Office-s Chapter Two

There are several strategies that one has to have in mind when going to an interview for a new job. For instance, selecting the adequate outfit, researching the company, being on time, turning off your cell phone, bringing your resumes, cover letter and portfolio, do not making jokes, etc.

After reviewing all the tips available to nail an interview I went to see Mr. Suleiman and Mr. Pareja at UPA Architects. So, trying to follow all the strategies mentioned above I prepared myself to get this position as a junior Architect. First of all I went to this nice store to get the perfect outfit. I just want to remind you that back then I was working as a server at this famous restaurant in Tenleytown, so all my income came from tips and some sporadic digital drafting classes that I used to give. Being an Architect makes very difficult the shopping process. You want to combine everything in an harmonious way, you want to include all kind of “avant garde” design concepts and explore new options. All of this for what? To ending dressing like Rem Koolhaas or Steve Jobs (all black). After spending two double shifts (back then I measured all my expenses in terms of lunch, dinner and double shifts. One shift = $100usd aprox.) in clothes I kept preparing myself for the meeting.

Another tip that you should consider when applying for a new job is researching the company. I visited their website, looked for their names on Facebook, MySpace, Youtube, AIA, FBI (remember I used to work for criminals) and Architecture Magazines. While searching I found that UPA is a very contemporary design firm with projects in Washington DC, Quito, Abuja, Virginia and Maryland, fact that made me very excited. I also investigated their origins based on their names. When I typed in Suleiman Umar immediately I got all sort of connections with the Arabic world and the African world. With the second partner it was more general. Pareja it is a last name with origins and roots in Spain, so he could be from anywhere in the world.

The day finally came and I got there 30 minutes before, turned off my cell phone, prepared all my documents, I even practiced different situations and learned new English words that I could use in the interview. My first impression was kind of shocking. I opened the door and I saw an African American male playing golf, barefoot and speaking in some language that I was not able to understand, next to him was a short male individual with familiar facial features speaking in perfect English (no accent) to some girl with a very thick accent about The Beatles and Frank Lloyd Wright. After recovering of this encounter of the third kind, I could see the guy who was playing golf waving at me trying to tell me to wait for him in the conference room. While walking across the hall I could hear at least four or five different languages I also could perceive a very nice environment where architects with different backgrounds were working on several new projects with very interesting aesthetics and concepts.

Mr. Pareja and Mr. Suleiman finally met me at the conference room after a 40 minutes wait (being late for the interview, first tip violation). Mr. Suleiman showed up wearing military shorts, no shoes, and a black T-shirt, Mario on the other hand was wearing Khaki pants and a polo T-shirt. (selecting the wrong outfit, second tip violation). The interview started very smoothly. Mr. Suleiman started making some racist jokes like “we do not hire Spaniard descendants that are mixed with native Americans”, (perfect description of my ethnicity, later I will learn that Mr. Pareja’s family background was from Ecuador), “We do not work with new comers” (perfect description of 90% of UPA staff), and he went with this kind of comments over and over, at this point I did not know if to laugh or to cry. (making inappropriate jokes at a job interview, third tip violation). So after thirty minutes of talking to Sule and Mario (they asked me to called them this way) they had been violated all the “rules” that somehow I thought were important to obey for a job interview , cell phone calls, talking in different languages, stepping out of the meeting without saying anything, etc. It was the strangest interview that I ever had in my whole short professional life. Before leaving the building I asked Sule if the office had any dress code to follow, to that question he answered back laughing and saying “just do not show up naked on Monday”.

I left the office with high expectations and knowing that I was going to work as a junior Architect for a guy that was born in Jos, Nigeria who came to the United States at the age of 17, who speaks 4 different languages and does not know if he is Muslim or Catholic because his family is 50/50 and his partner a very smart guy who was born in Quito Ecuador who came to the United states at the age of 5 who plays the bass in a rock band, who worked at Pope Leighey house as a tour guide (one of Frank Lloyd’s Wright houses in Virginia) at the age of 14 and is a frenetic fan of The Beatles. Believe it or not they are also real Architects yes!!

Monday: That first day of work I showed up before 8:30am. While waiting for Mario and Sule I had The opportunity to meet Hedrick Klein, a young German Architect who like me had been in The United States for less than three years, who went to the Bauhaus school and grew up in one of the Walter Gropius Housing complexes. (later we would be partners for the Holocaust Memorial competition design in Atlantic City). I also met Mr. Ziad Demian, a very talented Syrian Architect who was born in Damascus and is been living in Washington for more than 25 years. I could go hours describing the diversity of this practice, this felt like the United Nations where globalization and transnationalism are common elements in the day to day scene, characteristics that change the whole scene for me as an Architect. Sule and Mario Showed at 10:10am we started working on a Hotel for Radisson Industries In Abuja, Nigeria. Then we jumped to an African Market in Port Harcourt, Nigeria then to a House in Friendship heights in Washington Dc and in between of Architecture we had serious discussions about new ways to live, the role of architecture in the new world, music, girls, books, movies and different topics that made me understand why Architects are “Generalists” we know a little bit of everything compared to other professions like Engineers they know everything about one thing “Specialist”, good or bad I rather gather information about everything , this would lead me to the light.

