Reflection: Ani Moushigian MSM Interior Architecture

RESEARCH TOPIC:

My research topic discussed the idea of walls and their resilience in the countries of Germany and the Czech Republic and their connection to its citizens throughout history. The topic focused on analyzing the connections in history that resulted in physical and mental divisions and unity in both countries. The two main focuses were the Berlin Wall in Germany and the John Lennon Wall in Prague and the events in history that lead up to both walls up until their current condition today.

The infographic that related to my research concentrated on illustrating the history of resilient walls.

Berlin Wall and The John Lennon Wall) from the 1940’s up until present day. The imagery indicated major historical events that created a domino effect, as well as integrating major pop culture influences that streamed through these major points in history. It was important to fuse together both political and pop culture history because both created messages that German and Czech citizens were affected by and later these messages were to change history.

Travel Experience:

Traveling has always been a passion of mine. When presented with an opportunity such as these classes I feel as though I owe it to my education, my future and myself to take advantage of it as best as I could. The topic of resiliency in design is something that will always be relevant, and I think that it is important for all of us to consider as contributing members of this planet. Whenever I travel to a new place it always affects me in a different way and I begin to breathe in everything around me in steps. First, acclimate to the culture. Second, understand the people. Third, take advantage of the experience and all this place has to offer. Every place we land has a different way of thinking and a history to back it up. I love being able to be a part of that and take it home with me

Critical Reflections:

The outcome of this travel experience was beyond what I expected. To pin point a moment that was not fulfilling either academically or personally would be a difficult task. I was so impressed with our all of our guides extensive knowledge and willingness to speak with our group. It was also a pleasant surprise to find unexpected treasures along our way, such as an unofficial street collection of fragments of the Berlin Wall and having the co-design architect of the Dancing House read us letters from Frank Gehry. These moments were simply irreplaceable, unforgettable and certainly my favorite.

Personal Growth:

This course provided me with a wealth of personal growth. To me, travel is so important and valuable. In order to understand our everyday world, I believe that studying what came before it is a must. As a designer, having the opportunity to study architecture and resiliency through travel and having discussions with architects abroad opens an entirely new portal of inspiration, knowledge and understanding of our world. I believe that once we understand our world, we as global citizens (and especially designers) can contribute our efforts and knowledge in making our world a better place for us all to live and flourish.

Academic Enhancement:

The academic experience of this course was incomparable to almost any other course I have experienced in my collegiate career. Setting aside the semester I experienced abroad, no other course I have taken has had a travel element and I truly believe that is something that makes an immense difference. Although it is not feasible to have many classes with travel elements, I believe the knowledge received by experiencing courses such as these provides a deeper understanding to the topic and opportunities that the average person would not experience. Particularly in design where we often study precedents, it makes complete sense to visit the site in order to really digest the information. I completely endorse more courses such as these and my hopes is that students will understand the value of these experiences and take advantage of as many opportunities as they can.

Civic Engagement:

Civic engagement is incredibly important from personal and academic growth. When given the opportunity to contribute knowledge and experiences with others, it helps not only our immediate peers, but educates our many communities we are all a part of. By integrating our classroom knowledge and experiences from traveling to Berlin and Prague into a visual diagram (infographic) as well as taking advantage of technology and blogging about our day to day experiences, it allows us all as students to convey a global message about our class topic: resiliency. It would be selfish not to share all of our new found knowledge with everyone around us and by doing this we may inspire others to continue to do the same.

INFOGRAPGIC:

Post-Trip Reflection: Kerri LaBerge, Interior Design

Soaking up the sun after lunch at the CIEE Study Center in Prague

QUESTION:

Given the opportunity to study resiliency of historic structures in Prague and Berlin, where would you go? What would you see? Who would you meet? What would you eat?

Answer: The most beautiful places, the most interesting things, the most knowledgeable people, and THE MOST DELICIOUS PASTRIES. EVER. (If you were on our trip, at least.)

