Post 8: A subject I've enjoyed studying this semester

This semester I've been learns many things, but definitely the subject that I most enjoyed this semester was from the class “Problems of modern architecture”, there we did a duo work which we need to study a 20th century project, know how it works and think about it critically. In our case, the study case was “The Garden City”, which is a model of urban planning created by Ebenezer Howard, as a solution to the problems of the Industrial Revolution and its impact on the cities, particularly in England. It was very interesting to inquire about the main principles and concepts of the Garden City, because it was to request the benefits for the people, taking the lifestyle of the city and countryside, combining the advantages of both environments for the common life of the people, providing proximity to nature and an increase in employment opportunities.

During the course, we had to do two rehearsals analyzing the city from its theoretical position and conceptual, and how this was expressed in the garden city movement of modernity. Also, we investigate about others other works by architects and urbanist like Jane Jacobs, where we could make comparisons between the model of garden cities and different vision about the modern cities.

Blog post 7: Who is a person/expert on your field that you admire?

Hello everyone, again! Today I’ll talk about Eileen Gray, who was an architect and furniture designer, being one of the first women to be recognized for her contribution to industrial design and known as a pioneer of the Modern Movement in architecture.

She was born on August 9, 1878, in Enniscorthy, Ireland. Her interest in painting and drawing was influenced by her father, who was a landscape painter. She started her arts studies at the Slade School of Fine Art in London in 1900. After passing and traveling through different countries, Gray settled in Paris, where she met the Japanese artist Seizo Sugawara. From that moment, she starts to dedicate herself to learn and develop in interior design and furniture pieces, where she integrated modern and disruptive designs. By 1921, the Romanian architect Jean Badovici, encouraged her growing interest in architecture without any formal training. Finally, in 1924 she designed her most famous work: E-1027 House in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France.

I choose her as a person that I admire because she was an exceptional in her discipline, and that despite being in a time, where the professions were dominated by men, where even some of her works were attributed to others. Despite all this, she became internationally recognized for her creativity and stands out as one of the most influential woman in those fields.

A picture of Eileen Gray. 

Eileen Gray's Iconic E-1027 House.

Post 6: How can my major make the world a better place

As I mentioned before, I'm studying architecture and as you know architecture is everywhere, that's why I think that the contribution of my major is essential to achieve development in the design of urban spaces, cities and the world in general from a sustainable vision. During recent years, the role of most architects has had to respond to the diffusion of creating an ecological architecture, through using new techniques to decrease pollution in the building’s construction, for example, implementing recycled materials or reducing the energy needs of buildings in an efficient way. These are measures that can minimize the impact on the ecosystem during the construction process and also reduce operation and maintenance costs, increasing at the same time comfort and health benefits on people.

As an architecture student, I see myself learning more about the integration of new technologies and measures that can bring benefits to the environment from a sustainability perspective, and how this can ensure good design of buildings or public spaces for the community.

Post 5: A Photograph and its story

Hello everyone! today I’ll show you a photo taken a long time ago on a family travel to the snow, where are we my dad, siblings and me (my mom was the photographer). 

Well, it was very difficult choosing a photo because I don't usually take many, so I looked in my family album and finally I decided to show this one. I like this photo because when I saw it, it reminded me many things about my childhood; and until made me feel a little nostalgic about it. Also, I can perfectly remember when we used to go to many places when I was little, especially in my dad’s car listening bands like Creedence Clearwater Revival, while my brothers and I waiting expected to arrive.

In this photo we go to Chillán in winter vacation to see snow, which are one of my favorite places to visit until to this day. About the trip, I can't remember many things, but I think one of the most beautiful things about photography is that I could immortalize those memories that made me happy at some point in my life.

Post 4: A meal or food I really like

I love all kinds of foods, but pancakes are definitely one of my favorites. When I was a child, my mom used to cook for my siblings and me. I remember the taste was delicious so I learned how to cook it. Also, it's a very easy breakfast, I usually prepared the classic pancakes recipe with eggs, milk, flour, sugar and baking powder; to make it fluffier, but this depends on personal preference. After this I put all ingredients in bowl and mix until combined, and finally I fry it with a little oil, that's the whole process. It takes about 10-20 minutes to cook, so I think this is the perfect breakfast for those times when I just want to eat something tasty but I don't want to spend so much time on it.

However, I don't prepare it often because of the calories in it, especially because I add corn syrup to it when I eat it. For this reason, I don't think it's healthy eat it everyday, so I prefer to cook only a few times.

Post 3: My favorite piece of technology

In these times, it's very difficult to think if we're able to live without technology and its benefits, especially in the middle of a pandemic where we had to stay connected through media or applications; therefore, it was difficult to choose just one piece of technology, but I can say that my computer is definitive my favorite.

Since I was a child, I used to play a lot of games with my older brother on our home computer; and finally, when I was 15 years old, my mother gave me my first own computer for doing my homework. By this way, I started to learn new things and spent a lot of time in it, because I didn’t have a cell phone that allows me to do many things at that time.

Currently, my computer had become a crucial tool in my career. I usually do everything on it, like using software, creating my projects or even attending my classes. For these reasons, I think that my computer is one of the most important things in many aspects of my daily life.

Source: Pinterest. 

Post 2: Why did I choose my major?

During my childhood, I used to like many things related to art, such as music or painting, so I spent a lot of time drawing and learning to play some instruments. My parents (especially my mom) always said to me that I had many skills to this and they encouraged me to keep it up. I thought that I could will dedicated to something connected to this in future. However, I never had a specific dream job.

As I grew up, in my high school days, I started to think what I wanted to study at university, but nothing motivated me enough. Also, I started to put me a lot of pressure to decide an option as time goes on, and that was probably my big mistake at the time.

In 2019, I decided to enter into Baccalaureate Program at the University of Chile, because I still didn't know what I wanted to study. My experience there was terrible, it was my first time I lived away from my home and family, and it was hard to get adapted to the university. I felt really bad because I wanted to go back, but at the same time, I thought about the consequences if I made that decision, so I just kept trying. In the second semester of the same year, I took advantage of the possibility of making an internal career change, and I decided to enter architecture mainly because of my skills. My process to incorporate to the career it was difficult, but I don't regret my decision. 

                                             This is an axonometric that I did last year from a project.