Resume

Resume

E-mail Alicia.Dallstream@asu.edu   Alicia Dallstream   Objective     Seeking acceptance into the School of Global Sciences and Urban Planning Master’s Program at Arizona State University.   Education     Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies                                May 2010 Arizona State University Tempe, AZ n    Major:  Design Studies and Urban Planning Relevant Course Work n    Internship at Cox James Architects Tempe, AZ   Work experience     Apr. ‘10 – Present     Zuma Grill                                        Tempe, AZ Cocktail/Server n    Served food and beverage to customers n    Gave meal and site-seeing suggestions to guests. Nov. ‘05- Mar. ‘10    Harlow’s Café                                    Tempe, AZ Server n    Served food and beverage n    Provided costumer service

week 4

My applied studies relates to my future career in many ways. Although I work at an architecture firm, I do not want to become an architect. Instead, I would like to take the experience of observing how a small business operates daily. My goal is to own a unique type of design firm that encompasses many aspects of a design project from start to finish in one unit to avoid wasting time and losing money on jobs that go over schedule. I enjoy working at my site and when the internship is done, I plan on still working there once a week. I am very good at organizing and it helps me become more familiar with different types of materials and their applications. Sustainability is something I am interested in and my firm in the future will demand designs that won’t hurt the planet and wont make people feel uncomfortable or like they are missing out on quality design to help the planet. Many companies are coming out with “green” or “environmentally friendly” or “sustainable” products and their representatives come into the firm to market and sell to the architects. The architects then try to pitch these new products to clients by incorporating them into their designs in unique ways. For me, listening to pitches for the representatives and seeing how the architect incorporates them into a design is a good way for me to get to know these materials and where they would be most useful. I am happy to have established such a good relationship with a highly respected local architect and this experience will help me reach my goal of owning and operating my own design firm in the future.  

week 3 Concepts

Sustainability is a relatively new term used in both planning and design that must incorporate three “E’s” in order to support life for the future. Environmental quality of life, equal opportunities, and economic vitality must be kept in mind when planning to design an object, building, or community under the theory of sustainable design/planning. In architecture, these concepts can be tricky to incorporate into an aesthetically pleasing design, but are not impossible. At my internship I have began to realize the stressors the three E’s can have on a proposed design when the client requests specific parts to look a different way. The architect must keep in mind the clients wishes while designing for vitality of planet in the future with respect to the building codes of the city and sustainable standards. The concept of zoning in urban planning and design also creates restrictions and challenges the designer must deal with. In order for the building to lawful under city codes, the architect must be familiar with the process of obtaining permits and legal documentation of approval or disproval of requests given the area. At my internship, there are binders and binders of codes and specific information is written out to avoid any confusion. Getting past the red tape takes a basic knowledge and understanding of these concepts. The architects do not have to memorize these codes for zoning, but instead know where to obtain the information to make proper design decisions and make the design process stay on schedule and go smoothly. Color theory is very important in design. Color can affect the way a person feels within a space and direct a person’s attention to the right places. At my internship I have noticed that the architect I am learning from is extremely good at choosing the right colors for the right space. You need to design a space that is useable as an architect but not all architects have the interior design eye as my mentor. It is what separates him from other architects, his careful attention to detail and completion of a space from outside to in. Less is more is a concept that originated during modernism. After the Second World War designers decided we needed to eliminate all unnecessary aspects of a design and boil it down to skin and bones. The more useless things you tack onto a design the less the design means in the end to a person because they are distracted from the purpose of the design. At my internship, afterthoughts are not part of the design process. The architects think every aspect of his design through and present a meaningful, clear-cut plan to the client. To avoid adding fillers and frills can take more time and planning but produces a more coherent and meaningful end product. 

week 2- Multi vs Interdisciplinary

At my internship there are multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary operations happening on a day-to-day basis. History, art, computers and communication are all separate fields of expertise but are combined in a multidisciplinary manner in order to execute solutions to design challenges and the daily operations of a business. The lead designer must know his history of design and the place in which he is designing for in order to create a functional space that meets the clients needs as well as fit into its surroundings. To convey the design to the clients, the designer must draw sketches to allow the client to see the vision. If the client cannot make sense of a sketch he or she will feel as if their needs are not being met and can choose to work with other designers for the project. Once the sketches are well received and agreed upon, the lead designer then translates the sketches into a computer program, CAD (computer aided drafting), which allows builders and engineers to see the fine details that the clients does not necessarily need to see or for that matter even understand. Communication is key during the entire process of executing a design. Communication between the client and designer: client stating the needs, architect understanding those needs and incorporating them into a design. Architect and the computer aided drafting person need to be able to communicate fine details such as specific heights, elevations, major and minor details. It is also important for the computer-aided drafts to be understandable for the builders, engineers, and other workers. So, through the combination of these separate branches of expertise, the architect is able to make the client happy. The architect operates in an interdisciplinary manner due to the fact that he is combining these multidisciplinary aspects into his job- architecture and communication. 

week 1 blog intro

My name is Alicia Dallstream and I am a senior. My concentration areas are design studies and urban planning. I have always loved design whether its interior, graphic, industrial, architecture, etc.. I just have always had a natural eye and passion for it. Urban planning, however, was an area of study I had no idea about until my sophomore year of college and I found it to be an extremely important topic to know about and incorporate into design in general. I am currently interning at a local architecture firm, Cox James Architects, in Tempe down the street from my house. I want to become familiar with how a business operates on a daily basis because I plan on owning my own, unique type of firm in the future. By getting to know materials, furniture and building techniques from organizing the material library I will have a better chance at being successful in my own firm in the future and be able to make conscious design decisions and know how it can/will effect the community in which it will be a part of. Community involvement in design planning is something I feel strongly about and feel that there is a lack of in many communities. I plan on networking while in my internship and meeting people I could work with or have work for me in the future. My goal is not to become an architect, but I see this opportunity as a great way to get my foot in the door!