Meet AN’s Newest Architectural Intern; Adam Blacknell
Favourite Film: Inglourious Basterds
Favourite Food: Turkish Cuisine
Hobbies: Golfing, Football, Cooking and Photography
Last piece of Fruit Eaten: Red Bell Pepper on Saturday 06th Feb - Shocking I know!
Firstly, let me say Hi, I’m Adam!
I’m an Architectural Graduate based in Nottingham, currently working as an Architectural Intern at Architecture North Ltd, and well Lewis has given me the trust over his AN website and the company profiles to talk about myself, my journey, career, and I suppose what it’s like being an intern here at AN after recently graduating in Architecture.
As a Part 1 student of architecture, I have an interest in Avant-garde and Neo Avant-garde architecture, ranging from Russian Constructivism of the 1920s to Structural Expressionism of the 1980s. I love making models and using unusual mediums to produce exciting and innovative works. I have a background in graphic design alongside an affinity for typography.
I have always had a passion for the built environment. Some of my earliest, and most precious memories I have, is me playing at my grandparents with a huge box of lego- building forts and constructing fighter planes. This notion of building later progressed into modelling AirFix planes and World War 2 memorabilia alongside modelling Warhammer sets. These playful acts of construction sparked my affinity to be a creative person. Through Primary and Secondary School I studied Art alongside Graphic Design, where the impetus was always on traditional drawing and modelling techniques. I took Graphic Design further studying it at A-Level where I really found my feet with architecture. In Year 13, my last year of A-Levels, I was tasked to design and construct a building, focussing on its exterior. Making a Buddhist Monastery Retreat; firstly designing it, going through the rigors initial iterations, through to developing it, and finally constructing it. This was my first real exposure to architectural life, and to this day I still reflect upon my years at A-Levels as being my most rewarding.
I earned my BA (Hons) Architecture from Newcastle University, where university life was wicked. Architecture life was turbulent to say the least, as any creative degree student will tell you; the all-nighters along-with a side of breakdown will follow you around like freshers flu. Besides the standard, University taught me a tremendous amount: from the history of architecture through to architecture’s social implication on everyday life. Through the use of phenomenological aspects of design intentions, I am a strong believer that architecture impacts our everyday lives, especially with us all working from home, the high-street being left to neglect, through to the importance of architecture playing a key pivotable role within our socioeconomic landscape.
During my time at university, I was taught how to produce technical drawings, whilst learning about technological advancements being explored within the industry. However, the most interesting time of my studies were understanding theoretical architecture, how drawings can manifest representation and can challenge social expectations. Studying Avant-garde Constructivists like El Lissitkzky and Malevich was critical to my personal educational journey, from understanding how their representation can change the status quo.”
Within my first week at Architecture North is incredibly intuitive and eye-opening. In the sense that, the processes and the business side of architecture: communicating with clients whilst learning how projects go through each RIBA Work Stage was all new to me. As this is my first experience in professional practice, I feel very fortunate to be in such a hands-on position where collaboration between Lewis, Swati, and myself occurs on such a regular basis; it is refreshing to know that this experience path that I am on at the moment, is concerted and a progressive way of working- something that may not have happened if I were to find myself in corporate practice. Lastly, I have learned just how much effort goes in behind the scenes to run a small business and what is undertaken within client projects. Being able to sit in on the weekly briefings to discuss the performance of the business, to better enhance the user experience of all existing and future clients, is an area of professional life completely new to me. I am confident that AN will begin to lay the correct foundations for me and, in many ways new habits, that will become fundamental to me becoming an Architect instilled with the correct procedures to approach practice life.
Within the current climate, due to Covid-19 and the business model of the architect within its current model being unpredictable as ever; my short-term goal is to gather a good degree of work experience to take back with me to University. Where ideally I would like to head back to University to complete my Part 2 in London at Central Saint Martins. As I believe London has the most exciting prospects for young Architects: being flooded with up and coming practice’s: that are devoid of traditionalist mindsets.