Architectural Journalism

A small guide on the state of 'Architectural Journalism', a branch of the architecture field.

1. ARCHITECTURAL JOURNALISM PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE AND ETHICS KHARUNYA C

2. INTRODUCTION Architectural Journalism is the practice of independent writing and commentary within the fields of architecture, design and urbanism. Beyond the need to understand how architecture forms a part of the zeitgeist, Architectural Journalism is how the community holds itself accountable. Unfortunately, the field is still largely uncharted, especially in India – this gives us, the present crop of designers, the largest opportunity to set the tone for the profession for decades to come.

3. ARCHITECTURAL JOURNALISM VS DESIGN WRITING A basic distinction between the two is that while Architectural Journalism is independent and community-oriented, design writing can be commercial. All architectural journalism is design writing, but all design writing and communications are not architectural journalism. Design Writing, on the other hand, is a crucial skill set that every architect needs to some degree. Whether to describe your project for a BD brochure, or to set up a website – we need the right words to catch the attention of the right people. Beyond careers, courses, and letters behind our names – both teach us how to speak a common language with our audience, and lend our voices to the design causes we think should be heard.

4. NEED FOR ARCHITECTURAL JOURNALISM Architectural Journalism is a medium to bridge the gap between the architecture, common people, and architects. Architectural Journalism with the advancement of technology changed its medium from formally starting at the newspaper in the form of Architectural Criticisms and now in digital format. A lot of people have worked in the field and they have helped to develop it as a subject. Today lots of colleges across the globe teach it as a subject, lots of companies do Architectural Journalism in a way to add value to the society and the Architectural Community. As architecture students, perceiving one’s own design and taking viva voce is one of the major troubles, if they are not confident enough about what they have conceived on paper they may end up in a disaster and their entire hard work shall seem of no significance. Diverse people can have diverse thoughts and since we belong to a multicultural society, this becomes even more likely. Thus, making a client pay money for and buy one’s design isn’t an easy job. However, one can enhance their own thought process by discussing a lot more with the people who are the benefactors and shall be most affected by the development. Moreover, brainstorming on what is the priority, in terms of understanding on humane grounds and giving proposals accordingly for the benefit of the larger audience can be of help.

5. OVERVIEW ON SKILLSET The profession of Architectural Journalism is gaining much value in comparison to that of being a conventional architect across the globe can be categorised into various subparts.

6. HOW TO START WITH ARCHITECTURAL JOURNALISM? To begin with, remember that any good piece of writing utilizes three components – Structure, Tone & Flow. Have a clear picture of the point you intend to make with any given piece of writing, and figure out the structure (what you say), and the tone (how you say it). Flow will then determine whether your argument is clear, cohesive and concise – and makes logical sense. Think of what makes the project of your choice unique and important. If you had only five words to describe it, what would you say? Now assemble the data needed to describe its social relevance, site surroundings, spatial planning, and specific interventions. Zoom in from the big picture to the individual salient points, as you attempt to take your reader through a verbal walkthrough of the project. Now zoom back out and remind your reader of the big idea – why does this project matter? Do your five key words figure in this conclusion? Do you leave the reader with the same impression of a building, whether with five words or a thousand?

7. TIPS FOR PURSUING ARCHITECTURAL JOURNALISM Complete your architecture degree Do internship with a reputed architect Gain as much as knowledge you can gain, study the industry inside out Do internship with some media house/publication for getting an in site of the media industry Keep writing more and more after your internship and keep yourself involved in ongoing architectural projects. Approach publications and media houses with your work, because they are always in search of quality articles. Gain experience in the industry and then publications will contact you for your work.

