A recent article in the New Yorker focused on the career of Sir Norman Foster. It was an interesting look into an architect who has been practicing for many years and navigated downturns, technology developments and all that comes with practicing architecture internationally for decades.

While our practice is light years away from the size and notoriety of Foster + Partners, one part of the article in particular struck a cord - design iteration.

“This is the core of the business: people draw ten versions of a stairway, or a lobby, and agree to develop the best one, and then someone—possibly Foster—starts to wonder about an eleventh version.”

While our projects and fees pale in comparison, we always aim to iterate for the benefit of the project outcome. It can be a frustrating process when you are in it. An outside might view any of the options viable. Why would we waste time and fee in developing multiple versions of the same design solution when you are only being paid for one outcome? The answer is every iteration can be an opportunity for improvement. Each new version solves a problem or approaches from a different angle and builds on the previous. Then you can stand back and compare strengths and weakness and adjust accordingly.

To the students reading this; we encourage you to learn the power of iteration.

To the architects reading this; aim to allow both time and fee for this process to occur.

To the clients reading this; know that this process is money well spent.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/the-new-yorker_norman-foster-whose-career-is-now-in-its-activity-7287839084767559681-VHEg?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop