<p>Who am I?</p>
<p>I am a creator. For as long as I can remember, I have looked at objects and seen opportunity. It’s not budget housing−it’s a college student’s dream pad. It’s not a strip mall−it’s a state of the art shopping paradise. It’s not an uncomfortable wooden chair−it’s a pressure-relieving padded recliner. I have always been able to see the potential in these things; I have been studying in order to find ways to quantify this potential, and to help others see it the way I do. To me, architectural design is seeing a capacity for greatness within the ordinary.</p>
<p>I am a teacher. I begin with a lesson plan, a highly organized step-by-step rundown of each project. Usually when I begin a project, I create around three separate drafts, and then decide which is more appropriate for the assignment. One of the most important steps of being a designer is being able to transfer your ideas to other people. I believe that I am capable of explaining and justifying my designs and ideas to others, as well as the purpose behind each project. When placed in a certain context, ideas that may otherwise seem mediocre can take a whole new meaning. In my junior year at Inha University I designed a Center for Mentally Disabled Children, and I brought as many elements from nature inside as possible. While a running stream or a sand dune may normally sound like an inappropriate idea for interior design, children in this center may not otherwise have much of a chance to play and experiment in an outdoor situation, making this building design a unique and innovative concept.</p>
<p>I am a doctor. I can tell you the exact angle of a hospital that will give patients the most natural light. Give me an afternoon and I’ll build a room around it. Bed placement, artificial light, television glare, time of day; it will all be taken into account. I see a wheelchair and I see mathematical formulas. I see wheel circumference, hallway width, height difference from the hospital bed. How can I improve the design to accommodate each person’s needs? I see a pair of crutches and can’t help but wonder the distance to the nearest elevator. In my opinion, the purpose of architectural design is to make the necessities of life less burdensome, either by distraction or by simplification. The best designer will seamlessly wrap both of these strategies into one, and this is what I constantly try to accomplish with my own work. </p>
<p>I am a child. When I approach each project, I look at it as if I am seeing it for the first time. From my experience, great strides in architecture are made through simplicity, and I try to embody this philosophy when making decisions regarding my work. I will never forget the day I presented my half-completed project model to my undergraduate instructor to get some feedback, and he asked me what else was needed for my miniature building. “Well, I guess I could expand this…” I stammered. “No, no,” he said, “You’re missing the point,” and then he promptly cut away two walls and part of a ceiling separating two stories of my building. “There, that’s much better,” he commented. From then on, when in doubt, I have always relied on my professor’s “less is more” attitude.</p>
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