Tagged : international

in architecture, personal

Coop Himmelb(l)au Q/A part 2

Currently, Coop Himmelb(l)au is one of the most frequently used search terms to find this website. So it’s no surprise to me people want to learn more about this Vienna based architecture company. Back in July, I answered several questions about this internship at CHBL. Today, it’s time for part two. This time I’ll answer Antonio’s questions (which I received via email).

What are tasks interns usually do?

This totally depends on the team and status of the project. If you work on competitions a lot, this could involve model making. In my case, I worked on a project which was in the preliminary phase. So I made many diagrams, presentation books, et cetera. In other teams, the tasks can be more technical. Coop Himmelb(l)au assigns you to a team based on your own experiences/qualities and the job interview you (probably) had.

Were there many interns and young people besides you?

Yep. Coop Himmelb(l)au hires many young people. When I was in Vienna, I joined a group of interns who usually teamed up for lunch and/or spend evenings together.

What was the most remarkable thing that happened during your internship?

Hehe, good question. This probably is the evening we had an important deadline. We worked with about six people on a design which had to bee finished before 8AM (yep, 8AM, not PM). Halfway through the evening Wolf Prix joined us. Although he spoke German the entire time, I understood everything he said. Which surprised me, since I’m not so fluent in German. After a while, he made a joke so I joked back… in German. He looked at me… and asked an architect who I was. She told him I was an intern from the Netherlands. After which he spoke to me in a language I didn’t understand. It sounded a lot like German, but it just wasn’t. And he left. So I asked the architect what Wolf Prix said. She told me he imitated my Dutch accent by speaking weird German…

How many hours did you usually work during a typical day?

In the example described above, I worked from 8AM to 3AM the following day (so 19 hours in total). But that only happened once. Mostly I arrived at 9AM and worked until 7 or 8PM.

Are they flexible in general? I mean, decisions, schedules, etc…

You can do many things besides your daily tasks. And the office/team can be very flexible… As long as you meet your deadlines. Sometimes the partner-in-charge has a meeting with a client (which mostly happens abroad, since it’s a very international company). In my case, the main architect was in Azerbaijan a lot. During those days our team played catch-up or relaxed a bit. After two or three of those days, the architect would return. And with him, many new tasks and project changes we had to take care of.

What was the best experience you could say that you got from here?

I did several internships in the past. Each of those internships differed completely from this one. Why? It’s the size of the company (about 150 employees), the number and size of projects abroad and their own invented architecture style (Deconstructivism). Also the fact that founder Wolf D. Prix still works at this company adds something special to the experience (as described above). And perhaps I should mention Vienna is a beautiful city and great to live in. But this all gets trumped by the people. Imagine 150 creative people trying to design the most awesome, craziest and sometimes weirdest projects possible. In my first week, I met people from Germany, the USA, Azerbaijan, Greece, Turkey, Britain, China, Denmark, Portugal, Spain… should I go on? It took me several days to meet the first native Austrian employee… So meeting all those people with completely different backgrounds and learn from them (while having fun) was the best experience I got!

in personal, photos, travels
1 Obama on poster

November 4, 2008

November 4, 2008. The day America elected Barack Obama as their 44th president. I was lucky being in the United States on this very special day. Today it’s November 4, 2011. It’s exactly three years after these historic elections, which gives me a reason to share some of my photos.

Election Day 2008. My day started like any other day. In the morning I went to Rietveld Architects for ‘just another day at the office’. For me, Election Day started at 3PM. Together with two colleagues I went to Rockefeller Center.

NBC News turned Rockefeller Center into Election Plaza.

As you can see on this picture (above), preparations are almost done.

I didn’t go to Rockefeller to see these preparations at Election Plaza. A Dutch news show would broadcast live from the Rockefeller Center for their election coverage. I was part of the audience (which was really fun because my family in the Netherlands watched it live). They started broadcasting at 4PM (10PM in the Netherlands). Election night began!

Several hours later, the sun already set, I took a photo of this incredible view of St. Patricks Cathedral (photo is taken from the news studio in Rockefeller Center). It was time to go downstairs and visit Election Plaza.

Wow! To my surprise the Rockefeller Center turned red and blue for NBC’s broadcasting. Also the skyscraper featured a running electoral count (you can see the number 270, which is the number of delegates each candidate needs to win the elections).

