We moved to South Minneapolis this year, so while we no longer can claim the NE Arts District as our home, we are continuing First Thursdays Free Design at Locus.
First Thursday of every month, get an hour of Locus’ time. We’ll help you improve your life, make your kids smarter, select books for you, connect the dots, arrange your marriage, or simply shoot the bull. Or we can just play ping pong.
Your business. Your home. Your church. Your garage. Your kid’s cardboard fort. We can make it better.
Ground Rules
1) Sign up in advance. 1 architect; 1 hour; 5:00, 6:15, or 7:30.
2) Come to our studio 708 W. 40th Street (at Lyndale Ave. S.).
3) Bring in no less than four bottles of interesting beer or cider. We share, but you leave leftovers!
4) Bring in all the relevant background information so we can be helpful.
Email to get your time slot. [email protected] Your life will be better for it, and who doesn’t want a better life?
A big thanks to all who visited the Gallery at Locus Architecture (GaLA) for the recent exhibition of 1940 newspapers. We had a tremendous turnout and even made WCCO’s evening news (story begins after the commercial).
The papers will continue to be on display through the end of the year, but some will soon be traveling to the Minnesota Historical Society as part of The 70 Years Project. The project launches on the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor (December 7th, 2011) with a display of select newspapers, as well as, a documentary film titled First Shot: The Secret Submarine Attack on Pearl Harbor. Please visit the link above for tickets and additional information.
The other day I was chatting with a friend who launched into the argument about global warming being part of a large natural cycle. You’ve heard it. ”The planet has been in an abnormally cool pattern for several thousand years.” ”There is no scientific proof that humans are even capable of impacting earth temperatures. ”The leftist media is trying to stir up panic about climate so liberals can justify expensive untested environmental legislation to a terrified population.” And so on.
“OK,” I said, “Let’s say you’re right. Can we agree the atmosphere likely has more CO2 than it did 150 years ago? Doesn’t scientific evidence suggest the earth’s temperature is rising? Do we agree the cost of energy is likely to increase?” We were OK so far. I went on, “Let’s leave the issue of global warming aside; can we agree reducing energy consumption is a good idea?” We did agree.
I offer the following strategies for talking about energy and global warming with your pals that don’t share your philosophy. People justify saving energy however they want – altruism or pocketbook. Who cares as long as they do it?
Environmental liberal (AKA “utopian treehugger”)
Saving energy isn’t about the short sided desire of saving money, it’s about taking responsibility for the forests, the landscape, the oceans, endangered species, and stopping the scourges of acid rain and pollution. We need to stop the destruction, no matter the investment, because the planet will no longer support us if we don’t. Nature will continue, we won’t.
Fiscal conservative (AKA “greedy narcissist”)
Saving energy makes financial sense, and can produce win-win scenarios. Look at companies like WalMart. They are reducing energy by putting skylights in their stores and eliminating light fixtures. Guess what? They found out daylight makes people buy more stuff. They are saving energy and selling more product, which is good for their stock holders. Energy costs money. More energy saved, more dividends.
Progressive (AKA “tax and spender”)
Saving energy will save millions of lives. If we continue to consume as much energy as we have since the beginning of the industrial revolution, it is an indisputable fact that the earth’s ice sheets will melt and oceans will rise. Coastal areas, which hold the vast majority of the world’s population will be inundated with water, leading to population and economic collapse across all nations and markets. We need to invest in renewable power so that we can move towards a “green” economy without any carbon-based fuels. It’s the only responsible strategy.
Deeply religious (AKA “lockstep zealot”)
Saving energy is a way of being better stewards for God’s creation. There are several ways reduction in energy use can stimulate the mission of a religious organization. One, more energy saved, more funds available for doing God’s work. Two, reduction in consumption can slow the rate of natural resource depletion, which protects the interests of future generations. Three, caring for the planet is fundamentally our responsibility and what God entrusted us to do. We are the planet’s caretakers.
Social Liberal (AKA “socialist dreamer”)
You cannot have a comprehensive platform of human rights without environmental sustainability, and you can’t have environmental sustainability without energy reduction. If we’re consuming more energy per capita than people do in other parts of the world, we’re taking more than our fair share. We either need to increase our ability to produce clean energy for everyone or reduce our consumption such that it is more in line with other nations. Refusal to do so is passive genocide.
Social Conservative (AKA “intolerant”)
Saving energy will allow us to stop exporting American dollars to support the corrupt oil economies of the Middle East and South America. We’d be better off investing locally to help support American jobs. That could take the form of investing in high-paying renewable technologies in conjunction with finding ways to reduce consumption of carbon fuels such that our use is more in line with domestic energy production. Keep it home.
A friend of mine references the thinking of Mary Parker Follett when suggesting we think more about how we can achieve “integration” (I win, you win) when looking for solutions to tough issues, instead of resorting to the typical oppositional tactics modeled by elected officials – domination (I win, you lose) or compromise (I lose, you lose). It’s probably not always possible, but a worthy goal.
Hit that light switch on your way out, will ya?
InformationInsulationArt – Locus Architecture OPEN; Friday, November 4, 5-9 p.m.
Gallery at Locus Architecture (GaLA); 708 W. 40th St.; Minneapolis
Think of your earliest memory or an influential moment in your life. You probably recall the weather, others who were with you, the smell, the lighting. The impact of a memory often allows us to recall other less important details by association.
Architecture, likewise, is memorable when experiential.
We create spaces by harnessing the energy of our clients’ stories. Our greatest successes have little to do with specifying faucets and floor stains, a requisite skill of any able designer. We craft built environments worthy of memory, a higher standard most aren’t designed to meet.
When we began tearing down the ceiling in our office, exposing 1939 & 1940 newspaper (insulation), we unknowingly stumbled upon thousands of “lost” stories. Slapdash demolition halted immediately while we carefully separated full-page layouts of “Oomph” (Ann Sheridan) from front page Extras printed hours after Paris fell to Nazi invaders.
The quick solution – bundle it all up for the recycling truck – would have saved us hundreds of hours of time. We could have, but our loss would have been yours as well. No Mystery of Nylon Hosiery or the forgotten knowledge that Minneapolitan’s Grandmother Sold Idea Of Wearing Whiskers to ‘Abe’ Lincoln or even the fact that Hitler is Afraid of the U.S. Wayzata Woman Declares.
Paging through old spreads, we were surprised by the gossip journalism above the fold on page one (Wendy Plays ‘Burglar and Lady’ Role), the lack of political correctness (U.S. Protests Jap Bombings), or the amount of patronizing articles (Only Woman to hold this Man-Size Job). Perhaps the Ol’ Days were Good, but this was the “Greatest Generation”. Wouldn’t you think they would have taken their news more seriously than we?
At Locus, we see value in the things others overlook; a nuance in a play of light, a possible efficiency in a daily ritual, or the graphic beauty of dusty old insulation. It’s all about the story, the memory.
How will we ever forget the process of finding, separating, reading, and reusing these newspapers? We’re excited to share that experience with you. Take a stack home and find your own treasures. If the spaces you occupy aren’t worthy of the effort, let us help you change that.
