Check Out Andrew Davis’ Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrew Davis

Hi Andrew, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I have a background in Fine Arts, and I really became interested in Architecture while working at a museum that was expanding their campus and galleries. As I worked on this project, I realized I found Architecture at least as exciting as Art! I also realized there is tremendous crossover between the two fields. Architecture and Art operate on a continuum. It’s not an either/or thing. What a relief to discover that, and see that continuum as a zone in which to work and play.

I earned my Masters later in life. The museum project led me to grad school, which led me to teaching at Woodbury, my alma mater, and also working at Kadre Architects as a Project Designer. We specialize in transitional and supportive housing for people experiencing homelessness in LA County. In a way, it’s a world from the museums and galleries I used to work at, but it’s also about providing dignity through good design.

I also provide research and consulting services for various urban design projects, including Mass MoCA’s Placemaking Task Force in North Adams, MA. Art, Architecture, Design, the Built Environment – all these overlap in my creative practice.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Well, I entered grad school in the Fall of 2020, l0l! When I was accepted in the program, it was January 2020 and no one predicted we’d be spending the first year or more of a three year program all at home, at our individual dining tables, looking at each other on Zoom screens. We thought we’d be spending eighteen hours a day in the architecture studios at school! So that was a hard swerve, but we all dealt with it.

In the larger picture, the art world has its ups and downs, for sure. People fall in and out of it, some people get disappointed if they don’t become famous, sometimes you work on a project for months and then the rug gets pulled out from under you. Things happen. I’ve always looked at the creative life as a wonderful adventure. You don’t know exactly what’s going to happen on an adventure, that’s the whole point. Sometimes things go as planned, sometimes not. Sometimes you organize your own projects on a shoestring. Sometimes you work with large, established institutions that have deep pockets. I’ve been around the world for residencies, festivals, and other projects, and after all this time I feel like there’s way more ahead of me than behind me.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I see the mundane, the uncanny, and the extraordinary as three sides of the same coin. Yes, a coin has three sides! After studying digital and parametric architecture, and spending time in Rome and Venice studying Ancient, Medievel, and Renaissance buildings, I did my thesis on the mini-mall in Los Angeles. I imagined a world in which mini-malls became the dominant, the only kind of building in Los Angeles. Some people say it’s that way already (laughs). I used these buildings no one looks at twice to provide housing, recreation, health care, industry, agriculture, education…. it’s satire but it’s also meant to prod architects. I looked at how these mini-malls dress themselves up, and I saw low-budget versions of high-concept architectural moves. I’m asking: is the mini-mall version that bad? Is the high-end version that good? And, what does all this say about our values as a society?

I did a project for a residency in a small Italian village in the Alps. I proposed leveling one of the local mountains and building a condo community. People were horrified! And also they laughed. So, job well done. But this kind of development really does happen in Italy, and in California, and around the world, when the money is right. People are perfectly happy to level a beautiful mountain if there’s money in it. So, while I want people to laugh and be horrified, I also want to prompt discussion: which moutains do we as a society all to be torn down? Which are so special we wouldn’t dream of tearing them down? And, what are the values that drive these decisions?

We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
I learned, be ready to change your expectations in a changing world. I learned, in a crisis, you definitely want a certain kind of person around you. I learned, reality doesn’t care if you believe in it or not. Covid was a very slow-moving disaster, but it was a major disaster and everyone reading this has lived through it. That shared experience is going to affect our psychology and our world for years to come.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.davisartprojects.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davisartprojects/

Image Credits
Andrew Davis