If you’ve ever known an architect, chances are he or she has some really cool and funky designer glasses. Let me give you some examples:

So what makes an architect? Awesome glasses? Definitely. A slick bow-tie or black turtleneck? Check.

But being an architect goes beyond the standard issue eye wear. Architects are put through a rigorous course of study which includes design and tectonics (the relationship of building parts). Students are trained to see buildings with a critical, examining eye and represent concepts and ideas through architecture. Recently, I had the opportunity to see this training in action, when I was asked to jury a presentation by the second year architecture students at the College of the Sequoias. The COS architecture program is run by the Chair of Industry and Technology at COS, architect Rolando Gonzalez, AIA.

This was a perfect opportunity to explore the typical architectural design process for the Archop.org readers. Gonzalez invited me to sit in on a presentation for the design of a hypothetical Martial Arts Dojo sited in Visalia. Also sitting on the critique jury were architect Jamie Steinmetz, AIA and 1st Dan Black Belt in Aikido, Sensei John Cruz. Each student was tasked with selecting a particular martial arts fighting style. Next the students were to research the style, and then design a martial arts dojo informed by the conclusions drawn from the research. The jury was then to offer a critique based upon knowledge of architecture, or in the case of Sensei John Cruz, martial arts.

This process is typical of the process that architects go through when designing a unique building. This image, from the architecture studio at COS, demonstrates how beginning students are taught to convey concepts through architecture.

These diagrams are called “partis” (pronounced par-tees) by architects. Each parti displays a simple, singular concept. Partis are used to explore concepts that will be expressed in a building. From the upper left to lower right, the 3-d diagrams represent concepts such as whole, addition, axis, interlock, frame, repetition, layering, offset, solid/void, etc. Students learn to create these simple diagrams before moving on to complex building forms.

It was this basic framework of architectural language that the students then applied to the dojo project. Below, 3 images from the students are representative of the great range of solutions that were explored.

First is an image by student David Hupp, who explored the martial art of Pak Mei, a rare form of Kung Fu combining Shaolin and Taoist practices. The project has the privacy of an ancient temple and the projecting balcony is reminiscent of a stabbing fist.

This image by Michael Leyva explores Wing Chun, another form of martial arts originating in ancient China. The symmetrically opposing buildings suggest two fighters squaring off for combat, while the projecting elements remind one of the fighter’s arms and legs.

This image is the project of Sergio Perez, who explored the martial art Jeet Kune Do, the fighting style originated by Bruce Lee. This building is shifted down the middle, suggesting the opposing yet unified forces of this marital art.

Each of the projects presented by the 2nd year COS architecture students was a creative and unique response to the stated project problem. A great deal of passion and hard work was evident based on the quality of the projects presented and the nature of the architecture studio at COS.

The studio at COS fosters camaraderie between the students. Design involves collaboration and a lot of back and forth dialog, a process which is evident in the studio at COS. Below, student Rolando Coria (right) collaborates with student Ivan Venegas (left).

It is good to know that we have a rigorous architecture program in Visalia because it heightens awareness of good architectural design. Also, it fosters future architects who may someday return and add their contribution to the built environment of the Valley. A special thanks goes out to architect Rolando Gonzalez, AIA for championing this program and for inviting me to be part of the Jury.

Inspired by an article that John King wrote for the San Francisco Chronicle, we decided to do a Decade in Review article to identify the 10 best buildings representing Fresno architecture. Our parameters were that the buildings be in Fresno County with construction completed between 2000 and 2009. The reviewers were Joe Moore, president of the Downtown Association, Shaunt Yemenjian, principal of spacio|design, and Kiel Famellos-Schmidt, curator of archop.

What we found in making this list, is that Fresno has a collection of high quality, well designed buildings that have significantly improved the built environment of an important metropolitan area. We had no trouble pulling together a shortlist of 20 exceptional buildings. Below you will find our top 10 list organized chronologically.

Building: UCSF – Fresno
Client: University of California Medical Center, San Francsico
Architect: Fong & Chan Architects
Year Built: 2002
Photo: UCSF
Description:

As Northern and Southern California continue to spread energies into the Central Valley, good design has come with the territory. The UCSF Medical Building anchors a prominent corner of the Community Medical Center Campus. The med‐student facility features a rotunda lobby with three‐story tall metal fins that are angled rhythmically as a nod to the notion of pages turning in a book. The rounded exterior walls along the street façade also set a rhythm in motion that gives the building an interesting street presence. The carefully designed sun shades which also embrace the curved streetwall provide shading from the summer sub for the space within. The exterior space created by the inward facing portion of the arc is designed as a pleasant semi‐public gathering space that can accommodate multiple social functions.

Building: Fresno Yosemite International
Airport Terminal
Client: City of Fresno
Architect: AECOM
Year Built: 2002
Photo: Bing.com

Description:

While the decade before brought us the internationally recognized Fresno City Hall – this decade brought about its younger cousin: The Fresno Yosemite International Airport Terminal. Equally progressive in its form and structure, the curved glass facade floods the entire Terminal with natural light. The exposed steel framing transcends the human scale enough to draw your attention and inspire awe yet is detailed and finished in such a way that does not make it feel overbearing. The reverse angle of the curtain wall gives the Terminal’s rounded fascia a form that begins to mimic the profile of an object in flight.

Building: Woodward Park Library
Client: County of Fresno
Architect: DSJ Architects
Year Built: 2004
Photo: DSJ
Description:

Embraced by the sweeping concrete surfaces that seemingly nurture the space within, your imagination is stimulated by the forms and surfaces even before picking up a book. Exceptional natural lighting on the inside with very little direct light make the interiors highly conducive to reading, studying and focusing your attention. With the circulation cleanly arranged around an entry foyer, the flow of circulation is comfortable yet interesting. A ‘Friends of the Library suite that is open after‐hours allows for the building to remain active through the evening as community space.

Building: Sante Fe Depot
Client: City of Fresno
Architect: Johnson Architecture
Year Built: 2005
Photo: Joe Moore
Description:

The historic Santa Fe Depot is a shining example of historic preservation in Fresno. Built in 1899 by the San Joaquin Valley Railroad (later to be acquired by Santa Fe) , the depot is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The building was originally designed by W.B. Story, and the 2004 / 2005 historic preservation project was led by Fresno based firm Johnson Architecture. Before its renovation, the building had suffered from years of neglect. It was last used as a passenger facility in 1966, was converted into a railroad communications center, and eventually sat vacant for decades. The building is typical of the Mission Revival style, with clay roof tiles and beige stucco walls. A small porte-cochere and clock tower, with a large wrought iron clock face, dominate the Santa Fe Avenue elevation of the building. The $7 million renovation removed decades of insensitive patchwork additions to the building, and restored the building’s historic appearance and functionality as a working passenger rail station. It now serves Fresno passengers on Amtrak’s popular San Joaquin line. The project received the prestigious Governor’s Historic Preservation Award, an Award of Excellence from the AIA San Joaquin, and a Preservation Design Award from the California Preservation Foundation.

Building: Coyle Federal Courthouse
Client: US General Services Administration
Architect: Moore Ruble Yudell Architects with Gruen Associates
Year Built: 2005
Photo: Clark Pacific
Description:

The later part of the 1990’s into the beginning of the 2000’s we saw substantial investment from the GSA on well designed federal buildings throughout the country. Fresno received that investment in design with the new Federal Courthouse. The building’s massing and intricate concrete paneled façade draws inspiration from rock formations in Yosemite National Park. The lobby is awe inspiring. The floor combines smooth and rough stones punctuated with granite boulders cut in half to form seating. Beyond the lobby the way finding, courtrooms, law library, and roof terraces all are well thought out, detailed and accentuated by local art.

Building: Unitarian Universalist Church
Client: Unitarian Universalist Church of Fresno
Architect: McCamant & Durrett Architects
Year Built: 2007
Photo: McCamant & Durrett Architects
Description:

Unitarian Universalist Church of Fresno is first and foremost distinguished by their commitment to sustainability and community. Those commitments are masterfully combined in a building that pays equal attention to interior and exterior spaces. The roof lines, material choices and color palate give the building a contemporary and earthy feel that sets it apart from other churches. This was Fresno County’s first LEED Certified building. The sustainable strategies range from drought tolerant landscaping, natural lighting and low water plumbing.

