This is my first post here.

How to keep learning architecture after graduation

During my 5 years of studies in architecture school, I’ve been learning both from my professors and from the internet.

On one hand, my many professors taught us about the field itself, through reference architectural projects or by putting us through our own student projects, to better learn how to design, how to shape an idea of a space.

On the other hand, the internet was there for all the technical aspects of how do you translate those designs and ideas on the machine, because pen and paper won’t cut it anymore today. What software do you need, how hard is it to master, etc. This was homework as well, the kind you did on your own, your professor being the screen and the guys making the tutorial you needed.

Now I’m working, just not on my own real life architectural projects, yet.

I’m trying to keep learning both in the field and also technically. Simply put, I want to build more skills until I’m ready to be a productive architect.

As school is over, I know I have to find a way to do it on my own, which is the point of this journey.

Architecture Vs Archvisualization

From all the different kinds of tutorial I found out there on Youtube mostly, most of them are about Architectural Visualization. Whether it’s in photorealistic render, or diagrammatic drawings, those videos focused for the most part on how to make your model look good.

Because yes, the importance of image, and now even videos, seems to be paramount in this business. Yet, I think the design behind the image is more important.

For that reason, I don’t want to only study architectural vizualization or the best way to get a nice picture, by adding dozens of photoshop layers, or spending too much time tweaking the 20 Vray parameters that will make my image photorealistic enough.

I tried that already. It only resulted in some ugly pictures I made from half baked projects, the result being pretty disappointing.

I decided I’d rather focus on learning how to make quality spaces, because that’s still my idea of being a good architect. School might be over but I just didn’t get enough knowledge to go on, how could I ?

Some buildings or projects have inspired me and made me want to become an architect, as I’m sure everyone has their own. Now they make me want to become a better one.

2 birds, 1 stone

Why not study those great buildings that inspired us made by masters of this field ? Not only by reading about them or browsing at some pictures, but by recreating them on the machine, thus acquiring software skills and architectural knowledge at the same time.

The same way you would want to learn how to play Debussy’s Clair de Lune on the piano : you get a better understanding of the music than by just listening to it, and at the same time you improve your skills as a piano player.

Optimizing the workflow, saving time

By doing several projects and improving on the method, it helps creating better suited workflows (to each his own) in order to save a lot of time, which is essential in relation to productivity.

If one day, you’ll find yourself in a position to design a project just as great as the ones who inspired you, you might as well learn now what it takes to design it. To build it in real life, you must at least know how to “build it” in 3D.

That’s basically the point of this journey.

It’s gonna be a long road, though… especially when you’re doing all that on your spare time.