Tuesday: same time 8:30am, same thing working with architects from all over the world, doing architecture, playing golf and listening to music, nice routine!. As usual Mario and Sule Showed up at 10:10am and the same on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Friday and sometimes weekends. After one month Sule called me saying that he wanted to talked to me. He wanted to let me know that 8:30am was a little bit early to come to the office, he explained to me that after all this years of experience he found out that 10:10am It is the perfect time to start working I still do not understand but it works for me.

It is been almost two years working for Sule and Mario, now they called me Associate Architect and we are planning our first trip to Nigeria. Compared to my first internship in Virginia, UPA was like rehab for me and I think I am slowly curing myself. It is been a Journey and there is a lot in the future coming for UPA, but the current times are tough and they were not able to afford me full time it was then when Mario Introduce me to Shinberg-Levinas Architects, this is a medium size firm in Bethesda Maryland, very contemporary and interesting firm the partners are Salo Levinas and Milton Shinberg, more on that later in the next chapter. Currently I work for UPA Architects and I am also a consultant for Shinberg-Levinas, I split my time in between the two firms and somehow I enjoy doing that, different experiences and different kind of Architectural languages and knowledge. Thank you for reading Third chapter coming soon! Today is September 9, 2011 a weird feeling is in the ambient Washington is full with police and they recommended not to go out or ride the metro. But following Mr. Wright’s philosophy when he expressed that “An architect's most useful tools are an eraser at the drafting board, and a wrecking bar at the site”. I am going to walk to the closest bar to grab a drink! Please find attached some Images of the projects that we have been working on at UPA Architects.

Office-s Chapter One

Back in 2007 one of my first goals was to get an internship in Architecture in the DC area. All I wanted after working briefly in Bogota was to keep in touch with Architecture. I knew this task would require a lot of effort since I was supposed to be enrolled full time in college and on top of that I also was working as a part time server (more like a full time server) in a popular restaurant in Tenleytown. So, in between of college assignments and selling fajitas, enchiladas, quesadillas and margaritas I found some space to update and translate my portfolio, resume and cover letter. In the beginning I started sending one to three copies a day. I tried every single website and search engine in the area and also went to several offices in person, at the end of this process I was submitting an average of ten to twenty resumes a day. Nothing happened after three months of searching, until one day I got a call from an Architecture office located in Tysons Corner in Virginia. I went to see Mr. Lee on Monday after a two hour commute (two hours each way for one year! do your calculations) from Rockville MD. as soon as the interview was finished he asked me if I was going to be able to start next tuesday and I said yes.
This stage of my life is called "The Hit Man". Like the best mercenary my mission was to kill any creative process and deliver. This was a very painful practice. They were not interested in any dynamic that would involve construction of knowledge. And just like the best mercenaries around the world they were motivated to take part in the hostilities (dealing with the client making them believe that we were custom designing for them) essentially by the desire for personal gain (money). I spent long twelve months in the battle field wishing every single day to go back to the peaceful land of creativity.
Being at Lee Architects allowed me to understand Mr. Philip Johnson when responding to some critics he expressed that "Architects are pretty much high class whores. We can turn down some clients, but we've both got to say yes to someone if we want to stay in business." But I did not wanted to be that kind of Architect, I did not want to kill for living, I did not want to put myself on the red light, that is why I felt more than happy when they had to "let me go" because of the bad shape of the U.S economy. After one year of assembling new projects with old projects or leftovers of projects I dedicated myself to study arts and to deal with costumers that are convinced that a "Chimichanga" is a traditional Mexican dish.

After six months without practicing Architecture I started applying again. This time with a totally different criteria, meaning being excessively meticulous (Picky). But changing my search settings would make this process a real challenge. With the economy going down and the lack of credentials in the country I was losing my hope to find that dreamed job. One regular day at the restaurant a former worker (server) came back to the tables due to the lack of business as a contractor and construction manager. In the middle of our conversation trying to
establish if an enchilada was beef, chicken or seafood I let him know that I had a Bachelor in Architecture and I showed him some of my work. As soon as he saw my portfolio he exclaimed "you are Sule's boy", I was confused and without asking he gave me a phone number of this Architect who happened to be looking for someone with my profile (which profile? I still do not know!). this way I went to this office located in Eastern Market close to Capitol Hill in DC to meet Mr. Umar Suleiman and Mr. Mario Pareja, partners at UPA Architects.

