Architecture can be thought of as a hierarchy of layers. It starts with purpose and space, followed by structure, systems and surface. If we get the bones right, the other layers fall into place more easily. Those layers can also blur together and change places. A project might be driven by structure, or surface, or they might be one and same, at least conceptually. So we weave back and forth between concept, form and detail. Back to the figure skating analogy, there are technical requirements, physical finesse, the music, the narrative, costumes, the emotion and execution, all brought together into a seamless whole. And if not? It’s like a project that doesn’t quite come together, where the parts don’t quite add up to a pleasing gestalt. Or perhaps it’s just not to your liking. There is no denying individual taste in the experience and evaluation of architecture.
Generally through the design process an alignment is found between aspirations, complexity and budget. It is in the nature of the service to be optimistic and seek solutions that work on a number of levels. Occasionally there’s a misalignment between expectations and reality that no creative bridge can span. Involving a contractor early on can bring an impartial eye to the scope and budget for the work. In balancing the pressures and decisions affecting a project one aims for the sweet spot of the right application of effort, the right degree of difficulty. This creative synthesis is for me the crux of residential design.