ryan’s Wordle is from his short autobiography. My understanding is that he compiled this

autobiography as part of his thesis project. Although, I like his terms, people, place and

relationships, better than the almost hyper generic words I use like community, they are

still fairly generic in their true sense and understanding of place. My assumption is that the

nature of Ryan’s work at Habitat would still be in ‘generic terms.’ His work in India appears

to be much more personal.

Would these ‘fi rst name relationships,’ that I have at Harvest now, and Ryan likely had

in India because of the level of need from our, the designer’s, perspective? At Harvest,

I really needed, and worked hard to establish a level of trust from the onset. Without a

name, it becomes much more diffi cult to move conversations past a simple ‘hello.’ Ryan

in India is based on his need as well. Much more urgent, Ryan, as an absolute outsider,

needed to establish those relationships quickly and with some merit. He likely needed this

more intimate level of conversation to gain basic survival information. A good question for

Ryan would be, “What are the names of your clients?” In ‘main stream’ practice, we need

good working relationships with clients, they pay for our survival. A fi rst step in working with

a ‘non-paying’ client might simply be “call them by their names.”

101

Ryan | Characteristics Diagram

characteristicslarger circle = greater level

Ryan Ellsworth

publicity

/promotio

n

work focuse

s on

creating fu

ture

practitioners

energy focused on relationships/understanding

place

time

with

clie

nt“l

ivin

g w

ages

” fro

m

prod

uced

wor

k

openly address

larger social issues

scale of early

humanitarian

projects

focus on discourse

102

103

Hector LaSalaUniversity of Louisiana at Lafayette

Mission:

The Building Institute’s goal is to create a setting outside of,

yet built upon the traditional studio setting. In this way, a

student’s design approach can be expanded. In fact, the

setting of the Building Institute and the new design process

it endeavors to teach is an extension and transformation

of the traditional studio. Design cannot be relegated to

only one locale; it is fl uid, continuous and morphs to its

setting.

Location:

Lafayette, Louisiana

Education:

B. Architecture, University of Louisiana (1973); MArch, Texas

A&M University (1976)

Professional Experience:

Practicing Architect for 30+ years

Professor for 25+ years

104

Introduction

As a professor of Architecture at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Hector LaSala

is a leading voice in the Building Institute Studio Program. This program is a design-build

formatted studio experience through the universities architecture program. As listed by

the website, the program fi nds its inspiration from the following quote.

“What Michael Walzer calls ‘connected social critics’ [are those who,] unlike the armchair

philosopher, disavow a posture of theoretical detachment, preferring instead to identify with and

engage the historical experience and culture of his or her time. Occupying the contested terrain of

social life, avoiding the blind loyalty to the status quo, the social critic sees political argument as a

way of resolving pressing practical problems of human beings.”

- Jeffrey Isaac, ARENDT, CAMUS, AND THE MODERN REBELLION

The studio format aims at addressing the gap that often exists between theory and practice.

This is achieved through hands-on service-learning, countering “theoretical detachment”

and nurturing “social critics.” They charge students to build, but even more importantly to

“act.” This stems from a belief that “the act of making meaningful architecture requires our

students to take responsibility for their designs: cultural, social, political, fi scal and technical

responsibilities, to name a few. [And,] the act of designing and making meaningful

architecture requires rigor and tolerance - from both faculty and students.”

As part of the Building Institute Studio Program, Hector has led, with W. Geoff Gjerston, AIA,

a series of Acadiana Outreach Center Projects. These were an opportunity to achieve

another challenge the Building Institute has set for itself. That is aiming to open new

paths for the students through the learning process. This achievement was met with the

immersion of students “into a social context that they have rarely encountered in any

meaningful way: the world of chronic poverty, homelessness, addiction, mental illness,

and the non-profi t agencies that are the trenches of these societal battlefronts.” In the fall

of 2003, there was an opportunity to do just that. The director of the Acadiana Outreach

105

center contacted the School of Architecture in need of help designing a storage system

to aid in donations. As the site observations were taking place, there was an observation

that there was “a terrible contradiction: while the Center’s mission is ‘Giving People Back

Their God-Given Dignity,’ the physical environment and facilities were depressing, coarse,

and spiritually degrading. From this observation came the development of a master plan

for the center, and over the next 3-years, seventeen, strategic, ‘fast-tracked’ projects on

the site. The projects started at a small scale of $400 and $500 and grew into larger scale

projects upwards of $10,000. All total, $76,956 was spent on projects over the 3-year period.

Completed in 2006, the range of effects these projects have had on the 10,000 plus people

it touched are beginning to show through. They estimate the value of the work at two to

three times the cost of work.

106

Hector | Questions

1. It appears that this series of projects at The Outreach Center started from a request from

Valerie Keller. Was there a previous relationship established with The Outreach Center, or

was the project the fi rst contact with the group?

He did not know Keller, but she had just taken over the center. She was relatively young,

24-25. She had been there for like 9 months, and she realized that they needed better

method for organizing the donations of clothes they were getting in. She was friends with

someone that was a professor at the college, he recommended Hector. That is how it

all started. The fi rst time that I had seen the sight was when we did the fi rst walk through.

When he went there and walked around with her, he pointed out that the facilities were

sort of in contrast to their very mission. He had suggested that she was addressing an issue,

but they had a much larger issue that they could start to address.

“Part of the reason that we were so successful, is because we let it all happen very

organically, opposed to typically you usually fi nish the master plan and then sit and wait

for funding to come through. We saw the need to do something immediately because we

had built all this excitement, and did not want to lose that.”

2. From here, the completion of the 3-year series of projects, do you continue to do this

sort of work with other organizations? If so, what is the approach to initiate these future

projects? How do you spark these relationships when none formally exist?

We had nine students, three did the bench, three the gazebo, and three the bus stop.

Again, this is outside studio, these are just extra credit type projects. All of the work we

have done has been done in this way. That summer we found an unused warehouse on

the site. We suggested that they use this as a place to do a little store (donation shop)

where they could do that donation redistribution. So we did a façade so that it would read

as that. So by the end of the summer we had done three small projects and one medium

sized project. So at this point is when things started to get pretty exciting. We had showed

them that we were able to do some really good work for a pretty small amount of money

107

and mostly just putting labor into it. At this point, people are getting pretty excited and

things are starting to get donated.

We were getting things donated like the chain link fence all was donated by a chain link

guy. The point where generosity was being aroused and that is how we were able to do so

much, then the newspaper starts doing articles and so people you know, they just wanted

to join. They just wanted to be part of it.

Right now we are starting on a 74-Unit mixed use affordable housing project. It is a 12

million dollar project. The housing is not necessarily just for the clients but for people that

are making 60% of the median income. So basically, anyone making less than $28,000 can

qualify for this housing. It has all spurred from the work from the outreach center.

3. Could you provide more insight into the logistics of working with the ‘residents’ on

projects? How did they fi t into the schedule? What skill sets did they bring to the table, and

how did you gain knowledge of these skills? How many residents took part, and how were

they selected?

Actually the residents participated in the third project that we did. The third project was

a pocket park. There is a residential area the people there would move through this area

from their residence to the areas where they would get treatment like AA and this was

often at night. It was very dark and muddy. We found a $5,000 grant to do this park. We

did a vegetable garden and they helped us to.

The project after that was actually a small outdoor performance space. We actually had

inmates that helped us on that. Ironically, a lot of them were in jail because of drugs.

Many of them had been carpenters or had experience in construction. Then there were

the residents, some of them, of course, had never done work like this, as was the case

with most of our students. So in a way, the inmates were the ones that were teaching

our students and the residents there. We dedicated at the ceremony to the inmates, but

when we asked if they could come and we could honor there were they said no, and so

that was sort of sad.