Bullet holes in a Berlin building

The decadent beauty of the buildings in Prague and the tumultuous history of Berlin certainly struck me- but I think what affected me even more was the resiliency of the people, their society, and their culture. The architecture was one piece of that larger puzzle. Prague "survived the war", but still carries remnants of Communist occupation. Our group definitely stuck out as American because of our boisterous nature- very unlike the Czechs. Berlin's structures did not fare as well as Prague's: they quite literally bear scars of the war, and the people carry the weight of their history. They go to long lengths to remember their dark past so as never to repeat it.
But there is a cheerfulness and camaraderie to Berlin also. We didn't get to spend much time there, but we learned as much as we could in three days!

Berlin's Potsdamer Platz rainwater collection system

Berlin is also very progressive. Because they essentially had a blank slate after much of the city was destroyed in WWII, they have taken the opportunity to rebuild using the most brilliant minds and cutting-edge technology. One such site is Potsdamer Platz, which we were able to visit on a guided tour. The plaza is unique in that it has an incredible water system designed by award-winning Italian architect Renzo Piano. This was very pertinent to my research topic, which focuses on how we can think resiliently about our water supply. In addition to providing green-blue space in an urban area, the rainwater collection system provides grey water and cooling to the surrounding buildings. By using rainwater in toilets, over 5 million gallons of drinking water are saved per year. By using the water system for cooling, electricity costs are cut by 50% each year. By seeing what Berlin had done on a city-wide level to conserve water, I began to wonder what I could do on an individual level and how I could communicate that to fellow students. I created an info-graphic as part of the service-learning component of the course:

A beautiful Art Nouveau pendant fixture
at the Municipal House exhibit

Our experiences in Berlin were invaluable, but in terms of personal academic enhancement, Prague was incredibly inspiring for me. My favorite two site visits were there: at the National Technical Library and an impromptu trip to the Municipal House where we saw an Art Nouveau exhibition. My final studio project last semester was to research a time period in art and design a hotel room in that style. I chose European Art Nouveau! Seeing these art pieces in real life was incredible. As a student, I enjoy studying art and design, but it is when design comes to life that I am most inspired and motivated. At the National Technical Library, we were met by one of the architects of the building and guided through every detail. Having him walk us through his concept for the building and showing us how each detail fit into that concept was exciting for me. It was a real-life application of everything I've studied in class!

Enjoying a delicious větrníky in Prague!

Overall, the experiences I had in Europe enriched my studies and life in a deeper way than I ever expected or thought possible. The faculty on the trip (Interior Design, History, and Psychology) and the other students on the trip (Business, Fashion Merchandising, Graphic Design) added even more to my experience. Having other perspectives and ideas made for a much more interesting and diverse adventure. Discussions were sparked that wouldn't have been had we only been traveling with designers. Real-life encounters have the ability to elicit emotions and inspirations that a textbook never could. I learned so much and I returned bursting with excitement for design, for travel, and for life.

Reflection: Jacob Hernandez Fashion Merchandising and Marketing senior

Admiring the beautiful view of Prague from
the top of Dancing House

Research Topic:

My research topic examined resilience in businesses and nation-states, specifically considering cyber warfare and the negative effects it has on shareholders and stakeholders. Some of the effects discussed include the impact of lost financial assets, stolen private information and tarnished images. With many businesses and countries striving to continue to expand technologically, resilience against cyber warfare is a crucial topic and a major issue to be dealt with and pursued. Both Prague and Berlin have been subject to many difficulties in their past and are currently still trying to rebuild physically, emotionally, and financially. Businesses can be directly related to this kind of reconstruction, and resilience is the key to remaining on this path to restoration.

InfoGraphic:

The infographic that is related to my research includes methods and tactics that businesses and countries can utilize in order to remain resilient against cyber attacks. It specifically notes who cyber criminals are, where their strengths lie, some of the methods that they use, and the impacts that they have on those who are involved. It indicates that institutions must have frameworks that can maintain the security of its infrastructure, and also steps that can be taken in order to develop as a resilient institution.

