Why | the ‘atelier’

Pedagogy -(n) the art or science of teaching; education; instructional methods

Atelier - (n)  a studio for teaching art or architecture (Kostof, Spiro)

we believe in a Socratic pedagogy with a taste of the teachings of Confucius.

 

the mid-1970’s was when the notion of the atelier was presented to me by my Mother.  the master & student learning paradigm started with calligraphy.  I then was taught perceptual drawing that was enhanced by study of various media and tools, then light and color...naturally, I moved to photography and painting.  as I grew older we  studied materials and the chemical, electrical, thermal, acoustical, and mechanical properties of the same.  it was the culmination of the study of these things that led to the desire to practice architecture as the craft represented the science and the art as an embodiment of these things. 

during the early 80’s , the logo for the atelier came to be.  it was a sketch I created to represent a simple expression of the story of Prometheus, and was influenced by the original “Warren atelier” study of George B. Bridgman.

my Mother was the master of many of the arts I was taught.  other family members, public school teachers, college professors, and professional instructors were the master of the sciences and math. Their knowledge and desire to teach spawned my interest...

in any environment,  the repetition of tasks until they became second nature seemed normal. understanding and utilizing proper ergonomics in the execution of the tasks was required as much as discipline in the task; through all of this though, developing and understanding how to answer the 5 w’s on my own regarding the things I was learning, was paramount.

in the mid-90’s the ideas of master and student transformed into a different model– one of understanding ‘Mentor and Telemachus’.  industry professionals became “Mentor” to my being “Telemachus”, or so I had hoped.  The corporate “Mentor” model proved to me to be a flawed paradigm of learning because the role of the mentor has taken on a meaning of “someone to model yourself after” and not someone who shares the knowledge that they have gained in a way that is meaningful, insightful, and guiding to the other individual.

 

Michael Paul Warren, AIA

LEED AP