Two days ago I happened upon a new book that just came out, in direct relation to my first class of the semester tonight with entitled Alternative Practice, entitled Future Practice. As mentioned in the blurb, this is a book regarding the variety of directions individuals take after receiving training in architecture. As mentioned, "year after year, as new graduates embark on their careers, more and more of them are questioning the traditional role of the architect, even before working in a firm or taking other supposedly required steps toward licensure." This seems almost identical to the description of Alternative Practices, a course that "offers students the opportunity to investigate the range of emerging career roles in architecture and allied fields, including both shifting opportunities within "traditional" practice as well as the broad range of career choices that can usefully build on a foundation in architecture." Indeed upon forwarding the blurb to my advisor I discovered that articles from the author are often used in her class and she looks forward to reading the book, as do I as soon as it comes out.
This book does not, however, deal with how to set up a non-traditional firm, advice that might be referenced in a course I'm currently waitlisted for entitled Launching Design Practices. Interestingly enough, as the blurb points out, these alternative practices (so to speak) are rooted in one primary concern: "the various practitioners want to improve conditions for people." This is something that I too share with these practitioners, though, as I point out time and again, I wish to incorporate this into all facets of architecture, not just the smaller firms or the non-profit organizations. It will be interesting to find how this class, and the book in the future, affect my currently naive outlook on architecture and architects in general.
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