It is sort of just a work release program. These are inmates that you know, have good

behavior, and so we had heard about the program and just contacted the prison and

108

asked if we could get some help from them. So they went ahead and selected some guys

for us to use.

The actually wore the striped suits when they came to the site. You know the ones you

see in cartoons ya know. It was initially a shock to them, the students. It was about 11:30

when they showed up. We had gotten some pizza and drinks, you know, we fi gured they

had probably not had a good pizza in a while, so we got some pizza. Of course, when we

saw them come with the striped suits, it really freaked them out. So there was some of that

initial stereotype that these are inmates. Yes, yes there was at the beginning, but it did not

last for long.

The other project that we did with residences was the mosaic. We had contacted a

professor that has done a lot of murals. One of my colleagues, his father-in-law is a building

contractor, and so he loaned us a lot of scaffolding. Well one of the things that he said

to us was that the contractors, they will have a lot of extra materials after projects and

they can’t use them and the clients never want them…so that is how we got a lot of our

materials. So using this, the university has established a good working relationship with a

lot of contractors and builders that we are able to get materials and things. So the mosaic

came from this, because we had a lot of fl ooring tiles.

4. Did you fi nd that some of the projects were more successful in creating a sense of

ownership and place for the residents? What aspects of the projects do you feel was most

successful in creating that sense of ownership?

First of all, I think that we were very receptive. We saw that there were 100 needs but

because we felt the need to deliver something, we found that they had recognized 3

immediate needs were 3-fold. So we did the bench and the bus stop because there was

nowhere for people to sit in the shade while they were waiting for the bus. Then the third

project, we had recognized that so many of these half-way houses were so crowded

with 6-10 people in each and you know of course all of these people smoke. So what

we recognized that these people needed a place to get away from one another, so

we made a gazebo. The three projects we chose were so tangible, so immediate to that

need, they immediately accepted that we were able to understand what they needed,

and then of course we went ahead and built it, ya know.

109

Then the great thing big thing was the garden. We knew that we had done something

when we started to notice the residence cleaning things, cleaning the yard. Then one

of the half-way houses, 12-men, one Saturday, actually cleaned their yard, made some

planters, even had put up the little solar lights you know. This is awesome, for the fi rst time

they are taking ownership of this house that is not even theirs. So that was, that was a

pretty big deal!

We fi nd that beyond the physical labor and the benefi t of what we build, and it is a much

bigger need of them, is to see that somebody cares. And so when they saw the students,

especially when we did the warehouse, when they saw us working that summer, they were

just in awe. That these young kids were actually sweating and building this thing in the

middle of the summer, it was pretty impressive.

5. At what scale do you lose the opportunity to use student and resident labor? How do

you handle OSHA, insurance, and other types of formal regulations when working on these

pretty informal projects?

Basically, there was a guy at your school, a professor that had asked this question because

he had been trying to put together a design build project and the university was not

letting him because of the insurance and all of these things. The amazing thing, we were

so naive, and that was one nice thing about being so organic we just didn’t know any

better, we were so under the radar that the university did not even really know what we

were doing. They really did not know what we were doing – I mean our guys were just out

there building shit. It was really so modest in the beginning that by the time the university

had become aware of it, we had built all kinds of stuff. We never had insurance, we still

don’t have insurance. Well now the university is so proud of our accomplishments but if we

would have waited around for the school to get us insurance, I don’t think it ever would

have happened. We never had a building permit, we never bought insurance, and we

never went to zoning. Remember, this part of town is totally abandoned and overlooked.

(He begins talking about the coming about of the current transitional housing project.)

At this point we had been published in Metropolis and had presented 3-4 papers at

universities and stuff. It had come to me and to a lot of my students that a lot of the

experience in the internship project, pretty much was awful. Some was ok but for the

most part it is just so insensitive. A great deal of our efforts to instill the ideal of caring and

110

do projects that matter, it is just not really what most fi rms do. So we said maybe we do

something equivalent to doctors do. Where that internship process is doing work for the

poor, basically they learn medicine by providing service for people that cannot afford

the doctors. So that is where our model had begun. Why do the universities not offer these

opportunities for architecture students and graduates to actually learn that level of training

that the internship provides, but instead of doing it with a fi rm, every university creates this

opportunity to provide those services pro-bono. So I started doing this design build, which

is good, but really is too small a scale to change the way things are.

So that is where we jumped into this next project. We had 3-4 students that had

worked with the design build projects, and they got IDP credits by working on projects

for the outreach center, but at a much larger scale like a dormitory, bathrooms, and of

course this last one, the downtown housing. He got not only pay, but also internship credit.

6. Do you think that your work that you did at the Outreach Center must be there fi rst. As in,

those relationships and that understanding has to be in place fi rst, before moving to larger

scale projects?

Yes, absolutely. I will tell you what, the design build; we do it with our freshman with our

sophomores. I think it is important at that level. That is basically how we did a lot of the

things at the outreach center. That is where you can make them aware of that whole

world that they are basically ignorant about. The horrible poverty and addiction and no

profi t, but the medical model is mostly for graduate school. You have to build when they

have that initial entrance into the world of the profession at the level of altruism, and

generosity, and caring. Then you have them hooked. Then when they get to graduate

school, it is about practicing at another level.

7. In general, how do you fi nance these projects? How far do you plan a project before

funding is secured?

Most of the fi rst small projects were just funded by the students. The park was the fi rst one

we had gotten a grant on and then the amphitheater. We had a professor that had

donated 1000 CMU’s, we had labor from the prisoners, the Outreach Center gave us

some money to buy other materials. So it was like a complete diverse funding source. The

mosaic, we basically had all the tiles. The painting of the plaza, I think the outreach center

111

gave us money to buy some house paint. The parking lot was interesting because we had

to borrow a back hoe from a contractor because to dig up the slab was just going to

take too long. When we actually cut the ribbon to the park, the contractor came to the

event and we obviously acknowledged him and thank him. He was so excited. He asked

us what our next project was and we told him we needed to do a parking lot. Well, he

says, tell you what, I will do it at cost, I won’t make any profi t. I will just pay my workers and

I will give you the concrete at the cost it comes to me. So it cost some money, but it was

half of what it would have been, and the Outreach Center paid for that. So in a nut shell,

once you have a project that sounds true and right, people will come out of nowhere to

donate and participate. Once you start conveying what the project is about, people will

want to participate.

In fact, one of Valarie’s sayings is that we talk about being more blessed to give

than to receive, so by giving someone the opportunity to give is a good thing. People

want to give. They just want to be told about the signifi cance of what you are doing. So

that is what she is so good at. She really paints the picture that you are going to be blessed

by giving to this thing.

(When in the process for the pavilion project did you secure the funds?) Well it is just so

organic. I knew the professor for a long time; I knew his family owned this concrete factory.

So we went to him, expecting that he would give us a discount. Basically the next time we

heard from him, he just said we are going to give you 1,000 blocks just let us know where

you want us to deliver them.

So for instance, when we were doing the Wall Mart, the way it works out is that we

did several designs and it seemed like the most simple way to do this thing was to do the

chain link. So we went to the place that sells the stuff and we gave her the list of everything

we needed and in the process of getting it, we talked about what it was for and he said

that he would give us a discount. So there is no one way to do it.

Like with the garden, we knew that we wanted to the garden, so we went to the

horticulture department and asked if they could give some students to work on that and

of course they did. Also, there were some NC State students that were driving by and

had heard about the project and asked if they could do something that would take just

112

one weekend. So we gave them a little bridge that goes from the sidewalk to the street.

