Notes for those beginning the discipline of architecture – Alternate Ending 1: The Glimmering Noise 2006
Distributed by Microcinema International/Microcinema DVD, 1636 Bush St., Suite #2, SF, CA 94109; 415-447-9750
Produced by Michael Meredith
Directed by David Fenster
DVD, color, 36 min.
Sr. High - Adult
Architecture, Design
Date Entered: 09/29/2006
Reviewed by Louise Greene, Art Library, University of Maryland, College ParkMichael Meredith’s essay, Notes for those beginning the discipline of architecture, and the accompanying DVD, Alternate Ending 1: The Glimmering Noise, comprise a provocative, if at times tongue-in-cheek, critique of a profession perhaps not best known for its sense of humor.
Notes consists of 18 pages, folded road map-style, (indeed the reverse side is a map of sorts) which, despite its title, should interest students and design professionals alike. Meredith leaves neither the theory nor the practice of architecture unscathed in this witty, acerbic deconstruction of the profession as it enters the 21st century. Continuing the argument, Alternate Ending 1: The Glimmering Noise casts the author in a philosophical interrogation opposite David Nordstrom – an unsettling parody of William F. Buckley’s television talk show Firing Line.
The recipient of numerous awards, residencies, fellowships, and grants, Michael Meredith received his M.Arch with distinction from Harvard University Graduate School of Design in 2000, and joined the faculty there as Assistant Professor of Architecture in 2004. His work includes residential architecture, furniture, and product design, which, along with his writings, have been published widely in professional journals.
A decidedly irreverent inside take on the profession, Notes for those beginning the discipline of architecture – Alternate Ending 1: The Glimmering Noise is recommended for libraries and academic programs with collections in architecture and design.