At the building two carts were pulled up. One for Obama and one for McCain. The carts ended at 270 at which stage the next president would be known.

After Obama won three delegates, I together with several other people decided to go somewhere else. We figured it would be more interesting to experience the elections in Harlem, which is where we went.

We visited an Obama campaign office in Harlem. It’s the same office where I watched several of the presidential debates.

Not much later, we found out thousands of people gathered in front of the Bill Clinton Office (which is situated in Harlem). We decided to go there. On the photo above, you’ll see many camera crews from news networks all around the world. Quickly it became clear our gathering would be broadcasted live in many countries!

Together with thousands of people we watched CNN, who projected Obama as winner in Ohio (which was one of the crucial states).

Shortly after I snapped this photograph, I was interviewed by this guy. I didn’t know who he was. Moments later he gave a speech from the podium, so I figured he must be famous. Several days after the elections I found out he’s famous indeed. He’s a well known comedian and has its own show on CNN. And… his interview with me was broadcasted on CNN! (“Even the Dutch are excited”)

It wouldn’t take long until “Yes We Can” became “Yes We Did”.

NBC projected Obama as winner of the elections. Everyone went crazy!

CNN also projected Obama as winner. John Mc Cain was defeated. Barack Obama would be the 44th president of the United States.

Just look at the woman in the lower left of this photo. Need I say more?

The atmosphere was euphoric for a very, very long time.

The governor of New York gave an emotional speech.

To conclude these historic elections, Obama gave his victory speech. During his speech, almost everyone was silent (except for some people shouting “Yes We Can”).

After his speech, crowds got bigger. “O-bam-A” and “Yes We Can” echoed everywhere. People were laughing, hugging and cheering. At 125th Street, crowds were pouring in from all directions. Cars cruised slowly east and west, their windows rolled down, passengers hanging out, waving and shouting. After several hours I went back to my apartment in Lower Manhattan. It was an historic night, and I had been part of it.

in architecture, personal
chbl

Coop Himmelb(l)au Q/A

Sometimes readers of this blog ask questions about previous blog posts and my previous experiences. This time it’s a question about me being an intern at Vienna based architecture firm Coop Himmelb(l)au. I could answer the inquirer by email, but by answering his questions on this blog I might help other people. Here’s our Q/A…

How’s the experience?

In one word: Fantastic! In the past I worked for several architecture firms. But non of them employed over 150 employees (which is pretty big for an architecture firm!). And none of them had projects all over the world (ranging from the United States to China and from Azerbaijan to Albania). Also the fact that one of the founders, Wolf D. Prix, still works at this company adds something special to the experience. Wether you’d agree with his design philosophies or not, it is awesome to learn (first hand) from such a worldwide renowned architect! And to quote a colleague: “It is fantastic to work for a company who invented their own architecture style”. And this is actually true (check Wikipedia!).

How’s the work environment?

Very special. Each project will comprise a small team of 5-10 people. Within such a team you’ll make friends really soon. Since stakes are high, people sometimes often make long days, but are thoroughly motivated. This adds to the ‘energy’ inside the office. There are models, concept renderings and drawings all over the place!

What kind of projects did you work on?

Big projects! That’s all I can say. I’m sorry! Everyone working with Coop Himmelb(l)au has to sign a non-disclosure agreement. Since my projects aren’t even mentioned on their website (or anywhere else on the web), I’m not allowed to tell you a single thing about the projects I worked on.

What software did you use?

AutoCAD and Rhino for the 2D and 3D drawings. Also I used Photoshop and InDesign a lot.

To conclude: Perhaps the best thing at doing an internship at this (or probably any other) company is you’ll get the chance to meet so many interesting and fascinating people. And you’ll work on fascinating projects worldwide, while you live and work in the old and classic city of Vienna.

in architecture, personal, photos, travels
chbl

Internship @ Coop Himmelb(l)au

During my undergraduate studies I wanted to do an internship at a large international architecture firm. In 2010 I reached this goal by working for Vienna based company Coop Himmelb(l)au.

Deconstructivist Architecture

Coop Himmelb(l)au was founded in 1986. It’s an architecture firm primarily located in Vienna, Austria. The company was founded by Wolf D. Prix, Helmut Swiczinsky and Michael Holzer. It gained international acclaim alongside Peter Eisenman, Zaha Hadid and Frank Gehry with the 1988 exhibition “Deconstructivist Architecture” at MoMA.