Building: Clovis Fire Station No. 5
Client: City of Clovis
Architect: Don Dommer Associates
Year Built: 2007
Photo: Terry O’Rourke
Description:

Clovis Fire Station No 5 opened in 2007 at 790 N. Temperance Avenue, just north of Highway 168, in the Clovis Research and Technology Park. It was designed by the Oakland, CA based firm Don Dommer Associates, The building uses a mix of industrial materials such as corrugated steel and concrete block in a contemporary context. The three bay garage area is highlighted by an open truss roof system supporting a gently arching steel roof. Clerestory windows provide natural light to the garage bays during the day, and at night creative up lighting highlights the exposed roof structure and interior in dramatic fashion.

Building: H Street Lofts
Client: Reza Assemi
Architect: Taylor Teter Partnership
Year Built: 2008
Photo: RSM Studio
Description:

H Street Lofts demonstrates an awareness of its context, and uses the adjacent railroad as inspiration for the façade. It also shows a curiosity and willingness to test new ideas and use materials in untraditional ways. The varying sizes, placement and treatment of the windows creates the feeling of moving boxcar. The building wraps around a courtyard to foster interaction of neighbors and includes a memorial mound landscaped with native plants to commemorate the property’s former life as an army induction center. In the past decade Reza Assemi has become synonymous urban living in Fresno. Of all the multifamily housing built in Fresno County during the decade, H Street Lofts stands out as the most authentic to the region.

Building: Clovis North High School
Performing Arts Center
Client: Clovis Unified School District
Architect: Darden Architects
Year Built: 2008
Photo: Tomas Ovalle
Description:

Home of the Paul Shaghoian Concert Hall and the Dan Pasesano Theatre is one of the finest high school performing arts facilities in the nation, rivaling many collegiate and professional concert venues. The Shaghoian Concert Hall seats 750 on one level, in a traditional box configuration, featuring a stage that sits within the main body of the theatre, with no proscenium arch. The stunning interior of the Concert Hall is known for its superb acoustics, with wood paneled walls, and a 50 foot ceiling. Above the stage sits a a fully automated “acoustic cloud” structure that adapts to change the acoustic properties of the room. Additional adaptive acoustic treatments are designed in the upper levels of the hall, allowing the venue to be customized for performances ranging from choirs to orchestras to jazz ensembles. Adjacent to the Concert Hall sits the Paesano Theatre, a 150 seat “black box” theatre performance space. Both venues are shared by programs from throughout the school district. The exterior of the Performing Arts Center is constructed largely of concrete block and steel. Massive steel columns support the entrance to the lobby, a visual reference to the steel framed agricultural packing houses that still function nearby.

Building: New Harvest Church
Client: New Harvest Church
Architect: Anthony C. Pings & Associates
Year Built: 2008
Photo: Shaunt Yemenjian
Description:

The balance and careful treatment of every surface of the building are enough to have made Christian Dior jealous. Built as an adaptive re-use of a fruit packing plant, the tapered planes spread outward in a way that resembles the opened husk of a fruit. With so many 20th century buildings addressing a single façade (dismissing the notion that buildings have context and multiple vantage points), the New Harvest Church campus captures your attention up front and sustains your interest as you move about. One can also appreciate use of modern technology in the CNC cut signage carved away from the webs of steel I-beams throughout.

Are we on the mark? Do you feel we missed any? Share your comments with us below.

Most fresnans are familiar with the brain drain concept. It is a term referring to the most talented individuals draining away from our region because better opportunities and higher quality environments exist for them elsewhere. In the impact series we demonstrate that many of these individuals should not be mourned but celebrated for the impact they are having on the built environment around the world.

In this impact article we introduce you to professor Milton Curry. We first learned that Milton was a Fresno native during an interview with one of his students, Enoch Sears.

Milton has taught extensively at Cornell University for 15 years, and at Arizona State University and Harvard University. The coursework ranges from architecture to to the arts, urban design, and real estate. His full biography can be found on the Cornell website. Below is the Q&A that I had with Milton.

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KIEL: What was your experience like growing up in Fresno? Do you have any memories with strong ties to places here?

MILTON: I grew up in West Fresno during the late 1960’s to early 1980’s. I have fond memories of a city caught between a rural sensibility and the growing pains of a mid-sized American city trying to figure out how to manage growth. It was a politically active time, coming out of the mid-1960’s and the aftermath of 1968. Fresno, however, felt isolated from the rougher edges of the political situation, and somewhat distanced from in-the-streets protest. i wondered about this later while I was in graduate school and realized all that was going on outside of Fresno, in cities like Oakland, Chicago, and many other American cities.

