Susan Szenasy’s METROPOLIS

Susan Szenasy’s

METROPOLIS

Susan is Editor in Chief for the world-renowned architecture and design magazine Metropolis.  She graciously constructed a presentation while on tour for the  “Inclusive Design for the Next Generation competition!”  As she took the podium she is a modest, humble and honest soul…she began to speak from her heart.  With a spirit of service she shares with us that she’s just brunt out on design contents that simply encourages creating, building pretty worthless things, spaces.  She feels that design is more than styling and more about human concerns.  So, how does good design derive?   Susan’s short answer and theory is,  “through an interest in social and ethological conditions”.

She plays a short film and introduces her audience to several teams of people whom had an interest in this very thing, or simply asked a question.  We learn that Genware, the Hydro Wall, Lunar Residence Streetlights, and the Solar Façade are all fascinating inventions by people who perhaps recognized a problem, asked themselves a question and used technology to solve the problem.  Careful not to believe that technology solved the problem, only helped.  We understand and it’s demonstrated that there are “NO limits to human imagination” . 

I am also intrigued that Susan unveils common mistakes / obstacles that often prohibit many of us from moving forward with our creations.  She identifies “Funds” or the lack of, would be the number one obstacle that many of us face when we set out to design.  Therefore, she explained that one could have to fund one’s very own project.  Also, bringing in investors would be a strongly urged to jumpstart a project. 

Question : “How do you step into the dialogue of sustainability?”  Susan encourages her audience to “think of a built environment in an organic perspective”.  She believes that incorporating multiple disciplines when designing a building is really the best approach from the start. 

Question  :  Do we allow outdated technology and methods dictate our level of thinking and doing?  Or, do we rise to the occasion and utilize recent discoveries in technology to advance in sustainability?  How do you make a building breathe on it’s own, produce it’s own heat?

Design has to be at the center of solving problems?

Where will I fit in the dialogue?