You will find short stories on this site. Most are autobiographical. Some are fiction.

CRITIQUE

Constructive criticism is a key element of Architectural Education. The curriculum of the School of Architecture was based on two principles: First: It was a program of Increasingly complex design assignments. Second: It was easy to gain admission to the program but extremely difficult to stay in the it. One of the faculty member’s main tasks, in the second year, was to weed out students who they felt could not complete the five-year course. There were no grades. Students either passed or failed. The challenge for the student was to do design work which was good enough to pass. Passing was not easy. I was one of 125 students who enrolled in architecture in my first year. Twelve of us graduated five years later.

In order to develop a passing design, I relied on the design critiques of my fellow students. Their “crits” were an essential component of my effort to improve my designs prior to faculty reviews. If I asked a classmate for a “crit” and received only praise, the critique may feel good, but it would not satisfy my need to improve the design. I preferred critiques from students who would be insightful and frank in their review of my design’s strengths and shortcomings. The students with whom I chose to associate, were those who were good at giving serious critiques. These were also the students who sought them. Expending the time and mental energy to give a quality critique is not wholly altruistic. We recognized that giving a thorough review of another student’s work could be as beneficial for the one giving the critique as the one whose work was being critiqued. Reviewing another’s efforts is an opportunity to understand the motivation and techniques of another person engaged in the same field. This is a rich opportunity to develop one’s own skills.

A quality critique is one in which the reviewer strives to understand the other student’s design concept, its strengths, and its weaknesses. But more, it is not enough that reviewers express their own reactions to the work, they must also gain an understanding of what it is that the author is attempting to accomplish. A critique is most successful when it also examines the ways in which the design achieved the designer’s objectives. Suggestions are less important but nonetheless helpful.

In the end, it was up to the designer to absorb the observations made, and then respond to, or disregard, them as they see fit.

A good critique is a valuable gift. It was the critiques by fellow students, which guided me through architecture school. It is in this spirit that I reviewed the work of my students when I taught architecture. It is also the approach that I aspire to when giving critiques in Writer’s Exchange.