Recent drawings and projects

Here are some recent drawings and projects from 2008. (Click on image to enlarge.)
This is a master plan that the Andrews University chapter of Students for the New Urbanism came up with at a charrette in October. There is a small square at the entry to the development where there are live work/units and 5 townhouses. There are 10 small single family units and 3 treehouse units. The through road connects to an existing neighborhood to the north. This property hopes to join with an existing 'greenway' walk of several miles. It is a half-mile walk or bikeride to a university campus.The next five drawings are from the Analytical Study Abroad tour with Andrews University School of Architecture. Above is Pienza, a small town in the Tuscan landscape of Italy. It is a walled city that reveals an ideal relationship between the city and the working landscape. As a class we walked from Pienza to the next town, San Quirico d'Orcia. We stopped to draw and watercolor the beautiful landscape.This is a study and comparison of two piazzas in Rome: Piazza de Renzi, a small mostly residential piazza; and Piazza san Maria in Trastevere, which is a larger more public space. This is a perspectival study of framed views found at the Paris Opera House.A canal study (another form of a street) in Brugge, Belgium.
These are drawings in Sundborn, Sweden, the home of painter Karl Larsson. There is a special relationship here again between the town and country. In Sundborn as well as in Pienza, the church is the hinge that connects the two. It is on axis with the road from town, and on axis for one arriving by water.

These three watercolor renderings are from a week ago: Foreground Building Studio. It is a proposal for a Chicago Field House in Welles Park, in the Lincoln Square Neighborhood. It would house a cafe, gallery, meeting hall, and natatorium.
The parti (see site plan at top right) is that the building is a backdrop for activities along N. Lincoln Avenue and the ball fields. It is an urban building that terminates a street and acts to connect to the rest of the park. The terrace along the street offers a place to eat, to sit, to rent bicycles, and to watch the baseball game.
Lastly, this is an image from Urban Studies--one of my favorite classes--with Professor Andrew von Maur. There are four diagrams studying the figure-ground, street network, public spaces, and civic buildings in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It also shows examples of background buildings and a foreground building.

some sketches

Some sketches from Analytical Studies with Professor Mark Moreno:

Villa Farnese, Italy

Palazzo Vechio, Florence, Italy

Portal of Charles Bridge, Prague, Czech Republic

Pioneer Memorial Church, Michigan

Near Stockholm, Sweden

Corner Flex Building

This is a project for Background Building Studio. It is a corner 'flex' building in downtown Berrien Springs, MI. That means it is flexible commercial space. So the plans are flexible and simple. The bulk of the focus is on the elevations. We just turned it in on February 20. I spent a lot of time on it. The watercoloring is the most fun, especially adding the shadows which make it look much more real. Enjoy.

third story window and cornice detail
from top to bottom, left to right: Ferry Street (front) elevation, Mechanic Street (side) elevation, stair diagram, transverse section, reflected ceiling plan, second floor plan, first floor plan, partial elevation and wall section
second story window detail

A group of friends and I went to Silver Beach in St. Joseph, MI to see the ice and frozen waves last Sabbath. These pictures are from Kristina Gabres. They were taken from the lighthouse side.
So fascinating! Here, the Saint Joseph rivers enters into Lake Michigan. The waves splash upon the pier and railing and the water freezes in many layers, giving it a milky white color.
A platform and light pole has been repeatedly pummeled by rather large waves. In the fall, the platform was a nice place to stand and watch a lightning storm with Emily. I also walked out there with Kyle when he visited.
Arctic like, eh? In the distance you can see the rest of the ice-berg sheet, covering most of the lake.

the unfinished and unaccounted for rest of the story

Nearly eight months after my last post, life is settling back down. Coming home from Cambodia has been harder than I thought it would be. I had heard that culture shock can be bad coming back home. But I couldn't imagine what it might be like.

I'm settling in to life here. It's different than before. I will never settle into life the way it was. At first I was fine. I was glad I went. I was glad to be home. It was good to see my friends and family again. It took all summer (all six weeks of it) to eat all the different foods I hadn't had in a while. People would ask me about culture shock. The only shock was that I thought I didn't have culture shock. I didn't know what was wrong with me. When I left for school, I hugged my dad, brother, sister-in-law, and mom. I cried. I wasn't ready to leave again yet. I hadn't had enough time. Not enough time. I lived a year in another country, with no one I had previously known. I didn't even begin to share that year and all of its experiences with those I love. I didn't want to leave and feel alone again.

after studio

I didn't feel like staying at all late after studio. I played racquetball yesterday and I am sore. My arms are sore, my neck is sore, my pectorals are sore, my abdomens are sore. It hurts to laugh, but when Professor Seibold, speaking of egress issues, mentioned that Professor "Mark Moreno was coming out of the closet", I enjoyed laughing anyway. It brought back good memories of a time when laughing until it hurt was more common. I wasn't hungry when I left studio, so I went back to my room, anticipating some time to take it easy, being that I left studio somewhat early.