So these guys did that. Then a couple people from Michigan did a memorial for all the

Katrina and Rita volunteers. Again, just to reiterate, when it is organic and very processed

orients, the right things just show up at the right time. We went to the boys and girls club

and they asked us to do a roof over the boys and girls club, and that court is big ya know,

like you have to be tall. So I remembered a student that I had that was doing a lot with

tensile structures. So I called him to see if he was still doing it and he said yes, but that he

could not come out there to help. So we sent a couple students to him, and he taught

them how to do it ya know. So it is just symbiotic ya know, it just takes on a life of its own.

In a sense, it is really the only way you can do projects like this. You know, funds are short,

labor is short, and so you have to trust that you are going to get the help you need when

you need it. So after we have done so much and there was all this press and excitement

about it that it made us bold ya know. I told the board of directors, I said, look, this entire

thing is just band-aids, we need to really do housing. That is where we started going to

D.C. and we got in contact with our senator and told her that she needed to come and

see what we were doing. By that time, we had completed almost all the small projects.

She said that these were exactly the types of projects that she wanted to commit herself

to. That is when we told her that our vision was to do urban affordable housing. This was

in 2007. She started giving us money to buy property. Right now we have basically all the

property bought to do the housing. So you have to be fl exible and tell a good story and

you know, just let these things happen. We had no idea that in 8-years it was going to be

anything like this.

8. You mention that a lot of these smaller projects are just Band-Aids, is doing the transitional

housing the maximum reach that architecture and design has in terms of our ability to

engage those issues?

Addiction is a huge problem, it is a complex issue. Alcohol is kinda like an allergy or

diabetes, there is proof that alcohol behaves differently in different people. Drugs are

different thing, it is much more willful and it then becomes addiction. The irony is that like

80% of our clients at the outreach center come from middle class, even upper middle

class families. These are people that have been having these problems for so long that the

families just give up on them.

113

Hector tells story about ‘beautiful 26-year old female that is married with a child

working as a nurse, so she was stealing prescription drugs from the hospital. She obviously

gets caught. So basically she went to jail, she went through a program for addiction

recovery, and she graduated like maybe a year later and was able to get her child back.

She has lost her license now and there is no way that she can earn what she was making

before. I mean this is a story we hear all the time. For instance the outreach center had its

graduation ceremony and 28 people tell their story. You know it is redeeming you know, it

is amazing.

So to talk about her, she enters the job market at low wage positions. The problem is

that the least expensive apartments are farther then where she works. So if she works

downtown as a waiter or a coffee shop, she can only affords an apartment in the suburbs,

not even the good suburbs. So then she has to have a car, and we spend more money on

the car then the food. That is the message that we gave the senator. We said listen, if this

is going to happen, it is going to have to be near transportation and around jobs. Some

people can live without a car. So that is how we got her to start funding the project we are

doing now. So our projects are aimed at that people, the artist, the cooks, the bank tellers

that work downtown. They make pretty good money but you know have to pay all this

money for a car and insurance and all of this. They have nothing left for anything else. For

our clients who graduate, one of the dangers for them is economic insecurity. When they

become insecure there is a much higher chance that they are going to relapse. So one

of the things that we wanted was to offer them a place that is 3 blocks from the main bus

station and 2 blocks from the main street downtown, and the downtown is pretty active.

The whole idea is that they can actually live downtown and just walk to work.

8. Do you believe that the work you are doing, primarily volunteer and donated support,

is achievable in a professional world as a way to support oneself? How might the process

need to change in order to accommodate a design fee?

We have, my partner Corey and I, done all of the preliminary design for free, you know

it was still part of our research. So now that we are in design development, the architect

that was assigned the project has hired him and I to be consultants, so we are being

paid by the hour. So what Corey and I are talking about is to creative a fi rm that is a ___

organization, so that we can do projects that are at a much more reasonable fee and

114

then at the same time ____.

9. My understanding is that you have practiced architecture for many years (30+) prior

to taking on these projects that are highly socially engaging. Is there a certain level

of general ‘architectural knowledge’ that is learned in the years of practice, that is not

usually a component of a formal education. Would you advise young architects to get this

general knowledge under their belts before trying to lead projects like those you led at

The Outreach Center?

Oh ya, I mean I was licensed in ’78. Teaching I have not done a lot of practice, but I have

built 2 houses and I know construction. It is very important, especially if you have students

working for you, that you know what you are doing. Our school though is very hands on

though. Students are building things all the time. So there is a kind of ethic about being

responsible and doing craft, using tools. That is part of just how we teach it is just very hands

on.

Do most of the students end up going on and getting licensed? It varies, all you

can do really, is to instill into them a sense of caring. So even if they don’t necessarily

do design build…let me give you an example. One student that helped with the master

plan in 2003 was a second year. He just got licensed so that took him 3 years after he

graduated, and he is a very caring guy. He lives in New Orleans now, but he is involved in

so much additional work that he does over there has some sort of ____ work in it. We don’t

have enough graduates yet, because it is fairly recent ya know.

California, I think is the fi rst state, I am not sure if it is law yet, but they are required to

do pro bono work. I think it is called the 1% solution. Architects have to donate 1% of their

services to pro bono.

115

Hector | Observations

My understanding of Hector LaSala is fairly limited. With a relatively limited online presence,

outside a few short articles, general information on the universities website, and a single

paper that describes in a little more detail, the work at the Acadiana Outreach Center, it

is diffi cult to provide very in-depth understandings on how the work that Hector, W. Geoff

Gjertson, and their students have done.

I am using Hector as an example of an ‘educational employee/architect.’ Operating

through the university provides Hector some fl exibility in his projects in that his personal

fi nances are covered through the university. The work he has done for the Acadiana

Outreach Center is funded through various means, mostly grant money for the larger

projects with funding for smaller projects coming from private donations or the Outreach

Centers funding.

Early in the process, a point was made that they needed to approach the work at the

Outreach Center as “accelerated fabrication. This approach was derived as a response

to the semester structure of university coursing, but also developed from the understanding

of how important it is to see tangible results. My approach at the Harvest Soup Kitchen was

formatted in a very similar fashion, and was also a response to the same situational time

frames. In both cases, this proves to be a very successful approach to engaging the client,

especially when the relationship is relatively young.

Another theme that is echoed at the Outreach Center and Soup Kitchen is the necessity to

develop a trusting relationship. As fourth-year student Beverly Istre expresses, “They gave

us so much trust, and by trusting us and letting us fail, they really allowed us to develop a

sense of ownership.” I believe that this trust develops as the personal relationship develops.

It is trusting that the students, under the guidance of LaSala and Gjerston, will do work that

improves the physical environment, if even ever so slightly. Also, I believe that this trust is in

many ways similar to one would trust a good friend. The project is important to Hector and

116

Geoff, and Hector and Geoff are important to the people at the Outreach Center, so they

will grant them freedom to do more than they might grant a ‘stranger.’

Creating a sense of ownership for the residents through active engagement is one area I

feel that many of the projects might have fallen short. With exception to residents being

active participants in the completion of the Gazebo Project, the only other project that has

been described as engaging was the larger scale Performance Space. The Performance

Space is described as a very good example of local engagement at all levels, as it included

support from local contractors, inmates from the local jail, in conjunction with residents of

the shelter and students and faculty. Many of the other projects have been described as

what I would consider a “hand out” not a “hand up,” to use a phrase from the Outreach

Center. My work at the soup kitchen has demonstrated to me very clearly the diffi culty

in engaging residents of shelters and diners in soup kitchens. These interactions can be

at various levels and range throughout the population of residents, but I feel like it is a

component that is really essential to maximize the potential of these smaller projects. I am

glad to see that this engagement was incorporated in some of the later projects.