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KIEL: Much of your academic work has a socio-ecomonics/spatial equity focus. How did this become an interest of yours?

MILTON: I realized in college that architecture has a unique role to play in making the social and political commitments to a democratic society physical – that is, to actualize common aspirations using design and aesthetics. Eventhough aesthetic intention doesn’t always translate to everyone, it establishes a dialogue, and the dialogue is what is vitally important. When affordable housing or a city hall physicalizes the aspirations for a customized living unit or a participatory and transparent hall of government, then i believe architecture has connected with its constituencies.

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KIEL: With Fresno’s concentration of poverty and other issues, did it play a role in your work? Has it been a case study in any of your classes or writing?

MILTON: I have not revisited Fresno as a site of my own research work. I recently sat on a final thesis review at University of Virginia and for the first time critiqued a student whose project dealt with the San Joaquin Valley and its problem with fog and air pollution. It hit me then that Fresno should be leading a discourse on new sustainable agriculture and progressive solutions to improve air quality because these problems are so pervasive throughout the Valley. I don’t know if that kind of work has found a constituency in the political domain in fresno, but it certainly is a timely set of topics for the citizens of Fresno.

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KIEL: How do you stitch together the varying subject of design, real estate development, and art?

MILTON: Global transformations in the financing of urban development and the pace of urbanization in the Asian peninsula, the Middle East, and parts of Europe has led to an increased disciplinary focus on the processes of urbanization. I have been working on issues of race and class for a while – predominantly concerned with cities and the evolution of inner cities and suburbs. These issues are magnified by the current subprime crisis – which exposes a pervasive and peculiar aspiration for a single family home on a 1-3 acre plot. Simultaneously, I have been working with artists and curators on the interaction bewteen contemporary art and architecture, specifically the reimagining of public space and new typologies of urban development where art and installation art is a vital component.

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KIEL: What lessons have you learned from design studios you taught on Mexico City and Havana?

MILTON: Urbanization in Mexico City, Havana, and other latin and South American cities evolved differently than it did in the United States in the postwar period. These cities have unique historical patterns of development that end up merging or synergizing with modernist building types and modern building and construction processes. Therefore, the modernism of the city is reacting to a different context than say Chicago or Fresno. The modern architecture in these cities has a more regional personality to it, eventhough massive masterplanned cities and large-scale urban developments have had negative impacts on the diversity of building design.

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KIEL: So far what is your most significant accomplishment?

MILTON: Teaching for over 15 years at Cornell University, one of the nation’s premiere program in architecture. We have a tremendously talented and diverse student body – they graduate with an informed perspective on the real-world challenges that exceed simplistic architectural solutions. i am proud to be a part of their intellectual development.

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KIEL: What are you currently working on (design, academic and/or teaching)?

MILTON: I am working on some large-scale urban development in Northern California, and on designing some unique prototypes for compact urban living within what would be traditionally identified as suburban contexts.

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READER QUESTION: “The San Joaquin Valley’s abysmal poverty and education attainment rate – among the worst in the U.S., combined with a limited range of distinguished architectural practice and infrastructure – approximates the conditions that spawned the late Samuel Mockbee’s Rural Studio in the Deep South. What inspiration might you offer our region’s architecture profession to use its transformative bag of tricks to similarly address our regrettably similar socioeconomic/quality of life conditions?”

MILTON: When I return to Fresno for Christmas Holidays I am amazed by the sameness of the entire built landscape. I ask myself why there is not more experimentation, more diversity. I think that clients and designers need to simply take more risks. In a place like Fresno I think there is tremendous opportunity to deviate from the norm and create a real following – whether its in the area of a local business, temporary structures for Summer, or occupying vacant storefronts.

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READER QUESTION: “Do you think Fresno has a distinctive vernacular style?”

MILTON: No. What i remember about the Fresno that I grew up in, what I remember the most is the vast landscape of open space, farmland, and the incredible potential to inhabit the landscape. I often imagined what Fresno was like when it was all desert. I lived and taught in Phoenix/Tempe for 3 years – before its last growth period that produced the worst problems of suburban sprawl – I grew to love the desert as an inhabitable landscape but also for the mystical qualities that it possessed when the sun set or when the monsoons drenched the land. I hope that that magical quality to imagine these uncanny qualities of the city are not lost. Every city needs this parallel reality that also gets physicalized once in a while.

