A week ago, I took a road trip up to Taliesin, WI. It was wonderful to see Frank Lloyd Wright’s work up close and personal, but the real purpose of the trip was to visit a week-long camp hosted by Public Workshop and the Chicago Architecture Foundation. In its seventh year, the camp brings 6-7 recent high school grads from Chicago (chosen through an application process) to identify a need and respond with designed structures – all within the aura of architecture genius and gorgeous rolling countryside. Alex Gilliam of Public Workshop (and my co-mentor from the first Prototype Design Camp back in January) led the group with his famous combination of whimsy, fearlessness and unwaivering support. This year, the program introduced Teaching Fellows, which included Daniel Splaingard of Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation and Katie Koch from Project:Interaction.

The day before we got there, the group walked around Taliesin and the Hillside School where they were staying and identified two issues they would address: a need for a place for private phone calls at the Hillside School campus and exceptional bugginess. They planned to build temporary structures that would provide that space and protection from mosquitos. Saturday then consisted of breaking into small groups and “sketching” out concepts – first mocking up floor plans using strips of wood on the ground and then raiding the nearby farm’s trash materials to make 3D prototypes.

I was more than impressed by the sincere engagement of the group. Everyone was calmly attentive to each other and committed to the task. While some students were planning to pursue architecture, others were not and yet still engaged in the process enthusiastically. Personally, I loved the opportunity to force myself to think spatially. Towards the end of the day I caved and sketched using marker and paper the way I was used to, but it was a fun challenge to instantly think through spatial repercussions. How small can the structure be? How close can we stand to each other without feeling uncomfortable? Which way should the structure orient to take advantage of sun and wind direction? How should the roof tilt? Where is the cutoff between temporary and fixed? How can we mesh the structure with the surrounding landscape? How can we make our concept unique? Check out Public Workshop's website for a full recount of the camp.

Thank you Alex, for the invitation!