Ever wonder what it takes to become the next great architect? Sure, you can always go with the tried-and-true strategy of attending a top grad school, interning with the Renzo Piano Building Workshop, and going through the wringer of getting licensed… but you can also forge a less predictable path to becoming an architect. In anticipation of the A+Awards deadline this Friday, January 30, some of last year’s winners share their unlikely stories of just how they became interested in architecture in the first place.
1. Study or do anything but architecture.
“I took a year off after graduating from college to be a ski bum in Colorado and decided between a career in law or architecture. Passion prevailed over reason.”
— Michael Arad, Handel Architects. Read Arad’s full Q+A here.
Image via Wikimedia Commons
“According to my mother, I was only two when I first said [I wanted to be an architect]. But the real turning point was in high school when everybody was convicing me to go to medical school. I almost believed them and I started preparing for it, but I found myself to be mainly intrigued by drawing animal skeletons. Constructions. And then there was no way back…”
— Dean Lah, ENOTA
2. Be able to sketch, invent new things, or write a solid letter.
“At the age of six, I remember writing a letter to my teacher asking what I should do to become an architect. It must have been the first letter I ever wrote…”
— Nick Ceulemans, C.T. Architects
Image via The Telegraph
“I wanted to be an inventor as a kid — loved how things such as the wheel and light bulb can change the world. Thankfully, I got into architecture as there wasn’t a degree in invention and now I’m interested in how ideas more broadly shape the world and our experience of it.”
— John Choi, CHROFI
3. Be born to an architect or at least a carpenter.
“I always had an interest in architecture. My father is an architect, so we had some books at home. I remember a Frank Lloyd Wright masterpiece book, which I found very interesting since I was very young. Although later in life I wanted to be a psychiatrist, I think I made the right choice.”
— Roberto Trevino, Anagrama. Read Trevino’s full Q+A here.
“As a kid, I loved watching my dad while he designed and created the model for our house in the Italian Alps.”
— Bartolomeo Bellati, Minimal USA
“Growing up, I always preferred creating and making my own toys instead of playing with them. Being able to mess around in my father’s carpentry helped. There was always some scrap wood left over that could be turned into my next project.”
— Nick Ceulemans, C.T. ARCHITECTS
4. Legos.
Image via ftfb.net
“Growing up in Switzerland, I started building all things imaginable with Lego at an early age. My desire to build and design is still here.”
— Marcel Fontijn, Vitrocsa USA/Goldbrecht USA Inc. Read Fontijn’s full Q+A here.
5. Go to Disney World — or walk down the street.
“When I was 14 years old I saw the Magic Kingdom building. This made me want to become an architect.”
— Paul de Ruiter, Paul de Ruiter Architects. Read de Ruiter’s full Q+A here.
“When I was in my first year at college, I saw a building designed by Morphosis (Sun Tower, Korea), in the middle of some old common retail buildings. Many of friends asked me, ‘Why is that building is still in construction?’ But I knew it was definitely finished and very attractive. That was the moment I thought about being an architect for the first time.”
— Jin Young Song, DIOINNO ARCHITECTURE PLLC. Read Young Song’s full Q+A here.