RE: Garcia Award Review
From: Mike Calvino <mike@calvinodesign.com>
Sent: Wednesday, October 27, 2021 9:20 AM
Subject: Re: Garcia Award Review
Dear Garcia Award Recipients:
I write this to everyone involved as a matter of conscience. In the 22 years since I received this award, I have seen quite a spectacle of actions and arguments that have constantly dragged this award down from its intended prestige as an award based on design talent and dedication. I have always argued that the award should be bestowed based on a consistent body of work that shows a dedication to design, talent, and enthusiasm, just like the award description states. What I have seen many times are entrants who are friends or co-workers of previous recipients whose body of work may have a single, solidly designed project, if that much, within an otherwise mundane and obviously client driven body of work. This shows a willingness of the jury (past recipients) to bestow the award based on political connections or friendships instead of a dedicated effort to realize design work based on principle.
Another repetitive issue I see is that many times the award is given to an entrant whose body of work shows a number of un-built works which are very well done, but the body of built work is severely compromised by client and style driven design work (if you can call it that). The award is again given because of who they know or for whom they work.
I believe that Architecture likely has 2 sorts of professionals (maybe more), but 2 types of designers at least: one is the Scholar of Architecture, the other is the Architect. The Scholar believes in nothing but can realize any style of architecture. The Architect - the artist - is one who believes in a set of design principles so strongly that they are willing to sacrifice projects, position, fame, income, title, friends, co-workers, for integrity of their work.
I believe that there may be hope for this award, but only if the jury ceases to be the past award winners. The AIA would need to invite Architects, whose prestige for design is renowned, or at least collectively acknowledged (again subjective and susceptible to bias), to review the projects and recommend a winner. I see this as the only way that it could possibly regain the level of prestige, integrity, and honor that it was intended to have.
An additional option that may return some integrity to the award would be to award it for a single project, not reviewed by past award winners. This way, at least the intent of the award (for a project showing "a dedication, talent, and enthusiasm for architecture in a single project" could be seen as equal to the result, plus it could be awarded each year which seems to be an important issue for many of the jurors. Integrity is simply that what is intended is what is realized.
As I have argued many times in the past, this is not personal, it's not about people (despite what many say: "it's about the relationships" - that's just a cover for the lack of principles). . . it is ALL about Principles, and Architecture is about materials, structure, space, and proportion as it relates to people. So I hope that no one takes it personally, it's about something bigger than people . . . Principles cannot be destroyed or defamed, but Principals can. That's why we should all be striving for something greater than ourselves and put our belief in something that is larger than us . . . and then follow it; act on it.
After 21 years of attempts to convince the group of these ideals to no avail, I sadly return the Eduardo Garcia Award in Architecture that I was granted on Nov. 6, 1999.
--Mike Calvino
Studio: 813-839-2057 Cell: 813-215-1317
Calvino Architecture Studio, Inc.
AA0003302 CGC062112
mike@calvinodesign.com
www.calvinodesign.com
