brutalist architecture? or just no budget for a paintjob? lol
Tag Archives: architecture
Past is pass
Cleaning out my room i chanced upon an old rotring tracing paper tube and found old plates from my architectural past. As an undergad i considered myself an average arki student, skimming through with no real accomplishment.
For one thing, even my arki professor noticed i preferred to hand-ink my plates and said i should have been in fine arts (and 4 years later i was). I did not find my groove in architecture back then. I felt it was too technical, too stiff. The whole culture was snobbish, too serious, and i struggled being creative within the confines of measurements and building laws.
I was glad i left but thinking about it, i know i could do better now (not then, now). Now, i have more confidence in design and now, if i do decide to pursue architecture, i might actually have a chance in doing well. Wow, confidence. I, thank you. Lol.
design pet peeve
years ago, i studied to get a degree in architecture. while it didnt work out and i eventually shifted to fine arts, there were things i wont forget learning from my professors. apart from the study of aesthetics in building construction, i appreciated learning that architecture was also a study of the human form in relation to spaces around him with a dash of behavorial science.
fast forward to last thursday i went to the loo at a juju eats restaurant on pasong tamo extension in makati. as i stepped in i saw they’ve designed the toilet to have a mirror behind the water closet. for females who pee sitting down, this would be a non-issue. however, for a guy who now has to pee while looking at a reflection of himself and his dong doing number 1 in full glory, i find this odd and awkward. while i dont shy away from looking at my naked self in full body mirrors at home to dry off after taking a bath, i dont particularly feel the need to WATCH myself peeing.
don’t worry, im not posting a photo of me peeing. some people may get off on those kinds of thing but i wont indulge you. here is bathroom number 1 (which i also posted on facebook).
id like to understand why designers resort to this. thing is, that very same day, i walked across the street and entered the building where i was supposed to have my meeting and eventually had to pee again and here is the cubicle at the men’s toilet. hola!
when my meetings were done there, i transferred to another building on the other side of pasong tamo to have a meeting with my directors. having had another round of drinks, i again headed for the john. lo and behold.
this was not the first time id encounter this kind of design for toilets. another restaurant in san juan had mirrors all over so you not only watch yourself frontal but also from the side. is this a thing now? it cant merely be an attempt to multi-task and check your hair while peeing or see if you having something between your teeth while holding your schlong. is this an oversight by female designers or the result of a dont-care attitude by male designers? is someone secretly narcissist and insisted on this design yet it has been replicated many times over hence an acceptable nature of people i never knew about? design, in fact, serves people’s needs so the bathrooms are a reflection of some fetishist necessity in human society. i could be overthinking this but it could also be a bad design trend. thoughts?
wherein we temple run the temples
we ran through the temples at siem reap in cambodia. here’s proof
the first day of touring the temples in siem reap cambodia was spent on exploring angkor wat, perhaps the most famous of the temples in the area, this despite the bigger temple is angkor thom. buying our tickets the day before the tour allowed us to visit the site for free that afternoon and catch the sun set.
im glad we took this trip. it’s the first time my mother’s been out of the country for a very long time and one where we family were almost complete.
we came back early the next day to catch the sun rise over the temple. a lot of people came while it was dark.
ive blogged about what the trip to siem reap meant to me here.
almost game over?
remember remember the 5th of november
1. Student number?
1995-41759 hahaha
2. College?
Fine Arts.
3. Course?
BFA Visual Communication.
4. Nag-shift ka ba o na-kickout?
shift. originally enrolled at the college of home economics (what?) before shifting to architecture before shifting and finishing in fine arts.
5. Saan ka kumuha ng UPCAT?
mindanao polytechnic state university, formerly dmpsc, in mindanao. took the test with about 70% of my classmates. only 3 eventually enrolled in UP, and me being the only one in the diliman campus.
6. Favorite GE subject?
hmm. that science course with prof ranjit rye or something. i dont remember the course, i remember his manner of lecturing. i thought he was pretty good
7. Favorite PE?
1st PE, skin diving. for the finals we headed to batangas to swim in the ocean. coolness
8. Saan ka nag-aabang ng hot girls/guys sa UP?
never did. but i stayed behind the bulletin boards in the FC watching feet and shoes go by.
9. Favorite prof(s)
ARCH del castillo and Dean honny fernandez. FA hernando and eli. GE ranjit rye.
10. Pinaka-ayaw na GE subject.
math1. math11 1st take. math11 2nd take. math14 1st take. math 14 2nd take. math 14 3rd take. math531st take. math 53 2nd take. math53 3rd take. math 53lab 1st take. physics71 1st take. physics71 2nd take.
11. Kumuha ka ba ng Wed or Sat classes?
sometimes. wa choice
12. Nakapag-field trip ka ba?
yup.PI100 field trip to montalban and the smokey mountain
13. Naging CS ka na ba or US sa UP?
haha yes. CS and US
14. Ano ang Org/Frat/Soro mo?
upcam, upcym, cmsm, kagay-haan, rotc chorale, soul singers.
15. Saan ka tumatambay palagi?
CRL upcym. and FA
16. Dorm, Boarding house, o Bahay?
Bahay was a 5-10 minute ride away
17. Kung walang UPCAT test at malaya kang nakapili ng kurso mo sa UP, ano yun (Given ang mentality mo nung HS ka)?
architecture pa rin siguro
18. Sino ang pinaka-una mong nakilala sa UP?
marianne sy-quimsiam CHE. faisal alih ARCH. von layugan CFA
19. First play na napanood mo sa UP?
gawd, i dunno, sakurahime i guess
20. Name the 5 most conyo orgs in UP
AIESEC. that archi org on the 4th floor. UPIC. dont know any other or dont remember anymore
21. Name 5 of the coolest orgs/frats/soro in UP.
UPCAM. UPCYM. UPKAGAY-HAAN.
22. May frat/soro bang nag-recruit sa yo?
wiskels
23. Saan ka madalas mag-lunch?
RODICS. baroque’s. Khas Food stop sa may swimming pool. CASAA. isaw and fishball
24. Masaya ba sa UP?
nirvana itetch
25. Nakasama ka na ba sa rally?
unfortunately no. i envied gemini’s story of her close encounter with the fireman’s hose (literally i mean)
26. Ilang beses ka bumoto sa Student Council
i did my best/ but i guess my best wasnt good enough/
27. Name at least 5 leftist groups in UP
umm… University Council. LFS. anak bayan (meron ba sa UP?). la liga filipina (panahon pa to ni luna at rizal ah). up babaylan (ya right)
28. Pinangarap mo rin bang mag-laude nung freshman ka?
of course. the nearest i got to losing that was a 5.0 grade in math 11. and the nearest i got to getting a nod was a US (univ scholar) in fine arts. astig !
29. Kanino ka pinaka-patay sa UP?
wala naman. i didnt have to-die-for crushes haha
30. Kung di ka UP, anong school ka?
xavier university cagayan de oro. or cagayan de oro college (formerly COC, now CU) because it was the only school in cdo offering architecture back in 1995. i could have gone to cebu but that wasnt exactly the plan then. shet what could have happened if my lolo didnt drag me on the negros navigation to manila? hmmm..
benjamin padero 