Travel Experience:

This experience was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I will remember for the rest of my life. From the food that I ate, to the people that I met and the sights that I saw. Being immersed in different cultures that were vastly different from the one I am used to was both intimidating and exciting.The guides and friends that we met while in Prague and Berlin were great at helping us to adapt to their own culture while also embracing ours and the values that we have. I think that is the most important aspect to keep in mind when traveling anywhere: understanding the culture and being respectful of people's values and beliefs. I have traveled places before, but it was more for leisure and pleasure. Although I had an amazing experience with this course, the ambiance of our overall goal and mission was completely different, which I highly enjoyed. It was also fascinating to see the landmarks and architecture that many only read about in history books. History generally bores me, but this trip definitely allowed me to appreciate it more. 

Getting ready to board our flight back from
Berlin with our guide Steffi!!

Taking a selfie with our guide (and new friend) from Prague Olga!

Critical Reflection:

The outcomes of this trip immeasurably surpassed any expectations that I had before the trip. Although we were only in Prague and Berlin for a total of 8 days, I learned so much about the people, the cultures, their values, and the beauty that each had to offer. At first, I thought that I wasn't going to appreciate the trip as much as the other students because I am a Fashion Merchandising and Marketing major. Although I had an interest in what the class had to offer and what the particular study was, it was still more geared towards Interior Design Students (or so I thought). I imagined that my peers would have a greater sense of passion for the material and the sites that we planned to visit. As soon as we landed there and I peered outside the bus window on the way to our hostel, my mind completely changed. Throughout the week I realized that although this course was designed for ID students, any person, regardless of their major, could appreciate what Prague and Berlin had to offer. One of the moments that stuck out for me was when the group visited Municipal House and toured an Art Nouveau museum. Inside, I saw many garments, furniture, and even accessories that dated back to 1800's. This was a very unique event that we went to that was catered to me and wasn't planned in our itinerary. I think the best thing about traveling is that every day is full of surprises and you never know what you can come across.

Personal Growth:

I believe that this was a very unique trip in the sense that everyone I traveled with was a student or person that I knew prior to traveling. That being said, it was interesting to realize that not only did I learn about myself from experiencing different cultures and meeting new people with different values and beliefs, but I also learned a lot about myself by traveling with a larger group. We all had different strengths and weaknesses that we never realized we had until being exposed to foreign territory, and my classmates and I really worked together in making this a positive experience for everyone. Learning how to adapt to an environment that is completely different than I am used to also proved to be a scary, yet rewarding challenge that I took head on. Lastly, this experience helped me to understand and accept others that are very different from myself. Acceptance of others is something that I rarely struggle with, so it was a great experience and learn the different customs and lifestyles.

The group and I posing on pieces of the Berlin Wall

Academic Enhancement:

The travel portion of this course greatly impacted my interest in the topics that we discussed in class, as well as the overall experience and knowledge that I attained throughout the semester. As stated previously, although we read about some of these topics and landmarks in history books, nothing can compare to seeing them in real life. Adding the travel portion within the class helped me to become invested in the topics that were discussed and also allowed me to gain an experience that directly related to my studies. 

Civic Engagement:

Having the opportunity to learn from the experiences of others allows people to understand and identify public issues and concerns that are facing not just one's own community, but the communities of others nationally and internationally. By providing blog postings and an infographic, our class is better able to educate people about current issues, events and topics that are imperative and significant to know about. I think what makes this portion of the course even more meaningful is that each and every person was passionate about the topics that they chose, and were more than eager to share the breadth of knowledge that they learned with the people in their own community and those of others. The sharing of knowledge is what keeps us all connected no matter where we are, and it was an amazing to contribute to others in this way. 

Berlin Boat Cruise

Berlin is a city that is known for its integrated architecture. While it contains many historical buildings it also has a large amount of modern architecture. The contrast is part of what makes this city so interesting. Our group took a boat cruise along the Spree River at nighttime throughout Berlin and we observed all of the different styles of architecture in the City.Among many of the famous structures, we observed the Reichstag Building (shown above) It's beauty glows over the Spree River and has a magnificent presence. Many of these buildings have been around for hundreds of years and have lasted through World War II. Up close, the bullet holes from the war can still be seen in the side of the building.  The city is has endured many events and still stands tall and beautiful today.