My first week was not what I was expecting, but I did overall enjoy it. This first week gave me a chance to work on my teamwork skills and to become a better leader. My project is MAOarch retail store design. This project is about coming up with ideas that the space can be used for and how it fits in with the area. Our project is located at 595 Madison Ave in Manhattan.
The most challenging aspect of this project so far was actually trying to get the other members of the group to add their input and their ideas because a few people in the group talk about ideas while others stay quiet and do not add anything. Plus if you ask them what they think, they will just go with what you said.
By participating in this project, I hope to learn more architectural skills, what it’s like to work for a company, and really what the process is like when designing things.
I would rate my productivity a four because at times, I could have done something but didn’t and I used the time for another aspect of the project. If I were to meet the firm soon some questions I would ask are
- Do building codes apply to furniture in stores such as spacing wise and furniture shape?
- Would you recommend this space be used as a retail showroom and jewelry store or something else?( We decided to split up the space so it becomes two separate store spaces)
- Based on what we have, is there anything that needs to be corrected or changed?
I would ask certain questions like these because I would like to know what professionals think about the ideas we came up with and how their opinions can help us improve, whether it’s skillswise or the perspective of something.
-Morgan Shoken
Our project that my group is working on is the Maoarch retail design. In this project we were tasked with creating our own version of a retail store. My group decided to create a thrift store; however, it is more like a high end store which sells thrifted clothes as well as designer items too.
One of our current objectives is to get measurements of the floor plan layout using AutoCAD. With the measurements we get we are using tracing paper and drawing the floor plan out. My group is also currently working on researching layouts of clothing retail stores. This research provides us with labeled information on where items go like clothing racks and tables for example. My group also is researching the dimensions of the items so we can be able to tell if it would fit in our store that we have drawn out on our tracing papers.
To successfully be able to complete our project we all have to have the proper measurements for our store and find out measurements for the items we are going to place inside of it. We also need to maintain good communication between group members about what we’re doing in order to ensure success.
During the first week the most challenging thing for me so far has been becoming completely familiar with how to work AutoCAD to find our measurements although I am getting the hang of it. I also was struggling with finding the measurements for the dimensions of the items we need to fit in our store. I hope that throughout the next couple of weeks I can learn more about the different processes that go into creating a building and specifically for my group a retail store. I also expect to learn more about how AutoCAD works in case we use it in sophomore year.
I would personally rate my productivity a 4 because throughout the week I have stayed on task, and I’m keeping up with all the work we’re currently doing. In order to improve my productivity I would just rather try to have a better understanding of what exactly we need to do when I get there, due to the main fact that sometimes this past week I’ve gotten confused at times because I didn’t really understand the task. Next week I’d like to continue to keep arriving on time so that I don’t miss anything important, and I also would like to keep up with communication with my group in order for our work to be a success.
The questions I would like to ask my firm is:
- Who decides where the location of the buildings are going to be?
- How do you advertise your businesses?
- How is the pricing for products decided?
- What elements make each building significantly different or unique from each other?
- What are the plans for future growth?
-Angelina Jacobs
My name is Jelani Wilson and my project in the MAOarch retail design program is a redesign of the retail space inside 595 Madison Avenue. The objective is to repurpose the total 1,600 sq ft of retail space inside the building and propose new potential businesses within the space. In order to complete this project, my group and I will have to come together and come up with new designs that are both efficient and creative. Also, we will have to research the area around the building to come up with the best potential building to put in the space.
Personally, the most challenging part of this project in the first week is outlining the available space and thinking of potentially new layouts of the building. From this project, I expect to learn more about redesigning spaces, using technical applications like AutoCAD, and more.
On a scale of 1-5 I would consider my productivity a 4 as although I’m anxious about my skills with the tools needed to complete this project, I believe I’m currently giving it the best effort I can as I want to improve these skills. Next week, I’d like to continue improving my skills and be more involved with the process of redesigning 595 Madison Avenue with my group.
I think if I met MAOArch I would ask them questions like what type of business would they like to fill in the building, what type of architectural aesthetics do they prefer, what are their intentions with the space and more.
-Jelani Wilson
My first week was fine considering how I never worked on designing interior space before just the outside. My project requires designing the interior of a retail space in Manhattan. We have two plots, and we had the option of keeping the spaces separate or combining them to make something bigger with more space. We decided to keep the spaces separate and that we were going to do a jewelry store in the smallest plot and a showroom in the bigger plot.
The most challenging part of the project so far most definitely was starting it. The project was somewhat complicated at first, but once I got the jist of what I was supposed to do, I finished quicker than the time assigned. I never worked with AutoCAD before and it turned out to be pretty easy as long as you pay attention.
By working on this project, I expect to gain more knowledge on architectural rules when designing as well as knowledge on the different tools to help me for next year’s architecture class. If I decide on getting an architectural degree in college, at least I’d have some knowledge for when I study the material in high school or at an academy.
On a scale from 1-5 (1 being meh; 5 being amazing) my productivity this past week has been a 5. Like I mentioned earlier, I was so immersed in my work, I finished everything I was told to accomplish by the end of the day, with 50 minutes still left on the clock. I’d like to keep up my good work in the productivity department. In terms of improvement, I’d like to ask for help more freely and not be so shy about it.
-Sayelis De La Cruz Vasquez
I believe the first week was fairly simple but slightly difficult to comprehend at the same time. The instructions sounded simple enough, but in reality, they were a tad bit difficult to understand. Regardless, they were manageable.
In MAOarch retail design, we were instructed to design the interior of a retail store and to consider things such as furniture, entrances, positioning of furniture, etc. That is what we are in charge of, and this task has to be done before the end of this week. The group I’m in started a slide presentation on the project in order to prepare and plan our retail design.
I believe in order to have our team succeed, we have to plan our design efficiently and eloquently. I refuse to have such a deterred and messed up design, and I’m sure not a single person in my group would want the same. The most challenging aspect of the week was probably having the rest of my group actually follow what we were instructed to do. Some weren’t exactly doing much but because I am not the leader of the group, I have no say in what they do and if I do say something, I kind of fear of being criticized about it. By doing this project, I hope to accomplish some sort of understanding of architecture. The understanding of architecture where I can actually do something with it and apply more of it into my work.
I would rate my productivity as a 3 or 4 because I managed to get a decent amount done in regards to group work. Like, my part of this group project, I felt accomplished. For next week, I’m not sure what I’d like to improve. Maybe I want to get my productivity to a 5? Overall, I think I’ve done what I can in order to contribute to the work for my group and I would like to do more to help them and myself progress in this project.
-Lyn Diaz