Mazes

I went on an adventure today! I wanted to sew all day and knock out those baby quilts, but something in the air told me to go hang out with my friends and do something for myself.

I met up with some friends from school and we spent the day at the National Building Museum and in Old Town Alexandria. It was GREAT to catch up and hang out- we talked about our ideas and worries about thesis year, we went through the exhibits at the museum, we ate at the new Chipotle-chain Asian restaurant called Shop House (super delish, get the meatballs), and we read books in the museum gift shop.

There's a maze at the National Building Museum right now, designed by the famous architect Bjarke Ingles. The maze is designed to be built in a month, last for two, and is built in such a way that once you reach the center, you can see the maze walls around you, revealing the labyrinth you just escaped.

I also learned the difference between a maze and a labyrinth. A labyrinth is one winding path without dead ends that promotes the visitor to contemplate life and things. A maze is a convoluted path with tricks and dead ends that is not designed to promote contemplation, but instead frustration. And then leave you going, "UGH WHAT" when you finally find the end and you're like "what the hell was that walking around in dead ends for an hour for".

But I really liked this maze, it was very cool! It was pretty short, and not too difficult to get through, but that doesn't mean it wasn't fun. I was not unsatisfied or frustrated. And the tops of the maze were all sanded, so they were smooth to the touch. A nice detail that not many people notice. 

 

The walls rise up as you move to the edge of the maze.

There was an exhibit called "Designing for Disasters", which I found really interesting. It talked about hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, and floods, and how we need to design our homes and buildings to withstand and accommodate these disasters. It's something I'd love to explore in Architecture, coming up with solutions for these weather disasters that (I believe) are only going to get worse as we go into the future. 

I think this is a great time to be an architect. Our world is changing in so many ways- the climate is changing, storms are getting crazier, education in America needs reform... And I belong to a group of people that gets to come up with solutions to move our country forward into the future. IT'S SO COOL. I have the opportunity to fix problems. I have the opportunity to create beauty. I have the PRIVILEGE to design for America and the world. I am so excited. SO EXCITED.

On an unrelated-to-what-I-did-today but related-to-the-topic-of-this-blog note, I finally got to photograph the scrappy chevron quilt I made for Hanna!

Oh I am so happy with how it turned out.

I especially like the back. I threw together all the scraps I had.

Word to your mother.