“Always design a thing by considering it in its next larger context – a chair in a room, a room in a house, a house in an environment, an environment in a city plan.” ~ Eliel Saarinen
For this month’s article, I reflect on Mr. Saarinen’s quotation as we move through the ‘redesign’ of Architecture Exchange East. We are more than reinvigorating this significant member event; we’re completely enlivening it in a way that will have our members and friends departing the event genuinely inspired and with batteries fully recharged. In other words, like many of our other programmatic refinements, elevating the member experience is foremost in our minds.
Early in the year, members of the core ArchEx team traveled to Washington, D.C. to participate in an “Experience Innovation Forum” led by our impressive consultants, 360 Live Media. As experts in live events and ‘designed experiences,’ they led us through a series of exercises and conversations intended to stimulate new thinking about the event towards a total refresh for 2015 and beyond. Following that session, rapid progress was made on enhancements as Vice President Corey Clayborne, AIA, worked with the Professional Excellence Council and members of the staff team to provide an exciting and inspirational experience for our attendees.
Major efforts continue to energize all aspects of the conference in alignment with our desire to make it more aspirational and inspirational for everyone. Planning meetings are being held regularly to discuss the exposition hall, educational programming, marketing and promotions, hospitality, and other major components.
Our two keynote speakers have been secured for Thursday morning and Friday afternoon, and both are excited to be a part of our program. The opening keynote address (before lunch on Thursday) will be by Andrew Freear, Director of the Auburn Rural Studio. Now twenty years in existence since its founding by Sambo Mockbee, FAIA, this programmatic model of social responsibility continues to provide structures for housing and community to underserved populations in western Alabama through student-led design-build projects. As the Director of the program for 14 years, Andrew will inspire our audience through his touching stories about the transformational power of architecture in these rural areas.
The closing keynote (following lunch on Friday) will be presented by futurist David Zach. Well known for his blow-your-socks-off speeches about trends and expectations, David is a former public member of the AIA Board of Directors. His amazing insights will focus on architecture and design and their influence on the future of our country and the world. David is a highly sought-after speaker, and his remarks are often appreciated by those early in their careers.
In addition to these dual keynotes, watch for a registration reception on Thursday morning, special-interest-area gatherings on Thursday evening, topic-centric coffee sessions Friday morning, powerful educational sessions in a variety of formats on both days, an increased number of tours, a more exciting exhibition hall experience, and a moving Visions for Architecture gathering to cap the conference.
Promotional materials will begin arriving shortly that will further stimulate your interest in participating in a wholly redesigned user experience – one that will be awesome for attendees, vendors, and speakers alike. We know you’re going to notice the CHANGE in this year’s Architecture Exchange East! In fact, we are willing to guarantee that you will have a better experience … or next year is on us.
Helene Combs Dreiling, FAIA
Executive Vice President