I am interested in how LaSala, Gjerston, and The Building Institute has continued to have

a presence in the community now that the projects at the Outreach Center have come

to an end. How do they respond to a new situation where they need to ‘fi nd’ the project

instead of the project ‘fi nding’ them? The Building Institute is one of only a few collegiate

architectural programs that have placed their students in these ‘social context’ where

architects and students rarely fi nd themselves. They are in a unique position to continue

to push this program while also closely monitoring the futures of these past students. How

has this socially immersive experience infl uenced their future professional practice? As the

profession and society in general becomes increasingly engaging in social service, it would

seem logical that these design-build studios fi nd themselves a more regular component

of architectural education. If nothing more, I believe it is an effective way to develop

emotional intelligence in students and also more empathetic professionals in the future.

117

Hector | Images Hector| Wordle Diagram

Hector’s Wordle contains text that was gathered from the paper Design on the Societal

Battlefront, written by Hector and his colleague Geoff Gjertson. This paper describes the

work that Hector and Geoff have been leading at the Acadiana Outreach Center for

over 8-years. Also sampled were Hector’s responses to a phone interview I conducted.

From this graphic, it is clear that Hector is focused on teaching. Design-build is a signifi cant

part of the architecture program at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and this is shown

by the larger projects and work. Although Hector and his students are terrifi c designers, he

rarely uses the word when describing the work. He refers to it in terms of projects that have

a clear emphasis on students and people, and how they relate to knowing and justice. For

Hector, design seems to be just another tool that is used to complete the project. Design

becomes like a hammer. Also holding a little weight is his reference to place, Lafayette,

and also outreach in this case is making reference to the Outreach Center.

118

119

Hector | Characteristics Diagram

characteristicslarger circle = greater level

HectorLaSala

publicity

/promotio

n

work focuse

s on

creating fu

ture

practitioners

energy focused on relationships/understanding

place

time

with

clie

nt“l

ivin

g w

ages

” fro

m

prod

uced

wor

k

openly address

larger social issues

scale of early

humanitarian

projects

focus on discourse

121

Mike HalsteadHalstead Architects

Mission:

Halstead Architects was founded in 1993 to provide reliable,

progressive, and community conscious architecture.

Our fi rm aspires to be stewards of our client’s vision while

providing responsible, innovative and inspiring design. Our

passion is to meld quality design with our individual client’s

needs and budget. As a result, we lead a collaborative

effort, customized to meet your needs.

Location:

Indianapolis, Indiana

Education:

B. Architecture, Ball State (1987); B. Environmental Design,

Ball State (1986)

Professional Experience:

Halstead Architects [principle | 1993-present]

Woolen, Molzan, & Partners [project architect | 1987-1993]

USA Architects [designer | 1986-1987]

122

Introduction

In 1993, Mike Halstead started Halstead architects in Fountain Square, a historic

neighborhood in downtown Indianapolis. Considering themselves ‘general practice’

architects, they offer clients diverse problem solving skills. With a passion for projects in

urban environments where the clients are not accustomed to professional design, Halstead

architects have found their niche in Indiana’s typically underserved neighborhoods and

non-profi ts.

While Mike and his colleagues push to keep up on the cutting edge of evolving

technologies, their real strengths lie in their ability to communicate with this unique client

base. They have developed a business strategy that, despite delaying fees until later in

the process, gets much needed work done. The fi rm usually plays a very large role in the

grant writing process and typically will go lengths of time early on as it takes time for grant

money to be awarded and come in. As Mike describes, by continuing work with the client,

even when not getting paid, the fi rm is often able to establish good working relationships

with the because they are, ‘suffering alongside them.’

While much of the work the fi rm does is not ‘award winning’ in design, it is critically important

to the advancement and maintenance of a growing population. The ‘award’ they do

continually receive is the return and word of mouth reference of most of their clients. This

speaks immensely to the fact that their work is successful in meeting the clients goals – in

design, timeline, relationship, and budget.

As an individual, Mike continues to lead and be involved in several professional and

community organizations. These include the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and

Construction Specifi cations Institute (CSI), and also the Family Strengthening Coalition of

the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence, and the

Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center. In many ways, Mike has been successful at maintaining

a private practice, doing socially responsible architecture.

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Mike | Questions

1. How do you structure fees when doing work for not for profi ts? Is it the same rate as other

for profi t clients?

Our standard fee for normal projects is 8% of construction cost. We give NFP’s a discount

to 6% and our MEP/Structural/Civil engineers are ok with the “trickle down” effect. For

Schematic Design our standard fee is 15% of the overall 8% fee, but for NFP’s we will work

for $5,000 – or whatever they have available. Most NFP’s can get funding for their project

if they have a professional submission, but they don’t usually have money to pay for it. We

do this because they then see us as a partner and we are less likely to get paid fast and

less likely to get sued for mistakes.

2. Has the structure of the fi rm been adjusted to accommodate clients that can be on very

tight budgets?

Yes – the partners may go a long period of time without getting paid.

3. Does the fi rm often take a larger role in ‘fund-raising’, i.e. grant proposals, loan

accusation, etc.?

Absolutely – the line between architect and grant writer/fund-raiser is very grey. The more

we help the faster we get paid.

4. Your work seems to put an emphasis on having a strong understanding and relationship

with the client. What are your methods for developing these relationships?

I believe that every project, and every client, has a different problem and therefore the

solutions should be different. That is why our buildings and designs don’t all look alike.

Once you have some “skin in the game” at the front end by reducing or deferring fees the

relationship becomes very strong naturally. They see that you are still doing the work and

suffering alongside them.

5. Are consultation and relationship building practices done with all users or just with those

124

carrying some social weight? For example, when working on the apartment complex for

veterans, who were relationships formed with? Is the focus on the owners, the workers in

the adjacent offi ce spaces, the veterans, etc.?

I try to develop a relationship with everyone on the team. You can learn something

from everyone – the executive director, maintenance crew, homeless veterans, staff,

contractors, etc.

6. Does your design process and the level of user engagement change in response to the

social conditions of the client? For example, would the design process for a facility like the

Mary Rigg Center be the same as it is for The Harrison Grille Bar at the Columbia Club? Are

additional efforts made to create a sense of ownership and belonging to a larger range

of users?

I use the same principles on all of our projects – the social aspect of working for NFP’s has

taught me to treat all clients the same regardless of the type or size. In the end I have

found that everyone wants to be included. The best way to success is to be inclusive.

That does make it more diffi cult when you are working with clients because consensus-

building can be laborious, but when everyone on the team feels included success is

almost guaranteed.

7. In what way do you see the work the fi rm does as a component of a larger picture

dealing with such issues as homelessness, poverty, deindustrialization, loss of historical

context, etc.?

I was raised by a single mother who dropped out of high school at the age of 16 so I could

be born. There is nothing worse than people thinking you are stupid or a criminal just

because you are poor. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity. I was lucky because

the social aspects of architecture that I found just happened to co-align with my personal

beliefs. I love designing projects in urban environments where the community is not used

to quality. Many of our projects would not be built if we weren’t willing to reduce our fees

and work for less at the front end and the community knows that. That is why our fi rm rarely

competes for our work – it is usually a referral or repeat client who knows how concerned

we are about the built environment and building for the community - not our egos.

8. What is your personal motivation for doing such a large amount of community based

work?

125

My Mother – and the many people over the years who helped me get where I am today.

9. At this point, later in your career, what do you consider to be your bigger goal as an

architect, professional, and active member of a number of community based organizations?

I want others in our fi rm to carry on what I started after I am gone

10. How important do you feel architecture is in dealing with such social issues as mentioned

above?

Architects are problem solvers – we should be willing to fi nd solutions regardless of what

the problem is.

