The mother art is architecture. Without architecture of our own we have no soul of our own civilisation. - Frank Lloyd Wright

Welcome to The DesignMind eBrief, brought to you by our sponsors:

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In this edition:

November Community Snapshot

Architecture through the eyes of a past president
an interview with the SAIA's immediate past president, Hassan Asmal, about his tenure as president of the Institute and his views on the state of South African architecture in general.

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Member Spotlight

Dusty

Dusty suggested the use of Blackle, instead of Google, as a means for all designers to save energy and do their part for the environment. read more

Vivienne Wakeford

Vivienne started a highly topical debate regarding service from South African suppliers. To contribute to this discussion... read more

Phillip Roos

Phillip created the most successful group on DesignMind, called the Green Collaborative, which has over 60 members and is continually active. "Discussions for going green. Will it save our planet? The science behind green, south africans say your say." read more

Xander Collen

Xander works at Blueprint Architectural Studios. Their aim is to produce buildings of high aesthetic value and quality in design within the limitations of time and budget. They also provide visual design solutions that are flexible and sensitive to the environment within which the building is sited. Furthermore, they believe in hands-on involvement on projects, ensuring clients total access to a comprehensive design and architectural service with the dedicated involvement of every person on the project. read more

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WIN WITH AUTODESK!

Autodesk is offering you two chances to win an 4GB iPod Nano, the ultimate music player and storage device.

If you are not currently a member of the DesignMind network, sign up here and earn 1 point towards the draw. To earn a 2nd point, join the Autodesk group.

If you are a DesignMind member already, don't fret. You can still earn a point for joining the Autodesk group.

Remember that membership to DesignMind is free to Built Industry professionals and specifiers.

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HELP US SHAPE DESIGNMIND

This is your space, and as creative professionals, we'd love you to help shape it. We're looking for interesting content from you, the Members! Are you busy with, or do you have completed projects you're particularly proud of? Why not shout it out to the design world! Or, perhaps there are some thorny, controversial issues you'd like us to cover?

Please mail us your thoughts - positive and negative, encouraging or outrageous to our team on info@designmind.co.za and we'll work on making this mail and the DesignMind website the premier design industry meeting place.

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Dear DesignMind Member

The month of November calls for celebration as the DesignMind community exceeds 3,000 members!

A warm welcome to new members, we hope that you enjoy the exchange of valuable industry insights, information and opinions offered here on DesignMind.

There are now 230 blog posts, with 'Lack of Service in South Africa' inspiring the most responses and stirring up much debate around service delivery in the industry. There are 270 Forums, with 'Fav Rendering Package' being the most popular topic to date. There are also 33 groups to join and 40 events diarised.

Employment activity is on the increase too with 40 job opportunities being offered on DesignMind and 36 people in search of work or a new challenge within the industry.

Not yet a member? Join now and don't miss out on the benefits of connecting and collaborating with your colleagues in the DesignMind community. Registration is easy and membership is only a couple of clicks away.

www.designmind.co.za

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October Community Snapshot Network > There are 3002 members on DesignMind > 26 new members joined during the past week Photos > SmartGlass has posted the most photos > Chongwe House 3 is the most popular photo to date > There are 1232 photos on DesignMind MarketPlace > Fav Rendering Package is the most popular forum post to date > There are 270 forum topics on DesignMind Events There are 40 events on DesignMind Blog > Lack of Service in South Africa... is the most popular blog post to date > There are 230 blog posts on DesignMind Groups > There are 33 groups on DesignMind Videos > Athol Phillips, Autograph Design Technologies has posted the most videos > Bali House #1 is the most popular video to date > There are 30 videos on DesignMind Tenders > There are 104 tenders posted on DesignMind Jobs > There are 40 job offers on DesignMind > There are 36 people looking for jobs on DesignMind

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Architecture through the eyes of SAIA's immediate past president

This month's highlight is an interview with the knowledgeable and esteemed immediate past President of the South African Institute of Architects (SAIA), Hassan Asmal. In this interview, Hassan shares with readers the highlights of his tenure as SAIA's president, the changing role of the Institute and the challenges facing architecture in South Africa today.

When did you become president of the South African Institute of Architects?
I became president of SAIA in August 2006 and completed my term in August 2008.