8. PUBLICATIONS RELATED TO ARCHITECTURE

9. PUBLICATIONS RELATED TO ARCHITECTURE POPULAR ARCHITECTURAL MAGAZINES BASED ABROAD Architectural Record Architectural Review Concept Soiled Landscape Architect Architectural Digest

10. PUBLICATIONS RELATED TO ARCHITECTURE POPULAR ARCHITECTURAL MAGAZINES BASED IN INDIA A+D Domus Indian Architect & Builder Magazine Home Trends Inside Outside How Architect Works Society Interiors

11. ARCHITECTURAL JOURNALISM IN INDIAN COLLEGES Although we have 450+ architectural colleges in India , the sorry state of affair is that only a few of them have Architectural Journalism as an interdisciplinary course. Some of those colleges are: CCA CEPT NIT-H SPA Delhi KRVIA Rachana Sansad PVPCOA Pune McGAN'S Ooty School of Architecture Hence, we very well understand that awareness is a big deal as far as this new emerging subject is concerned and there are many more efforts required to increase this figure in comparison to the increasing number of Architectural Colleges in India in the recent years.

12. ARCHITECTURAL JOURNALISM IN INDIAN COLLEGES

13. INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES As an architecture student, one could start learning and understanding this subject by undertaking online internships at various portals of architecture and design. Some of them are: Arch2O dezeen Magazine Arch Daily Other than these, one could take up full-time summer internships/training after graduation in offices of Indian architectural magazines like, Architectural Digest Architecture Update A+D WFM IA&B

14. CAREER OPTIONS If one understands the sensitivity of the subject and leads oneself to the latter part that shall come with the maturity to start up analysis, documentation, exploration, study, and research of architectural interventions. One could join research organizations related to architecture in India, specifically: CSIR CBRI Research Cell at – CCA, CEPT Building centers like LBC, Trivandrum and Anangpur Building Center, Faridabad.

15. CAREER OPTIONS

16. ARCHITECTURAL JOURNALISTS Some of the important contemporary Architectural Journalists are: Paul Goldberger (known for the “Sky Line” column in The New Yorker) Michael Kimmelman (known as “People’s Critic” by New York magazine) Inga Saffron Allison Arieff Apurva Bose Dutta Gautam Bhatia

17. ONLINE COURSES AVAILABLE Read, Reflect, Write, Repeat Writing, Communicating and Curating in Architecture Distance Architectural Journalism Certification The Architectural Imagination Writing for Social Media Freelance Writing Digital Journalism 101 Interpreting Vernacular Architecture in Asia Research Design – Enquiry and Discovery The Writer’s Toolkit: 6 Steps to a successful writing habit For further details regarding the online courses, please visit the website: https://www.re-thinkingthefuture.com/fresh-perspectives/a1225-10-online-courses-for-aspiring-architectural-journalists/

18. CONCLUSION Architectural Journalism is gaining prominence in the recent years because apart from designing, explaining the same holds sheer importance as far as formulating a brand is concerned. An architectural journalist should be someone who not only has advanced architectural skills but also the ability to interpret his design methodologies and prowess. Architectural journalism is not just about criticising buildings and architects (although, the need for it is evident). It is also about bridging the gap between the architectural community and laymen. The need for architecture to reach mainstream media is undeniable. It begins with understanding your importance as an architectural journalist in the society, and doing your part in uplifting this veiled community.

19. REFERENCES https://www.re-thinkingthefuture.com/career-advice/a2801-a-brief-history-of-architectural-journalism/ https://www.epistle.co/post/the-bite-sized-guide-to-architectural-journalism-design-writing#:~:text=Architectural%20Journalism%2C%20simply%20put%2C%20is,of%20architecture%2C%20design%20and%20urbanism.&text=A%20good%20rule%20of%20thumb,communications%20are%20not%20architectural%20journalism . https://worldarchitecture.org/articles-links/cmzzv/basics_of_architectural_journalism_in_indian_context.html https://www.re-thinkingthefuture.com/fresh-perspectives/a1225-10-online-courses-for-aspiring-architectural-journalists/ https://www.quora.com/I-want-to-get-into-architectural-journalism-Im-an-architecture-student-right-now-How-do-I-work-for-it