11. Our country is going through a pretty signifi cant transition both in our economy and also

in the way people are looking at the world. In this context, could you provide any insight

or advice to a young architect that is interested in doing socially engaging architecture

as a profession?

Once you get to a certain age as an architect, and a person, you realize that money isn’t

everything. The old sayings “you can’t take it with you” and “you only live once” are very

true and as you age they become more obvious. I make a good living, have a beautiful

home, a lake house, a nice car, my kids are out of college (almost), and I haven’t missed

a meal in a long time. In short – “architecture has been very, very good to me”. Why not

pay it back?

126

Mike | Observations

My understanding of Mike Halstead is based on a limited interaction including the question/

answers provided, a job interview, and any research I have found online about the fi rm

and their work. Based on these exchanges, I believe that Mike is a good example of a

commercial, for-profi t architect, that has found a respectable balance between career

and fi rm success and community responsibility as a civil servant. At this point in my life, I

still question my personal values in ‘owning a lake house and nice car,’ and classify many

things as ‘over the top.’ That said, I respect that Mike has determined what ‘over the top’

means to him, and has balanced that with a committed serving of those around him.

It is apparent that Mike puts heavy emphasis on treating all people with respect and

dignity, no matter who they are or where they came from. Based in this moral standing,

Mike has made the observation that everyone wants to be included, and that putting

in the extra time and effort to be inclusive not only is the right thing to do, but almost

always results in a successful project. This notion that everyone wants to be included is an

observation that I have come back to several times over the last few years. It, in many

ways, seems to be one of the very few themes that can apply to nearly every person. It

should be noted, however, that ‘inclusion’ can mean different things to different people,

and the level at which each person must be engaged to ultimately feel important can

be diffi cult to determine. As an example of this in my experience working with The Dining

Room Club, I have found that Ron, one of the regular diners, tis a more reserved man

and requires a smaller amount of interaction, but this interaction must be very focused

and intimate. Dave, another frequent diner, on the other hand, is much more vocal and

desires to be involved in a more ongoing dialogue. Dave is very eager to share ideas and

is fairly confi dent in his abilities relative to Ron who is often hesitant to contribute. At the

soup kitchen I have been, in many ways, fortunate that the core group has remained

pretty small. It allows me the ability to more easily juggle the relationships. As the number

of participants increases, the ability to meet the needs of everyone diminishes.

127

That said, the work the fi rm does in the non-profi t sector is at much larger scale. Although

I have not had the opportunity to observe the fi rm while they work through a project, my

guess is that it requires a different level of interaction than I am dealing with at the soup

kitchen. Similar in that we work across the various levels of the hierarchy, I feel the larger

scale projects focus much more attention on the upper ends of the spectrum. My work

at the soup kitchen has been at the other extreme. I have focused attention, to the best

of my ability, to develop relationships on the lower end of the spectrum. That does not

mean to say that Mike’s work does not engage those served by the non-profi ts, nor that

my work has not engaged the board members and many of the volunteers at the soup

kitchen. It simply suggests that given a set amount of time, we allocate those minutes

differently. I believe that there is a need for both strategies. Work at the higher end of the

spectrum allows for larger projects as it gains access to the ‘decision makers,’ and often

times, those whom have access to the funding. The work I have done at the soup kitchen,

I believe, does a much better job at creating a sense of ownership, building esteem and

confi dence, for those whom the programs ultimately are there to assist. It is understood

that there is a need to be included at all levels within the institution, but those at the

bottom more commonly will fi nd it much more diffi cult to fi nd this positive support in other

aspects of their lives.

128

Mike | Images

129

Mike| Wordle Diagram

Mike’s Wordle is a compilation of words gathered from the mission statements and about

sections of his fi rm, Halstead Architects’, website, as well as a couple project descriptions

done for not-for-profi t clients. Also, it incorporates his responses to the survey questions.

Surprisingly, Mike’s Wordle has very small emphasis on architecture and design, but defi nes

the design of the work in terms of space, needs, renovated, creativity and community. His

defi nition of architecture is defi ned by his use of community, building, providing, service,

and clients.

This Wordle illustrates Mike and the fi rms understanding of ‘priorities’ when working with

clients in the not-for-profi t sector. The emphasis on service and meeting needs is very strong

part of this sector’s cultural understanding. Less important, illustrated by Mike’s omission in

many ways, are things like design and architecture in a more formal sense. This in many

ways could be the fi rm’s, likely unintentional, approach to avoiding client intimidation.

Working with clients to fi nd well thought out solutions is prioritized ahead of creating an

image or building an ego.

130

Mike| Characteristics Diagram

characteristicslarger circle = greater level

Mike Halstead

publicity

/promotio

n

work focuse

s on

creating fu

ture

practitioners

energy focused on relationships/understanding

place

time

with

clie

nt“l

ivin

g w

ages

” fro

m

prod

uced

wor

k

openly address

larger social issues

scale of early

humanitarian

projects

focus on discourse

131

Emily PillotonProject H Design

Mission:

Project H uses the power of the design process to catalyze

communities and public education from within. WE BELIEVE

THAT DESIGN CAN CHANGE THE WORLD.

Location:

Bertie, North Carolina

Education:

M.A. in Designed Objects, UC Berkeley; B.A. in Architecture,

Art Institute of Chicago

Professional Experience:

Founder and Executive Director Project H Design

Managing Editor, Inhabitat.com

Adjunct Professor Designed Objects

Editor of Design Revolution: 100 Products that Empower

People

132

Introduction

Emily Pilloton founded Project H design after becoming frustrated with the accepted status

quo of the profession. Feeling the traditional methods were lacking in a point, she focused

Project H in the direction of “initiatives for humanity, habitats, health, and happiness.” With

this in mind, Project H set out their six-tenet design process:

1. There is no design without (critical) action

2. We design WITH not FOR

3. We build, document, share and measure

4. We start locally and scale globally

5. We design systems, not stuff

6. We build

With a belief that “Design can change the world,” the focus is “re-thinking of environments,

products, experiences, and curricula for K-12 education.”

The last segment of this focus, K-12 education, refers to a 501c3 non-profi t program that

Emily set up with her partner, Matt Miller. The program, Studio H, is located the poorest

county in North Carolina, Bertie County. Studio H’s website provides a brief description of

the program:

Studio H is a public high school ‘design build’ curriculum that sparks rural community

development through real-world, built projects. By learning through a design sensibility,

applied core subjects, and industry-relevant construction skills, students develop the

creative capital, critical thinking, and citizenship necessary for their own success and for

the future of their communities.

Over the course of one calendar year, students earn high school and college credit,

and are paid a summer wage to build the community project they have spent the year

133

designing and prototyping. Studio H is a different kind of classroom. We design, build, and

transform.

This began as Emily and Matt were invited by the new head of the public school board to

implement a ‘learning landscape’ (a creative learning playground involving half buried

tires), and the design of three computer labs. Critical that their work was not meeting

one of their primary missions, to design WITH not FOR, Matt and Emily made the decision

to establish a full-fl edged design build studio that is preparing to construct a community

farmers market. In its introductory year, the year-long class was offered as an elective to

13 high school juniors (the entire junior class).

134

Emily | Questions

*These questions have been sent to Emily. She has agread to respond to them, but due to

the recent tornadoes in Bertie County, she has been busy working on those efforts.

1. Out of all of the project initiatives you have worked on thus far, which one do you feel

has the greatest impact to the social environment?

2. As you have moved through such a wide range of projects in terms of scale, scope,

promotional level, etc., what insight can you provide in terms of ways the profession could

start to focus the increased interest in socially based design efforts.

3. What has been the most diffi cult component in the projects you have done? What

methods/strategies did you use to push through these challenging times?