What is the role of the president of SAIA and what responsibilities come with this position?
The role of the president is to represent the interests of the profession, but, most importantly, it is to ensure that the interests of SAIA's members are looked after. The many other responsibilities that come with the position include: making sure that SAIA is represented in all the relevant forums, such as government, private sector, NGO and internationally; ensuring the administration of the Institute is run efficiently; looking after the interests of the built environment by ensuring that relevant issues are raised and addressed when required; constantly checking that our practice standards are up to date with international best practice, and creating opportunities for built environment practitioners through activities such as competitions and other initiatives.

What have been the highlights of your two year term?
There has been much positive activity within SAIA over the past two years. Some noteworthy items and events include:
• The winning of the bid to host the 2014 International Union of Architects (UIA) world conference. The first winning bid of the UIA Conference for an African country in over 30 Years. The theme for the conference is Multiplicity and there is no better venue than Durban, a port of multiple cultures and a microcosm of the world itself, to host such a themed event.
• The Presidential Road show. A first time series of road shows, which commenced in March this year, designed and effectively executed by the executive team of SAIA, to promote improved communication with its members and the general public.
• The introduction of two new publications namely, The Africa Digest and The Awards Book.
• The activities related to World Architecture Day - the Red Dot Campaign and the Visi initiative.
The Red Dot Campaign identified buildings of merit in the different regions, highlighting what the profession considers to be a building of merit, and the Visi initiative was based on an inclusive survey that asked members of the public to vote for their favourite building.
• Increased participation at an international level, especially with the International Union of Architects (UIA) and the Africa Union of Architects (AUA).
• Improved communications with Government and other bodies at a local level.
• The 2008 Biennial Convention. A 'stand alone' event graced by a high standard of presentations and debate that focused on a sustainable and humane approach to architecture.

What changes took place within SAIA during your tenure as president?
During my term as president, we focussed on the following:
• consolidating the role of our committees within our structure;
• improving international communication;
• proactively implementing initiatives to understand our way forward in our local and international contexts. Some of these initiatives included: SAIA forum with academics, held for the first time in Bloemfontein; the review of SAIA structure driven by new president Al Stratford, and the focus on sustainable and humane architecture, lead by Fanuel Motsepe;
• the issue of the composition of our profession in a changing South Africa, as well as the quality of industry graduates and the current skills available.

What changes would you like to see take place in South African Architecture and within SAIA in the future?
We believe that the role SAIA plays has been underestimated by its members, as well as by the public. SAIA needs to keep its 'finger on the pulse' and ensure that the interests of architecture and the built environment are looked after. To do this effectively, we need the support of our members and an improved resource base. We will require more full time personnel to achieve our goals and maintain standards in the future.

Where is South African Architecture today?
South African architecture is healthy; however, it needs to address the challenges of South Africa as a developed/developing country and deliver in this regard without compromising standards. There is a lot of interest from prospective students, but the academies do not seem to be able to cope. Their resources are limited and are not geared for expansion. The future for those seeking a career in architecture looks bright and, given our infrastructure, housing and other needs, there should be good opportunities for those in practice; however, there is a concern with the availability of good, experienced resources at the present time.

What challenges do architects in South Africa face today?
The challenge facing architects, and all built environment professionals, is to produce appropriate environments that are sustainable and that respond to the differing needs of the various regions, as well as the people occupying them. This will not always conform to market forces or government policies, but we need to fight and support what we believe to be the right thing to do. In order to achieve some of these goals, we will need to be proactive and provide leadership when necessary.

What are the major challenges of SAIA in today's South African climate?
The list is long. Sustainability, skills development, education and the delivery of appropriate environments are a few of the major challenges that the institute faces.

Al Statford's inaugural speech presaged his intention to intensify architectural advocacy in government, industry and the public realm. In your opinion, does government need to be more involved in South African architecture?
Government is involved, but needs to get more involved so that it becomes integral to the debates relating to the built environment and expectations of the industry and public. While individuals may be involved in debates and discussions, one gets the impression that this is not the case throughout the structures. There is, currently, a serious lack of skills and capacity in government structures that needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency and the profession needs to assist in this regard.

hat do you think about the work done by SAIA and the state of Architecture in South Africa today? Do you agree with Hassan Asmal? Post your comments here and share your views.

Post your comments here

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