Those moments when you know it's worth it
I'm just back from a trip to the States, the highlight of which was seeing our students accept a Global Design Award at the SEGD conference in Miami.
The project that was recognised was Pipe Dreaming, our installation for FESTA, the Festival of Transitional Architecture in Christchurch – one of my favorite ever projects.
I could not be prouder of this project and the team who developed Pipe Dreaming. Despite hardly knowing each other at the start of semester two 2016, they became such a tight-knit, collaborative unit.
Fran and Sarah from the team gave a short talk at the Academic Summit of the SEGD conference, and they once again blew me away by being so articulate and erudite.
The judges said of the project:
"Students actually making things! Fantastic. It’s wonderful to see a project where the physical materials generated the inspiration for such a playful, interactive experience. This was a simple idea executed well, on a tight budget and with highly sustainable materials."
"The fact that these students achieved such impact with a next-to-nothing budget is inspirational and encouraging—it makes me think that we should all spend more time in dumpsters and back alleys before considering more expensive methods of fabrication. Anyone can spec some high-end material and have the execution cover-up lackluster design, but to take materials, literally of out the dump and elevate them into meaningful, communicative vessels takes a level of skill and creativity I'm proud to see in student work. Gold stars for everyone."
It's no exaggeration to say that I learn as much from teaching as I impart. The best part of my job? Having the amazing work of my students acknowledged and recognised.
Fran, Nicki and Sarah accept the award on behalf of the Pipe Dreaming team