4. How do you feel the work at Project H addresses socioeconomic and political issues at

a larger scale?

5. You had mentioned in a lecture at the IMA in Indianapolis that you believe that these

types of work have the potential to be entrepreneur ventures, essentially self-supporting,

but that you did not know how to do it. At this point, do you feel that it is important for this

work to become independent from grant and foundation money? Have you and Matt

considered with much earnestness the potential in this entrepreneurial arena?

6. Based on responses you had given at the presentation at the IMA, it did not sound as

though there has been much work done in terms of setting up a system of quantifi able

measurement that can gauge the project’s success in relation to the older models of

classes. Do you believe that this is something Studio H is going to have to confront as the

program matures?

135

7. Are the goals of Project H to actively and explicitly seek solutions to larger socioeconomic,

political, and ideological institutions that can be credited as the ‘roots’ of many of

contemporary societies dilemmas (poverty, class and racial tensions, etc.)? If so, how

have you and Matt been critically refl ecting on the work in regards to these issues?

8. Do you feel that it is important for programs like Project H, that have become internationally

known as leaders in the “design can change the world” camp, to also lead in the critical

progression of standards of measurement and more specifi c in terms of the capabilities of

design to address some of the larger issues.

9. I agree with you and others that design has the ability to “change the world.” I am

curious, and have been trying to fi gure out for myself, can we defi ne more specifi cally

what that ability is?

10. What are your defi nitions of ‘design’ and ‘design process?’ In your experiences,

especially working with the people in Bertie, do you fi nd that these two concepts differ in

their potential? Do you believe that one or the other is more suited to dealing with the “98%

not typically served by designers?”

136

Emily | Observations

As outlined in many of the questions above, my primary critique of Studio H and similar

programs is that they lack in a critical and explicit response to larger social issues. They often

fail to identify specifi cally how they see their role in a larger context of social, economic,

and political institutions. My work at the Harvest Soup Kitchen is in many ways lacks this

same critical review. It becomes very easy, and often times necessary for these programs

to get ‘caught up’ in doing the work, and the time necessary for critical refl ection in

relation to these larger roles. It is easy to become overly critical of this lacking refl ection

without the experience of pushing through one of these programs. Even at the relatively

small scale, the work I have done at the soup kitchen has required a remarkable amount

of work just in terms of logistics.

Anytime a project really gets involved, the dramas of everyday life become unavoidable.

Often the role of being simply a citizen and a person, a role often downplayed in academic

and professional situations, becomes exaggerated when dealing with clients that are

primarily at the base of the social pyramid. When you start working extensively with human

emotion, the situation can become infi nitely complex. Emily understands and speaks to

this in her response to the Bruce Nussbaum’s blog post, “Is Humanitarian Design the New

Imperialism?” Towards the end of her comment she states, “Humanitarian design is messy,

wonderful, diffi cult, and a constant learning process for us as designers and the people

we work with and for. I hope that in reading this article, we can all remember that it is not

so black and white, and that there are groups (like Project H and Catapult, among many

others), trying to get it right, from the ground up, in places we know and are invested in.”

I believe that this statement is in many ways, the core of this debate over humanitarian

design. It is extremely diffi cult, if not impossible, to fully understand the complexities of this

work without being immersed into the very specifi c situation.

This leads, in many ways, to a debate that has been one of the primary critics of

humanitarian design efforts. What is the importance of scale, local, and cultural factors

137

in these efforts. There has been a lot of criticism, which I fi nd absolutely spot on, that we

have no business doing things in countries half across the world. Emily was called out in the

previously mentioned Nussbaum blog post for Project H’s Hippo Roller that was designed

and delivered to South Africa. Emily’s simple response to a question regarding the debate

at a lecture at the Indianapolis Museum of Art on March 24, 2011, provides example of her

criticalness in the work that she does and an appropriate stance on the issue. She states,

“The minute we fi nished it we realized it was a horrible idea and we made the decision

that we were not going to do that again.” Since that point, Emily’s work with Project H has

been exclusively done within the country by city scale efforts, including Studio H’s efforts

in Bertie County.

I appreciate greatly Project H, and Emily, and Matt, and their dedication to relentlessly

document the work they are doing. I have been able to go to the website and blog and

watch videos of student presentations, design processes, etc. These are critical in providing

insight to the inner workings of the program. Personally, I am quite envious of their position

to work with that media. I have found myself very hesitant to fi lm and document my work

at the soup kitchen in these formats as I feel they fail to respect many privacy concerns for

the people I am working with. Much of this could be credited to the different client base

– poverty stricken adults in the socially degraded context of a soup kitchen compared to

poverty stricken children in the positive context of a school and an educational program.

Also, Emily and Matt are much more ‘offi cial’ in their roles with the high school. My position

at the soup kitchen has been simply a volunteer, who happens to be an architectural

student, who happens to be interested in working with some of the diners [who? – board

members, staff and patrons?] to change the existing environment.

The last thing that I believe needs some attention is the way in which we present this,

often, very intimate work. This is another component I have found increasingly diffi cult as

I attempt to present the work at the soup kitchen as a master’s thesis to reviewers that

likely have had very little interaction with the project. In a limited time frame, a 20-min

thesis presentation or a 1-hour public lecture, does it become more important to present

the work that you are doing or a position regarding larger issues? Emily’s presentation at

the IMA I feel is a very good example of this. The audience in this case ranged greatly in

their experience and understanding of the work Studio H has been doing. I believe that

Emily presented a ‘default’ presentation and resorted to a simple descriptive format. For

138

those of us that had some familiarity with her work, it fell a little short and came across

as lacking in depth. Based on the information, videos, blog post, etc. that can be found

online, I don’t believe that Studio H is coming up as short in this department as Emily might

have presented. For me, in efforts to develop a stance that is ‘profound’ has been diffi cult.

Perhaps Emily’s presentation felt fl at for this very reason. She was not presenting theories

on “how to change the world,” she simply was describing the actions she has been taking

to change her world. A notion that I have been pondering for some time, is that what

really makes this work profound is that it is forces a designer, an architect, to become a

citizen and a person fi rst and foremost. It requires emphasis on, as Giulia Fiocca mentions,

“building relationships, rather than building.” The most profound realization is that there is

nothing really profound about it. It is remarkably simple in that it requires us to be humans

– a role we all have been playing most of our lives, but we often fail to acknowledge

as we move into professional, academic, and economic situations. For those of us with

education and skill sets in the practice of building, it is through the active engagement of

this practice that we provide context for these relationships to exist.

139

Emily | Images

140

Emily| Wordle Diagram

Emily’s Wordle is derived from several components of the Project H and Studio H websites.

These components included mission and descriptive verbiage about both projects and

also pulled some smaller selections from sporadic pages on the sites.

A quick glance is enough to get the thrust of the diagram - design. This is overly surprising

to me based on Emily’s background in fi elds that often sell themselves using the novelty of

‘design.’ It becomes an interesting dynamic though as design as a novelty is juxtaposed

with the very specifi c Bertie County. Other words public, and school, and even build in

the context I think she uses it, are very outward and look at a larger scale. She sparingly

uses students, but instead refers to Studio, as in Studio H, when referencing the project.

This is suggest that ,similar to her use of Project, as in Project H, she sees these students as

simply components in the project. This is not to suggest that she does not have a vested

interest in the students. It seems diffi cult to spend a year at the level of engagement Studio

H functions at and not develop some meaningful relationships. It does seem to emphasis

that it is a project, whos ultimate goal is less focused on Bertie County, and more focused

on gaining evidence that using the design process as a model, you can have a positive

effect on kids. I have mixed feelings towards this, I understand the need for this evidence,

but it feels empty to me!?

