I love Washington D.C. Not the traffic or the high-density congestion, but the architecture – both old and new. Driving in from the east and still groggy from lack of sleep, I hit the GW Memorial Parkway and my eyes immediately start to clear. I begin to focus and search through the trees for the other side of the Potomac. National monuments, theatres and hotels, libraries and grand cathedrals, historic estates and mansions – take your pick. From the neoclassical taste of Greece and Rome to medieval Europe and ancient Egypt, you can see international influences with each turn. Couple that with all the newer, modernist low- to mid-rise multifamily urban infill that’s going on, and you get the international melting pot of architecture that IS our capital city. What a great city to host the 2012 AIA National Convention and Design Expo.
Architects are rooted in design. They are masters of the visual. They look for cues – cues to distinguish, provoke, interpret, enhance and ultimately initiate or complete their vision. They aspire to be inspired.
To all building product manufacturers… you have the power to stop an architect in his tracks at the AIA Expo, and some of you are doing it really well. From the layout of your booth to the arrangement of your product displays, this is a golden opportunity to spark the inspirational flame for an entire industry of professionals that SEEK inspiration daily. Just sit and watch. You can see the facial expression, the change in body language, when an architect sees something that incites a thought process. It’s that initial visual engagement that can define a walk-in from a walk-by.
Contact us for more information on how we can help you inspire architects/designers.
Flickr image courtesy of jnpoulos.
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