On my walk home I photographed (before dark) a 3-part sequence to sketch later that night for analytical studies. I took my time stamping my lonely footsteps in the snow, avoiding the plowed sidewalks. I walked under a beech tree, it's translucent brown leaves dropped casually yet elegantly on the white canvas. I realized that I am the only one to walk in this place during the last two weeks of snow, even though it's at the center of campus. When I arrived indoors, I could feel my cold face against the warm air.

Through the lobby, up the stairs, down the hall, and into room 339. The dark room continued to hold my roommate in his chair, fixed predictably in front of his computer. This time, he spoke to me first, "How's it going?" Glad for some initiative on his part, I replied a bit surprised. I played along and acted interested. Then I sat down and considered his one choice of a significant thing to share with me. I stare as he eats his styrofoam take-out supper and sips from one of two glass bottles, one already empty. I find myself disappointed, even hateful of his oblivious consumption and lack of action. He has no idea how fortunate he is to be a U.S. citizen, going to school, with all his needs met.

With that, I decided to do my laundry and check my mail. There, in my post box, was a something-from-Emily-sized envelope. I smiled. I inspected it carefully and my smile widened. Some beads had rubbed holes on two sides of the envelope. I knew there was something special inside. Bearing it slowly back up the steps to my room, drawing out the time as long as possible, I reveled in the moment. After clearing my desk, I held the letter lightly as if performing a ritual and read it slowly. Like a rosary, the hemp and beads are now around my wrist.

Before I knew it, the cafe was soon to close at 7:00. I was annoyed at the passing of time. The feeling of folly I had drawn from my roommate still weighed heavily on my shoulders like a cape. I didn't see anyone I wanted to sit with, until I saw Christopher, Sondra, Kisha, and Bryce, old classmates from second-year. I'm always excited when I get to talk and laugh with them again. Talk and laugh we did.

I was supposed to call my Father before it got too late. I was excited that I still had yet to read my devotion and more about Joshua and the Israelites in Numbers. I still have those sketches to do as well. Where time has gone this evening, I can't say. Yet, I have crossed a few things off my list. I have been reminded of the importance of expressing and sharing my thoughts. I talked with Emily, I have written, and I will review my day again in prayer before I rest. Emily asked me if I had a rough day. I wasn't quite sure how to answer. I suppose some of it might have been rough, but right now--i just feel good. I've heard some good music, and what's more, my most recent favorite song, "Apologize", is up next on the playlist.

The Barn House

This is a presentation I put together of the Barn House that my brother, Nathan, and I worked on together. We did the design and were in the middle of construction of the heavy-timber frame when I left for Cambodia in August of 2006. Nathan and others worked on it to completion. He and his wife, Jessica moved in in March of 2007. I was able to see it a few months later. It's really gratifying to see a design under construction or complete. It's an amazing thing. I am grateful and fortunate to have been a part of the process.


We are working on another project that is almost complete: a major renovation of a single family house that included removing the floor and roof and adding a second floor to the masonry shell. I was excited to use newly learned concepts from Placemaking Studio. I will post pictures and drawings of it as soon as possible.

Silk Island

Leaving in a month, I'm finally posting some pictures of infamous Phnom Penh traffic.




And of students here at Cambodia Adventist School.

Kindergarteners at the music program June 1.




Khey Sothy during PE and Sem Visak in the background, two of my 8th graders. I play football with them on Fridays.


One of the many sunsets viewed from my roof.


On the ferry across the Ton Le Sap to Silk Island. Jeremiah, Angie, Michelle, Lindsay, and Jonathan (behind the camera) rented dirtbikes and headed out of town for a Sunday drive.



Anybody know what this is called? Let me know. We liked it and the few cool drops of rain that fell through the blazing rays of sun.



The cutest little fella watching us watching a couple ladies make silk.


Holding a camera in the country entitles you to the honor of being mobbed my smiling children.