141

Emily | Characteristics Diagram

characteristicslarger circle = greater level

Emily Pilloton

publicity

/promotio

n

work focuse

s on

creating fu

ture

practitioners

energy focused on relationships/understanding

place

time

with

clie

nt“l

ivin

g w

ages

” fro

m

prod

uced

wor

k

openly address

larger social issues

scale of early

humanitarian

projects

focus on discourse

143

Bryan BellDesign CorpsSEED (Social, Economic, Environmental, Design)

Mission:

To provide the benefi ts of architecture to those traditionally

un-served by the profession.

Location:

Raleigh, North Carolina

Education:

MArch, Yale University (1988); B. Arts, Arts History, Princeton

University (1983), Summer Program, Harvard University

[1983]

Professional Experience:

Not for Profi t for 20+ years [1991-Present]

Practicing Architect for 9 years [1985-1995]

Architectural Educator for 4 years [1998-2002]

144

Introduction

Bryan Bell paired with Victoria Bell to found Design Corps in 1991. Design Corps, a

commissioned non-profi t as of 1996, has been observing and attempting to engage with

the local community in regard to the severe shortage of adequate housing for Mexican

and other Central American immigrant workers in the areas around Raleigh, North Carolina.

Over the last 10-years, Design Corps has established a Farmworker Housing Program. This

program helps secure funding while working hard to provide culturally appropriate housing

for the workers.

The initial strategy was to petition the farmers to help build better facilities. As part of

the program, Design Corps completes a federal grant application that usually will end

up covering 50% to 100% of the construction cost. Anything not covered by the grant is

covered by the farmer. As part of the contract, farmers agree to meet conditions for the

standard of living as laid out by Design Corps. Agreeing to meet these minimum standards,

developed through interviews, questionnaires, and workshops is their ‘payment’ for the

new buildings.

By using this very engaging method, Design Corps is able to provide design that responds

to the specifi c needs of the place, improve living conditions in general, and recently with

the addition of a fellowship program, are able to train young designers. Working hand in

hand with people who are often overlooked by society is an excellent way, if not one of

the only ways, to really develop emotional intelligence and level of empathy that can be

diffi cult to fi nd elsewhere.

In addition to Design Corps, Bryan Bell is a founding member of the SEED program. As

described on the program’s website, “SEED is a principle-based network of individuals and

organizations dedicated to building and supporting a culture of civic responsibility and

engagement in the built environment and the public realm. “ This outreach is engaging

members in all of the design fi elds including architecture, industrial design, communication

145

design, landscape architecture, and urban planning, by providing resources and

guidelines. In exchange, designers are asked to take a pledge to practice under SEED’s

Mission and fi ve principles for practice. The mission, “is to advance the right of every person

to live in a socially, economically, and environmentally healthy community.”

The principles, as provided on the website are:

SEED Principle 1: Advocate with those who have limited voice in public life.

SEED Principle 2: Build structures for inclusion that engage stakeholders and

allow communities to make decisions.

SEED Principle 3: Promote social equality through discourse that refl ects a

range of values and social identities.

SEED Principle 4: Generate ideas that grow from place and build local capacity.

SEED Principle 5: Design to help conserve resources and minimize waste.

146

Bryan | Questions

***Bryan is very invloved with several national efforts so attaining responses from him

would likely take an extensive amount of time. To compensate for the inability to have my

questions answered, I wil reference questions and responses from an interview Bryan gave

through Metropolis Magazine. Also, some questions I had for Bryan are listed.

Questions (My questions for Bryan):

1. The development of the housing for farmers appears to be based on a cycle of getting

input, responding with a design, getting input, responding with a built design, getting input,

etc… For how long does this cycle continue to loop? Is there a point where you stop and

just say, ‘ok, this now can be considered adequate housing?’

2. How do the social dynamics of immigrant workers, a hot political topic now, continue

to change in response to the strong stance of many politicians against illegal immigrants?

How has both local and national politics had an effect on the work you are doing?

3. Your work focuses on a primarily transient population. How would you say your

approach to a transient population is different from other approaches for more permanent

populations where a primary goal is developing a sense of ownership?

4. At this point, as you have gotten the Farmworker Housing Program well underway, what

is your focus now?

Questions (*Interview “More From the Notebook of Bryan Bell” was conducted by Kristi

Cameron of Metropolis Magazine. It was posted online October 16, 2008.):

I wanted to talk about the business side of things and whether or not it’s possible to do

community-oriented work as a part of the mix of traditional practice.

I can answer very simply. There are thousands and thousands of nonprofi t organizations

in the country that pay their staff living wages. The only thing it takes to be a nonprofi t is

147

to serve the good of the public. We do housing, we do economic development, we do

educational projects – we just prioritize design on all those projects. Believe me, I’m not

inventing any business model here. I just have knowledge of how nonprofi ts run, and how

they pay their employees. Our business model is very traditional.

And when you left that nonprofi t, did you take what you had learned and apply it to Design

Corps?

We got a National Endowment for the Arts Grant together, and I became a consultant. I

wanted to start working with other nonprofi ts, so I consulted with Rural Opportunities, the

local housing authority, and the other local housing groups, and realized that designers

working with local nonprofi ts is a great model. Architects need nonprofi ts’ expertise, just like

I needed Rural Opportunities’ expertise about migrants. Eventually I recognized that there

were places where projects needed to happen, but there was no nonprofi t to undertake

them. I became a 501c3 myself, so that we could play both the design and nonprofi t roles.

We’re always teamed up somehow with the local community, but sometimes we take on

the role of organizer, sometimes we’re more of the consultant.

How much of what you do is devoted to fi nding funding, versus design time?

Let me tell you simply what the grant application entails. It entails answering these

questions: “Who are you trying to help?” “How are you trying to help them?” “What data

can you show that this can help them?” “How much is it going to cost?” “When will it be

done?” “How are you going to verify that you helped these people?” The questions are

critical to what I do. If it happens to be that I put that information in an envelope, mail it

off, and get money, that’s great-then it’s a grant. But still I need to do those things. Let’s

say I had a million dolalrs, and I made up a project and I built it. In my experience, there’s

a 99 percent chance it would sit empty. There’s no way that I could make up a solution

and have it work without involving the people who would use it.

148

Bryan |Observations

There are really three primary projects that Bryan Bell’s work is encapsulated in. His fi rst

work is what I fi nd to be the most interesting and most successful in the engagement of

those in need. This work is what he has done with the Farmworker Housing Program. Here

he identifi ed a place where his skills as an architect could be utilized in the improvement of

the living conditions of migrant workers around Raleigh, North Carolina. Information found

online provides some detail into the program and the process that the program has went

through to get to its current state. Although the documentation shows that the program

is still relatively small in its built work, it is engaging the inhabitants of the housing as well

as their employers, local communities, etc. In this model, they have used a somewhat

straight forward participatory design method of gaining understanding, designing, getting

feedback from all parties, and responding. The design is done in conjunction with members

of all the parties. I believe that their dedication to participation throughout the process will

prove successful in time. As the designs and fi nancing are continually redefi ned, this will

also eventually redefi ne the housing methods for immigrant workers in the area. It will also

serve as a strong precedent for migrant housing around the country – both in method of

implementation and in design methodology.

I believe that Bryan has advanced from this work with the migrant workers into a more ‘public

eye’ with his continued work through Design Corps and now the SEED program. With these

two programs, Bell is creating a lot of energy in many design fi elds, not just architecture.

He is doing this at both an educational/student level and also at a professional level. The

latest, eleventh round, of the Structures For Inclusion conference, located in Chicago,

furthered this buzz as it brought together over 400 professionals, students, and community

members that are interested in “design for social good” – the charge of the conference.

