A Place to Build Relationships

The favorite moment in the life of a building for most architects is that time between when the building is done and when the client moves in and starts to use the building. It is the moment when their work is un-marred by the messiness of people actually using the building. Reason #37 why I dance to a different drum than most architects, is that I prefer grand openings and dedication ceremonies to the pristine emptiness of pre-occupancy.

I love making buildings. I love walking through a building being framed. I love that new-building smell (which, ironically, is being eliminated by minimizing VOC’s). But as much as I love architecture, I believe it is not an end in itself. Rather the value of well-designed buildings and space, the importance of what I do as an architect is its impact on the  quality of human interaction that takes place in the building.

Winston Churchill said it best, “We shape our buildings and afterwards our buildings shape us.” I believe the quality of gathering whether for learning, worship, or caregiving is profoundly influenced by the quality of the building in which these activities are housed. Sure, we can learn, worship and live in any setting, but well-designed environments can exponentially improve our effectiveness.

Our own office at 61 S. Main Street in Harrisonburg is an interesting case study. Built in 1902, the space in which we work is little changed from original construction. It’s too hot in the summer, too cold in the winter, the floors sag and there is only one bathroom for three floors of people. Yet we enjoy people stopping by our office on the 2^nd floor and chatting as they climb stairs to their own offices above. Because we’re on Main Street, people stop in while running other errands. Clients and contractors like our accessibility. We’d be more comfortable and perhaps more efficient in a newer, more commodious building, but we would sacrifice a sense of community. 

Too often architects inflict building that look good but are hostile to healthy human interaction. Good design, if it is to have any value at all must deliver spaces that improve the quality of human interaction.  Our goal at Blue Ridge Architects is to make buildings that dramatically enhance the experience of people coming together and building relationships.