I decided to split this post in two chapters because this new stage deserves its own time! Thanks for reading. please find attached some of the projects that we GUNNED down at Lee Architects......By the way today Washington DC, was hit by an 5.8 earthquake, nothing major happened this could be another situation where your point of view towards Life and Architecture could change.

Remembering Life and Architecture

Wow It's Been A While. Yeah, I have gone for too long without posting. As you all know I have been living in Washington DC, since August 2007. This stage of my life began with great expectations of a new future. And without knowing I would fall in love with this amazing city I started my studies with the goal of obtaining a diploma in Fine arts. This four years brought several experiences that somehow came to change some personal paradigms in my life. In between of this process of change I found myself trying to structure my career as an Architect with a totally different Approach to both life and Architecture. Paraphrasing Mr. Gropius I would say that he was totally right when talking about the "BauHaus" he expressed that the mentioned movement was much more than a school of Art or Architecture. They really had an approach to a new way of life. And this is what moving to the United States meant to me "a new way of life". I had the desire to name this post Remembering Life and Architecture because is looking to the past how I have been finding elements to lay down the foundation of my life and Architecture project. I do not pretend to create a Blog of Architecture itself, this is more a compilation of day to day situations that allowed me to understand my new environment and landscape. This Space pretends to create a platform where I can share what is going on around me and how this dynamics are shaping me as person and Architect. This review it is been possible because since I left El Dorado Airport in Bogota I have been documenting some events with the help of a Small sketch book. And since I consider myself a person who learn in a graphic way I will be posting some of those Sketches of life and Architecture. I think this is a good start, hope to hear what you think about this project I will appreciate any suggestions, ideas and critiques!. Before going back to the Mundane life I would like to thank some of you who inspired and encouraged me to re open this space, Gracias! (you know who you are ). I am going to leave you with a sketch of the Metro Center Station of Washington DC metro System. It was done after a job interview for my actual position at UPA Architects in October 2009.

Concurso Jardines Infantiles Fonade (Day Care Design Competition)

Con el objetivo de ayudar a conformar ciudad y comunidad, Fonade con la asesoria de la Sociedad Colombiana de Arquitectos, convocaron a un concurso para diseñar dos jardines infantiles en zonas periféricas de la ciudad. Es así como la oficina Mazzanti Arquitectos conformo un grupo de trabajo para participar en dicha convocatoria. El proyecto puntual se desarrolla a partir de un protocolo de diseño el cual pretende ser adaptativo a diferentes niveles, una cinta contiene (adaptativa, envolvente) una arquitectura contemporánea y contextualizada con el uso específico (jardín infantil). Los materiales y texturas proponen una forma totalmente diferente de relacionarse con la edificación, el usuario (niños) cuenta con espacios acordes a su escala donde se fomenta todo tipo de desarrollo en una fase tan importante como esta, el color y las formas “blandas” hacen de estos jardines unos proyectos cargados de imaginación, lúdica y estética.
La sociedad Colombiana de arquitectos considero que el proyecto merecía un segundo lugar premiando a la firma Mazzanti Arquitectos con la construcción de 2 jardines.
Cargo: Arquitecto Diseñador

Internship/Con-urbana Construction

Durante el proceso de practica pre profesional se llevo a cabo un trabajo guiado en la constructora conurbana, en la fase de adaptación y prueba se desempeñaron tareas de gestión y desarrollo de proyectos, luego se desempeñaron tareas en el departamento de diseño como diseñador auxiliar, en esta fase se proyectaron 3 viviendas en áreas rurales y un edificio de apartamentos en la zona de chapinero en la ciudad de Bogotá. A continuación se mostraran imágenes y planos de los proyectos en mención.

Thesis "International Library and Telecommunication Center"

Ubicación y localización geográfica: Departamento situado en la parte central
del país, en la región de la Orinoquía, localizado entre los 04o 54' 25" y los 01o 36'
52" de latitud norte, y los 71o 4' 38" y 74o 53' 57" de longitud oeste.
Extensión: 1.323 kms. Cuadrados.
Altitud: 465 mts. Sobre el nivel del mar.
Hidrografía: Ríos Ocoa, Guatiquía y Guayuriba (Negro).
Temperatura promedio: 28 grados centígrados.
Villavicencio, “Puerta del Llano”, es el polo de desarrollo de la Orinoquía, con el índice de crecimiento poblacional más alto del país. Sede de los eventos culturales más importantes de esta región. Tiene 400.000 habitantes con el flujo migratorio que corresponde a la ciudad de más alto crecimiento del país debido a la alta rata de su economía diversa.
Ciudad / Región.
El proyecto de grado se enmarca en 3 escalas, la primera contiene una estrategia de contrapeso contra los posibles efectos internos del TLC, consiste en ligar a dos ciudades representativas de los llanos orientales de Colombia y Venezuela, dicha relación esta sustentada en el intercambio Comercial, Cultural, y de Tecnologías a través de una ruta llamada la vía marginal de la selva la cual proyecta la unión de diferentes ciudades de Sur América. Las otras dos escalas tienen su área aferente en la zona orinoquía Colombiana y específicamente en la ciudad de Villavicencio.

