A Day of the Conference
Happy early 4th from across the international dateline.
Just taking a break from afternoon sessions so I figured I’d fill you in on what’s been going on since I last wrote.
I gave my paper following afternoon tea yesterday. It went very well if I do say so myself. I had about thirty people in attendance, which seems to have been the most popular presentation at that time slot, so that was pretty cool. The convener of the conference and the keynote, Barry from Columbia, were both in attendance and both participated in discussion after I was done. Most importantly, I enjoyed giving my paper, I got quite a few laughs (at the right points), and people said they could tell I cared about it and enjoyed the subject and speaking; I’ll call it a victory.
The two papers given in the session following mine, one about the Catholic Cathedral in Christchurch following the earthquake and one about aid houses in Tonga, were both really interesting. Christoph, the convener of the conference, was quick to point out that it was an unintended coincidence that the person presenting about Christchurch was named Katrina.
Following the session, we all headed out to the bus to drive over to Ponsonby, a suburb just up the hill from downtown, for the conference dinner at an Italian restaurant called Gusto. I ended up sitting with Andrew, the conference convener from Gold Coast last year, Diana (from Oregon), her friend from Seattle, a person from Monash University who happens to be the son of someone who knows my mom (Ari), and a few people from UNSW. As is the norm, the wine flowed freely, the food was excellent, and the conversations far-reaching and phenomenal.
As people trickled out after dinner, I sat with Barry and Katrina for a while, discussing Christchurch and New Orleans and construction following disasters. A group of five of us, including Ashley and Ari loaded up in two cabs to head back to downtown. We dropped our stuff at the hotel, and all of us struck out to the rooftop bar that Helen and Ashley and I had found the previous evening. We arrived at 10:30, and they said they had just announced last call. We all grabbed a schooner and enjoyed rousing conversation and the rather chilly night (helped by heat lamps).
Ashley and I had both presented on Thursday, so our obligations were done, but the other three were set to present today. They headed back to the hotel and Ashley and I struck out to Vulcan Lane at the recommendation of Andrew. We called it a fairly early night and decided to meet up again for brekkie in the morning.
Having been satisfied with the first breakfast we had, and the convenient location, we ate at the same place, and had the same things – eggs on ciabatta. But this go around I had a pot of tea instead of a flat white.
From the hotel, we all loaded up the bus to head to the conference. The sessions today were held at the faculty of architecture, the oldest building on the Unitec campus – a mid-1800s mental asylum. The expansive building is so rambling and confusing that we joked people might not have been crazy when they got there, but they were sure to have been driven mad by the building itself.
The morning started off like all the others, tea and coffee, before we headed to sessions. I attended the session entitled ‘Emigrés in New Zealand’, which included three papers: Translating Architecture and Planning. Gerhard Rosenberg; Between Werkbund and Wartime Sobreity. Ernst Plischke at Orakei; Auckland Calling at the Bottom of the Dial. R.T. Kennedy. It was an interesting session and I really enjoyed learning a bit about the international influences of architecture in Auckland.
Following the first round of sessions we had morning tea and nibbles before heading back for the second round of sessions. I sat in on ‘Debates on Modernism II’ (#1 had happened during the morning session) which included Diana’s paper, Regional Modernism on the West Coast. A Tale of Four Cities. The other two papers, both of which I related to as they focused on Sydney, were When Gropius Came to Sydney and McMahon’s Point, Sydney. A Translation of CIAM 10 Urban Consciousness?
Lunch followed the second round of sessions. There were trays of sandwiches, kebabs, sushi and fruit laid out in the main lobby, which we all enjoyed as we stood around talking.
For the afternoon sessions, I decided to attend ‘Aboriginal Architecture’ as I had done my thesis and given my paper last year on the subject. The papers this year included ‘Assimilating Problems’. From Humpies to Transitional Houses; Architectural Experiments in Aboriginal Housing (Early 1970s); Skin Fabric Iron Shade; Translating the Design of Behaviour Settings. Admittedly, I ducked out for the last paper, as my mind was a bit overwhelmed by the first three. I look forward to afternoon tea before wading back into the thick of things.
