Thomas J. Johnson

What are some examples modern parks, storm water management systems, transportation systems, etc. that exemplify Ecological Urbanism?

In my early post, I neglected to mention Millennium Park as an example. Combining modern and classical design, it transformed a sub-grade rail yard into the largest green roof (on structure) park in the world. In…[Read more]

Pardon some of the spelling/ punctuation. It’s past my bed time…

Ecological Urbanism means appreciating, acknowledging the importance of, and incorporating natural systems into the practice of urban design as a matter of habit rather than as an after thought. It means placing the same, or greater value on natural resources as we have historically placed on square footage values or parking units. Ecological…[Read more]

LOL! Love The Onion!

Thank you for some much needed comedic relief!

If the objective of writing is popularity, then nothing will be gained by your pleasant prose. Readers will walk away feeling quite good about themselves and the world, no better off than before they read your piece. It is often those who are unsettled by writing that have the most to gain from it but they choose not to internalize it, process it,…[Read more]

If they are paying you, then they are always right. It is their project, not yours. They are bringing you on board and they can just as easily kick you off the ship.

That being said, I don’t think there is anything wrong with bringing something to their attention that they may have over looked or not considered. I just wouldn’t argue your case…[Read more]

In my limited experience, kissing ass trumps all.

When that fails, throw your competition under the bus. Make them look like the bad guy when in fact it is you who comes to work late, leaves early, spends most of the day having irrelevant conversations, “isn’t into technology”, can’t manage a project to save their life, has to have every project…[Read more]

Is he related to Zay Gezunt?

I can’t say that I’m familiar with Ed Bye’s work. I’ll have to do some research. Didn’t find much right off the bat with a Google search…Sounds interesting.

I’ve definitely got my copy of Design with Nature by McHarg. Great book. Standard issue…

I guess there are a number of ways to skin a cat. I’m still trying to find my way in this…[Read more]

One of my favorite designers is James Burnett. Not only is he a great designer but he’s a real, genuine, nice, guy. A combination not often found in the design world.

Looking at his work makes me think that he “gets it”. http://www.ojb.com/projects/

His plans are very clean and clear. They are not simple by any means but they are very readable.…[Read more]

It seems that “value” is the theme these days. When considering whether something needs to be done, as far as “deliverables” are concerned, we should first ask ourselves, if it is valuable. Does it contribute significantly to expressing the design idea or to the contractors ability to build the project? If it doesn’t then it’s…[Read more]

I’d say the situation is grim in Orange County and San Diego. I’ve stopped by 25+ firms in the area and it’s like a ghost town. There are seas of unoccupied drafting tables and only 2-3 people in an office designed for 40+. You can hear a pin drop in these places. It’s really sad/ depressing / disheartening to see. I’ve handed out more resumes and…[Read more]

I like AutoCAD. I found VectorWorks to be counter intuitive and frustrating for even the simplest tasks. I.E. “How many clicks does it take to draw a line and choose what layer / line type it should be?” SketchUp is OK but it’s time consuming. I feel like I spend a lot of time trying to get the computer to do what I want it to do. I don’t have…[Read more]

My personal take on “deliverables” is that a lot of the computer graphics are a time consuming, expensive, luxury. If you have the budget for flashy graphics, great, knock yourself out. Get all Rhino, 3D Studio Max, etc. on it. Do a million different views and fly-throughs…

During the conceptual design phase, graphics are all about “selling”…[Read more]

Congrats!

Why get an MLA then, if there is no pay increase?

I can buy and read a lot of books for $80,000 and not expect a pay increase either… What’s the point? Why do people get MLAs then? They love the debt? It’s a way to avoid the real world for two more years?

All of my college professors graduated from The GSD, so I don’t think my education could…[Read more]

Why architecture? It seems that architects are just as over-worked, under-payed and /or out of work as landscape architects right now…

I’ve thought about getting my MLA but I don’t know that it’s worth it. After spending $80,000 to get an MLA, will the pay increase upon graduation be significant enough to recoup the investment?

I.E. If you…[Read more]

One morning at work, while I was making coffee (before office hours) a female co-worker, out of the blue, told me that I needed to vote NO on Proposition 8 (Essentially voting yes to gay marriage). She didn’t ask how I was going to vote. She told me how I SHOULD vote. It caught me so off guard, I didn’t even know what to say… I don’t care what…[Read more]

Actually Ace, it is a Pollock; “Untitled [Silver over Black, White, Yellow, and Red]” (1948).

Unless you were trying to make a funny about my statement being a faux pas (faux Pollock)… in which case, I say, “sacred cows are the most delicious…”

Then again, I’m cursed with a perfect balance of right / left hemispheres. It’s true, I’ve been tested. I can see the art and design but also the business side of things. Most people in a studio can only see one or the other and as a result those personalities are constantly at odds with each other. IT wants order and efficiency, designer wants a…[Read more]