Objetivos Específicos

Brindar un espacio que fomente la expresión e investigación en la región.

Ser un polo de desarrollo para el municipio de Villavicencio, y el país, con la generación de espacio público, y equipamientos para los habitantes de la ciudad.


Desarrollar un centro cultural que permita llevar a un punto muy alto la cultura de la región.

Generar espacios culturales los cuales propendan por la expresión cultural de toda la región.

Generar una propuesta estética que enmarque el nuevo desarrollo de Villavicencio.

Fortalecer los hitos históricos y turísticos de la región para generar una competitividad a nivel nacional e internacional.

Desarrollar un proyecto arquitectónico puntual que de imagen a la región y que permita aportar nuevos valores en el aspecto cultural.

Consolidar el crecimiento y el desarrollo de la zona Oriental del país medio de estrategias culturales y tecnológicas, competitivas a nivel nacional e internacional.

Plantear una solución de contrapeso a los posibles efectos internos del TLC.

Fortalecer los vínculos económicos y culturales con Venezuela.

Ser punto de exposición de las grandes reservas naturales del país.

Darle a Villavicencio el carácter de capital cultural de la región con una serie de equipamientos culturales emplazados, en una intervención urbana.

El Proyecto se encuentra ubicado sobre la margen izquierda del río Guatiquía donde se proyectara un eje ambiental que además de recuperar la ronda del río integrará diversos equipamientos culturales y de educación los cuales proyectarán a Villavicencio como una ciudad intermedia de intercambio cultural y comercial.

Ubicado sobre la ruta de acceso norte de la ciudad, en la vía que comunica a Villavicencio con la salida al aeropuerto Vanguardia y los municipios de Cumaral, Restrepo, Parátebueno, Villanueva y Yopal . Punto estratégico, nodal y de intersección con la avenida del Llano.

El proyecto hace parte de una cadena de equipamientos, los cuales pretenden estructurar una nueva forma de crecimiento urbana que no atente contra reservas ecológicas y recursos hídricos del municipio.
El proyecto consta de dos partes la primera es una biblioteca temática y la segunda es la sede del canal internacional de orinoquía. Con este proyecto se pretende incentivar el turismo ecológico nacional e internacional, hacia la zona oriente de Colombia además de divulgar a través de los medios de comunicación toda una cultura en vía de desarrollo
La arquitectura y el espacio reflejaran de forma directa o física, abstracciones del paisaje de estos lugares, lo que permitirá un entendimiento de la dinámica de estos lugares a partir de algo tangible.

La geografía del lugar de implantación del proyecto y la proximidad con el agua (río Guatiquía), y reservas naturales, permiten recrear ambientes naturales relacionados directamente con las temáticas plantadas por el proyecto (Parques Naturales).

Desde la parte técnica se plantea una imagen estética contemporánea basada en la información del paisaje geográfico en la que se encuentran emplazados estos parques, para lograr lo anterior se plantea el uso de estrategias de diseño como lo son el Mapping, zonnig y abstracciones del paisaje.

Equipamientos Urbanos, Estetica/+Arq.

En el proceso de desarrollo de una ciudad como Bogota el papel de los equipamientos urbanos no se debe remitir solamente a la prestación de un servicio para la vivienda, sino que se deben formular espacios que permitan la interacción directa con el edificio y su contexto además de ser hitos estéticos a la hora de referenciar el lugar de implantación. El primer proyecto es un equipamiento de educación, localizado en una zona periférica de la ciudad de Bogota, en la primera fase se diseño un proyecto urbano donde se implanto el proyecto con una fuerte relación con la rivera la fiscala y unas masas boscosas cercanas. Dicho paisaje tiene continuidad ya que el objeto arquitectónico se eleva para dejarlo pasar.

Bogota cuenta con áreas urbanas que se encuentran en un serio proceso de deterioro, en este caso se trabajo en el barrio 7 de Agosto donde las actividades comerciales (venta auto partes) han desplazado la vivienda. Como respuesta a esta problemática se diseño un proyecto urbano estructurado por 5 equipamientos, de estos 5 se diseño un centro de formación tecnológica para ayudar a regenerar esta zona deteriorada de la ciudad.