I am excited by the energy that his work is creating in the profession and am excited

that is bringing social components back into focus for architects and designers. I fi nd that

this component has been slowly dissipating from the profession as developers, budgets,

and value engineering have been sweeping the market. SEED, while still young, is putting

149

steam back into the ‘design for social good’ engine that began back in the 1960’s.

I do, however, have some concern with the way social responsibility fi nds its way back

into the professional market. As I fl ip through some of the participating and award winning

fi rms, it worries me that ‘socially responsible’ is fi nding its place next to ‘environmentally

conscious.’ Is ‘SEED’ just another marketing ploy? Is it to follow in the “LEED” footsteps?

With this, I don’t intend to tarnish the idea that social responsibility, like environmental

consciousness, is not important. They are both very important, and I strongly believe the

principles should be components of every design. I am just skeptical of seemingly inherent

contradictions. For example, we reduce environmental impact with new machines and

new technology. New technology and new machines is the very reason that we are

ravaging the environment as it is. Socially, we argue for grass roots efforts, community

gardens, and participatory design methods. We argue for these small scale efforts at large

scale, national conferences where we award prize money to fi rms who designed, ‘the

best’ new 50,000 s.f., green, low-income housing units.

It is possible that these fi rms engaged future residents, janitors, employees, etc throughout

the entire design process. It is possible that they can walk in the facility and be on a fi rst

name basis with many of the regulars. It is also possible that they gained understanding of

‘people that live in low-income housing,’ by reading a book or checking out a website. My

experience has been that there are many things that can be learned from ‘people that

live in low-income housing,’ that you really can’t fully understand by reading a book. You

really need to look into their eyes, listen to their voice to get it. I sometimes worry that by

providing a precedent, we often eliminate some very important educational components

that can only be gained through face to face exposure.

150

Bryan |Images

151

Bryan| Wordle Diagram

Bryan’s Wordle is a collection of writing that is on the websites of his three primary works.

Design Corps, SEED, and then his personal website. Primarily it is derived from mission

statements and descriptions of the programs.

Very similar to Emily, Bryan is very much focused on design. Also like Emily, Bryan refers

to his work, SEED and Design Corps, and those people that are involved, as a project

and rarely seems to separate the people as having an independent identity. I believe

the defi ance between Emily and Bryan is in their past. Emily has, from the get go been

shooting to ‘change the world with design,’ and that has been her target market. Bryan

has spent much of his career doing smaller scale, community based architecture. His

natural abilities, combined with this learned understanding is why he is one of the people

at the forefront of this movement. After working with Steven Holl’s offi ce, he stepped back

from design, got into the not-for-profi t market, then realized where his skills could be used.

It is important, as I believe he does in many of his ventures, he does not walk to the table

wanting to apply design to every problem. He fi rst understands the situation, then uses the

tool of design to derive an appropriate solution.

152

Mike| Characteristics Diagram

characteristicslarger circle = greater level

Bryan Bell

publicity

/promotio

n

work focuse

s on

creating fu

ture

practitioners

energy focused on relationships/understanding

place

time

with

clie

nt“l

ivin

g w

ages

” fro

m

prod

uced

wor

k

openly address

larger social issues

scale of early

humanitarian

projects

focus on discourse

Chapter 5

Conclusions

155

The Harvest Soup Kitchen is continuing to make minor changes to the facility based on the

plans and ideas that we began to propose while I was there. This includes painting of the

kitchen and having the fl oors professionally cleaned (fl ood damage). In addition to these

smaller projects, the board has set up a committee to handle future growth. They are

currently having discussions about doing substantial work to the kitchen, including some

much needed equipment. The other option they are considering is moving from their

current location to a place that can accommodate growth and also be ADA accessible.

The energy levels are high and people there are starting to understand that they have the

power to create their worlds.

5.1 Soup Kitchen Future

156

Moving Forward is where my focus is aimed. Although my path will take several jogs along

the way, this thesis has given me hope that I can make a living doing this humanitarian

based architecture. Ultimately, that could mean setting up a non-profi t, it could mean

being a professor, there is a chance it put me in a larger organization like Habitat for

Humanity.

I currently have accepted a position with Mike Halstead to be their one man satellite offi ce

in Marion, Indiana. I am looking forward to this opportunity to learn many of the logistics

and details of working for non-profi ts. I will have the chance to more fully engage in the

process for a larger scale project. With that will come grant writing, historic preservation

reviews and documentation and a better understanding of how the engagement process

is undertaken with many, many more people involved. This will also serve as a home base

to begin taking my exams, anticipating earning my professional license.

I will be living in Muncie through the end of the summer. My goal is to continue volunteering

at the soup kitchen on Saturday mornings. Hopefully, I can continue to help them get their

goals lined up and then leave them at the end of the summer with a fi rm direction in hand.

5.2 My Future

157

5.3 Taxonomy Conclusions

This chart is an attempt to understand how the selected architects have moved through

and are moving through their careers. It is typical that one will progress to a larger scale

of focus as they become more ‘known’ in the profession for the work they do. This does

not necissarily indicate the physical size of projects but the reach of the work that they do.

1

Family

Community

City

State

Country

The World

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Time Focused on Socially Specifi c Work (Years)

Scal

e of

Foc

us

Mike Halstead

Index

Emily Pilloton

Bryan Bell

Hector LaSala

Ryan Ellsworth

Jason Klinker

158

designerpublic

ity/p

romotion

work focuse

s on

creating fu

ture

practitioners

energy focused on relationships/understanding

place

time

with

clie

nt“l

ivin

g w

ages

” fro

m

prod

uced

wor

k

openly address

larger social issues

scale of early

humanitarian

projects

focus on discourse

This chart gives some insight into the where the more broad range of designers that are

focused on humanitarian design might place importance. The darker the circle is at

the outer rings indicate that most designers I studied were in that range. So most of the

designers have a high level of interaction with client, but very few put in a high commitment

in openly addressing larger social issues. Most of these designers have started with small

projects that are very intense in their level of engagement. As they move to larger scale

projects,they maintain the understandings they gained at the small scale and apply it to

larger scale scenarios.

159

The intent of this project is to increase the body of knowledge in regards to the role of

architecture in the rebuilding of communities. Much of the current methodologies have

acknowledged the importance of community involvement, but focus mostly on design

charrettes at a community scale. These often will create a temporary excitement in the

community, but many critiques of the process question the ultimate outcome as the ‘design

team’ is there only for a brief period and then disengage the project before any physical

changes are made. My project will investigate the potential when the ‘designer’ engages

the community through the whole process. In my model, the designer becomes part of

the community and then, as a member of the community, can approach the design

with the community, not for the community. I see this as a vital difference in the long term

success of the project and empowerment of the individual community members.

5.4 Academic and Professional Relevence

173

Ball, M. S. (2004). Expanding the Role of the Architect. Good Deeds, Good Design:

Community Service Through Architecture. New York: Princeton Architectural Press.

Cameron, K. (2008, October 16). More From the Notebook of Bryan Bell. Retrieved April

2011, from MetropolisMag.com: http://www.metropolismag.com/story/20081016/more-

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Crawford, M. (1991). Can Architects Be Socially Responsibile? Out of Site: A Social Criticism

of Architecture. (D. Ghirardo, Ed.) Seattle: Bay Press.

Dean , A. O., & Hursley, T. (2005). Proceed and Be Bold: Rural Studio After Samuel Mockebee.

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Design Corps. (2009). Retrieved April 2011, from Bryan Bell Architecture: http://www.

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Ellsworth, R. (2011, April). (J. Klinker, Interviewer)

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Freire, P. (1994). Pedagogy of Hope. New York: Continuum.

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