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If you know of any fresnans making a strong impact in the built environment around the world that we should write about, then leave a comment or contact us.

In a new series we are calling fresh archop will feature an individual in architecture or allied industry who has just relocated to the San Joaquin Valley, or returned after an extended absence. For the first edition we introduce a fascinating individual named Enoch Sears.

I first met Enoch via email. He’d responded to a blog post on Fresno Famous. At the time, he was living in Panama designing a Caribbean resort. An evening this August I discovered his return when we encountered each other the Fulton Mall. Below are his words regarding: growing up, education, travel, returning to the San Joaquin Valley, architecture, influences, design process, notable experiences, and what he is currently working on.
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Growing Up
I grew up right here in the Central Valley in Lemoore, forty minutes south of Fresno. My parents are originally from the Bay Area and moved to the Valley when my dad got a teaching job in Kettleman City around 1980. Some of my childhood memories include riding my bike around town and the surrounding farmland during the hot, dusty summers, exploring the canals and eucalyptus groves; and driving up the old two-lane Highway 41 with my parents to visit Fresno.
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Education
I studied architecture at Cornell University from 1998-2002. While at Cornell I participated in a unique design studio: Imagining Cuba in 2004. Interestingly enough, the studio was led by professor Milton Curry, a Fresno native who graduated from Bullard High School. For the studio, I designed a hotel/condo tower situated over a retail space that also housed an embassy for American Democracy. I have been captivated by the story of Cuba- especially how it relates to the concept of trying to choose an alternate form of lifestyle amidst our modern society. One of the most interesting classes I took at school was a class on Cuba (different from the design studio) that examined Cuba’s history and present situation from a sociological, architectural and historical perspective.
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Travel
I have traveled throughout the US, Central and South America (throw in a cruise to Nassau in the Bahamas – great salad bar!)- quite limited really. I spent last year (2008) in the Caribbean on an island of Panamabworking on pie-in-the-sky designs for a resort developer. As for architecture one of the buildings I’ve been most impressed with is the Kimbell Art museum in Dallas, TX. I have yet to delve into the architecture of Fresno. I’m awed each time I drive past those huge silos just north of Hwy 180 by the Tower District.
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Return to San Joaquin Valley
I moved away from the Valley for school and work, and then came back briefly around 2002. I then moved to Houston, Texas. I lived and worked there for five years primarily with Hawthorne Architects until I couldn’t stand the humidity any more. After a year abroad in the Caribbean my wife and I decided to come back to Fresno because of family ties and the fresh grapes. I love the arid air here! 100 degrees without humidity feels like 80 in Houston.
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Admired Architects
I admire the idea of “the architect”, the master builder, the creator. Most architects fall into this category more or less. Specifically, Sam Mockbee (1, 2, 3)and Glen Murcutt (1, 2, 3)for their explorations into the “local” and the vernacular, Frank Lloyd Wright (1, 2, 3) for his sheer power of creation, and I can’t leave out Le Corbusier (1, 2), the giant of modern architecture, + many more.
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Design Process
I design primarily in plan. Sketch, modify, sketch, modify, sketch. I admire boats and cars in that every piece has a function and this function is emphasized by design. I try to bring the same logic and beauty found on a boat to design. Beauty is a charged word. Sometimes a design is beautiful because of its sheer creativity or how it stimulates ones mind. The client is key to finding a proper design solution.
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Notable Experiences
Every meeting with a client is a notable experience. I love the human aspect of the business.
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Working on Now
I’m currently working on an apartment complex for Hanford, CA with architect Chas Rhoads as well as a residential remodel. I just received my architectural registration in Texas. Next step is to apply for reciprocity in CA and take the California Supplemental Examination (CSE). It is amazing the amount of paperwork and steps involved.
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Enoch Sears
Architect
LEED AP, AC

Construction.Consultation.Design
www.enochsears.com

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Please join me in welcoming back Enoch

If you are or know someone in the architecture field new to the area contact us.

We would like to know about your school experiences. What are good or bad experiences that you can link to the environment you where in?

For instance. At Edison High School, I always hated going to my classes that were in portable classrooms. The air was damp, the floor flexible squeaky, air conditioner loud, and windows small.

A good experience was in the shop. It was a big volume, and it was a place for creating and experimenting.

Please share your experiences.