The byproduct of presenting my paper at SAHANZ is that I am now a published academic. I didn't pop for the book, and I am glad I didn't, as it seems to weigh in at about 10 pounds - I would have had no way to get it back stateside. However, I will be able to get it electronically, but I did snag a picture of my section for proof that it exists in hard copy.
Just taking a break from afternoon sessions so I figured I’d fill you in on what’s been going on since I last wrote.
I gave my paper following afternoon tea yesterday. It went very well if I do say so myself. I had about thirty people in attendance, which seems to have been the most popular presentation at that time slot, so that was pretty cool. The convener of the conference and the keynote, Barry from Columbia, were both in attendance and both participated in discussion after I was done. Most importantly, I enjoyed giving my paper, I got quite a few laughs (at the right points), and people said they could tell I cared about it and enjoyed the subject and speaking; I’ll call it a victory.
The two papers given in the session following mine, one about the Catholic Cathedral in Christchurch following the earthquake and one about aid houses in Tonga, were both really interesting. Christoph, the convener of the conference, was quick to point out that it was an unintended coincidence that the person presenting about Christchurch was named Katrina.
Following the session, we all headed out to the bus to drive over to Ponsonby, a suburb just up the hill from downtown, for the conference dinner at an Italian restaurant called Gusto. I ended up sitting with Andrew, the conference convener from Gold Coast last year, Diana (from Oregon), her friend from Seattle, a person from Monash University who happens to be the son of someone who knows my mom (Ari), and a few people from UNSW. As is the norm, the wine flowed freely, the food was excellent, and the conversations far-reaching and phenomenal.
As people trickled out after dinner, I sat with Barry and Katrina for a while, discussing Christchurch and New Orleans and construction following disasters. A group of five of us, including Ashley and Ari loaded up in two cabs to head back to downtown. We dropped our stuff at the hotel, and all of us struck out to the rooftop bar that Helen and Ashley and I had found the previous evening. We arrived at 10:30, and they said they had just announced last call. We all grabbed a schooner and enjoyed rousing conversation and the rather chilly night (helped by heat lamps).
Ashley and I had both presented on Thursday, so our obligations were done, but the other three were set to present today. They headed back to the hotel and Ashley and I struck out to Vulcan Lane at the recommendation of Andrew. We called it a fairly early night and decided to meet up again for brekkie in the morning.
Having been satisfied with the first breakfast we had, and the convenient location, we ate at the same place, and had the same things – eggs on ciabatta. But this go around I had a pot of tea instead of a flat white.
From the hotel, we all loaded up the bus to head to the conference. The sessions today were held at the faculty of architecture, the oldest building on the Unitec campus – a mid-1800s mental asylum. The expansive building is so rambling and confusing that we joked people might not have been crazy when they got there, but they were sure to have been driven mad by the building itself.
The morning started off like all the others, tea and coffee, before we headed to sessions. I attended the session entitled ‘Emigrés in New Zealand’, which included three papers: Translating Architecture and Planning. Gerhard Rosenberg; Between Werkbund and Wartime Sobreity. Ernst Plischke at Orakei; Auckland Calling at the Bottom of the Dial. R.T. Kennedy. It was an interesting session and I really enjoyed learning a bit about the international influences of architecture in Auckland.
Following the first round of sessions we had morning tea and nibbles before heading back for the second round of sessions. I sat in on ‘Debates on Modernism II’ (#1 had happened during the morning session) which included Diana’s paper, Regional Modernism on the West Coast. A Tale of Four Cities. The other two papers, both of which I related to as they focused on Sydney, were When Gropius Came to Sydney and McMahon’s Point, Sydney. A Translation of CIAM 10 Urban Consciousness?
Lunch followed the second round of sessions. There were trays of sandwiches, kebabs, sushi and fruit laid out in the main lobby, which we all enjoyed as we stood around talking.
For the afternoon sessions, I decided to attend ‘Aboriginal Architecture’ as I had done my thesis and given my paper last year on the subject. The papers this year included ‘Assimilating Problems’. From Humpies to Transitional Houses; Architectural Experiments in Aboriginal Housing (Early 1970s); Skin Fabric Iron Shade; Translating the Design of Behaviour Settings. Admittedly, I ducked out for the last paper, as my mind was a bit overwhelmed by the first three. I look forward to afternoon tea before wading back into the thick of things.
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