EA157: Modern Architecture and Design for the Masses with Architect Ben Uyeda [Podcast]

Modern Architecture and Design for the Masses Throughout the profession, a common theme we hear is how to leverage what we do as architects. How can we leverage what we do for the good of more people? How can we take our unique skills and talents and use them to better serve the entire population? How do we benefit all of society as architects? This week at EntreArchitect Podcast, Modern Architecture and Design for the Masses with Ben Uyeda of HomeMade Modern. Ben’s Origin Story Ben grew up in Southern California and remembers buying a raft out of two liter soda bottles after reading Huckleberry Finn. Design was something he found he was able to do by combining adventure with resourcefulness when there wasn’t access to something or you couldn’t afford to buy it. He attended Cornell University for both undergrad and his Masters, where he quickly learned that architecture is a little bit more than just building cool stuff. He loved the strong subculture within the university that really immersed him in the world of architecture. As he neared graduation, he wondered how he was going to make a living. When he talked to other recent graduates, the picture they painted was slightly less glamorous than what he expected. Though the faculty at the university made it out to be an upscale lifestyle, people a couple years out of college weren’t having the same experience. He then decided to take some risk earlier in his career when the personal risk was lower by learning as much about buildings as possible. Since residential is the most common type of buildings, they put their focus there. In 2005, Ben and his friend, Stephanie, entered a competition to design and build a solar-powered house and came in second out of twenty teams. Mostly importantly, they learned a ton and felt confident that they knew how to design a building. At that point, they were as ready as they could ever be. They knew there was a competitive advantage to being young and inexperienced, so they leveraged what they had: the internet. Though they didn’t have a portfolio, they focused on simple SEO centered around green and sustainable design. They found a strong community that could be focused around sustainable design, but didn’t have a lot of architects doing that. They built their website and worked to convert 1 out of 1000 website visitors. They were very honest with potential clients, letting them know that they didn’t have a lot of experience but that they could promised to work hard and use state-of-the-art tools like Revit. Do you think your early focus on the internet was the big break? Ben wouldn’t consider himself a hugely technological person, but he made a decision not to wait and to jump in feet first. The internet wasn’t some trick, he just knew that it was something he could use to his advantage over those who were older than him and may not have the technological edge. How did you get past the hurdle of not having a license?  When they teamed up for their first big projects, a lot of the contractors had a licensed architect in house. They collaborated with licensed architects as consultants and gave them credit for their parts in the design. Each licensed architect brought their own unique skills to each project, offering yet another advantage. Are there any areas now that young architects can take advantage of now? If you can produce content that’s visually compelling and that people can understand how it fits into context, you can find lots of social media followers. If you can make it...

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