The Second Studio (formerly The Midnight Charette) is an explicit podcast about design, architecture, and the everyday. Hosted by Architects David Lee and Marina Bourderonnet, it features different creative professionals in unscripted conversations that allow for thoughtful takes and personal discussions.
A variety of subjects are covered with honesty and humor: some episodes are interviews, while others are tips for fellow designers, reviews of buildings and other projects, or casual explorations of everyday life and design. The Second Studio is also available on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube.
This week David and Marina are joined by Architect Joshua Aidlin, Founding Partner of Aidlin Darling Design to discuss his background in the arts; his design approach and philosophy; camping on project sites; creating good office culture; his partnership with David Darling; and more.
Highlights and Timestamps
Background (00:00)
Fostering relationships and passion through a studio environment (15:31)
You have to love the process. You really have to be passionate about the process and you have to love the people you're working with. Creating a studio environment where you're respected and your ideas are being utilized daily. (16:35)
After graduating from architecture school (25:10)
Relationship with David Darling (36:15)
Creating a thriving office culture (44:05)
There are different breaking points: between 5 to 10 and then 10 to 18 and then 18 to about 25 and then 25 to 35, the personality of the studio changes when you grow. We've always had this ethos that we should be able to sit around a singular table and break bread. We should know if someone's mother is sick, if someone’s child is sick. We need to take care of each other. (44:47)
One of the keys is, you have to hire talent and you have to hire talent with no ego… because typically those types of personalities are great collaborators and I feel like our collaboration process makes our designs richer. (55:51)
Projects (59:02)
Design process (01:04:54)
The concept of a building doesn't have to start at the beginning. It can be uncovered halfway through your design process. In school, you're never taught that. You start with a concept, and then the building unfolds after that. But I've had some incredible buildings where that concept really gelled halfway through when enough constraints started to surface and enough solutions started to surface, and then all of a sudden, it really kind of locked in and gelled. It's kind of abstract to talk about, but it was very empowering to realize. (01:10:43)
Working with clients (01:15:38)
A great client is someone who has very clear ideas about what they're trying to achieve without telling you how to do it. They understand that you are the expert. They’re not changing their mind all the time and they're not ambiguous about what they're trying to achieve, but they give you full authorship to take them from 0 to 100 all in their interest. (01:20:49)
Designing different types of projects (01:45:06)