Perhaps the coolest thing about Coop Himmelb(l)au is the fact they have their own style. I mean, they practically invented deconstructivism and they’re proud of it. And why wouldn’t they!

During the course of the internship I worked on several great projects. Believe me, it’s kinda special to work on skyscrapers worth over 200 million Euros (290 million USD).

Controlled Chaos

According to Wikipedia, the architectural style of Deconstructivism is characterized by ideas of fragmentation. The finished visual appearance is characterized by a stimulating unpredictability and a controlled chaos. This is also true for one of the projects I was working on… controlled chaos.

Unfortunately I can’t share any information of the project I was working on, although I already wrote it’s a skyscraper. A soon as the project hits the website of Coop Himmelb(l)au, I’ll also post it here. In the mean time, I’ll share some photos of the beautiful city of Vienna.

The Austrian Parliament

The statue of Athena in front of the Austrian Parliament

View of the world famous Schönbrunn Palace

Hofburg Theater

The Hundertwasserhaus

St. Stephen’s Cathedral (Stephansdom) at Stephansplatz

The Votive Church (Votivkirche)

Inside the Austrian Parliament

Inside the Wiener Musikverein

City Hall

The ferris wheel (Riesenrad) at Prater park

‘Roman’ Ruin at Schönbrunn (erected in 1778)

View of the world famous Schönbrunn Palace during winter time

I just realized I didn’t include pictures of the Hofburg Palace, State Opera, The Johan Strauss Monument or St. Charles’s Church, to name a view. Maybe Vienna has too many monuments?!

in architecture, personal, photos, travels
NY 1

Internship @ Rietveld Architects in New York City

In 2008 I did a six-month internship at Rietveld Architects in New York City. Rietveld Architects is a company founded by Margaret and Rijk Rietveld. The New York office is located on a convenient 600 meters walk from Times Square.

I rented an apartment in Lower Manhattan, between the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridge. This resulted in a 30 minute travel from my apartment to the office, which I preferred to do by bike. During the course of my internship I biked on every avenue and almost every street of Manhattan.

Together with Rijk (leading architect) I worked on the many Dutch projects. These include City Hall The Hague, a conference hotel and an urban planning project.

Besides working at the architecture firm I experienced New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington DC. I’ve put together a selection of (random) photos I made during my stay in the Big Apple.

The Office

You guessed it! The red arrow points to the office of Rietveld Architects.

The Film Center Building. The office is on the top floor.

I’m in the middle-right of this photo (next to the window)

New York City

Free kayaking in the Hudson River. You can see the Statue of Liberty in the middle.

View from the Staten Island Ferry.

View from the Empire State Building.

View from the Empire State Building.

The office of Rietveld Architects was located on a mere 600 meters walk from Times Square.

Wall Street.

The shiny towers of the Time Warner Center.

One of my favorite skyscrapers in New York, the Hearst Tower.

The Brooklyn Bridge (can you see the waterfall?)

The world famous Guggenheim Museum

The Flatiron building during sunset.

View from the Brooklyn Boulevard.

Tribute in Light, an art installation of 88 searchlights placed next to the site of the World Trade Center to create two vertical columns of light in remembrance of the September 11 attacks.

Lady Liberty

I went to the US Open quarter finals.

View from Jazz @ Time Warner Center during the New York Marathon.

More sports. Basketball, the NY Knicks.

And even more sports. A rodeo in Madison Square Garden.

Ground Zero and the World Financial Center.

One out of many times I visited Central Park.

New York Water Taxi in front of the NY skyline.

Reenactment at Governors Island.

Admiral’s house at Governors Island.

The Queen Mary 2 viewed from Governors Island.

My view from the office of Rietveld Architects on Veteran’s Day 2008. President George W. Bush visited the Intrepid on this day (you can see Marine One, the President’s helicopter, on deck).

Election Day 2008.

Before going to Harlem, I spent some time at Rockefeller Center.

Afterwards I went to an Obama campaign office in Harlem, NY.

I was in Harlem (125th street, opposite of the Bill Clinton office) when Barack Obama was elected president. A very special moment.

Winter in Central Park.

Winter Garden at the World Financial Center.

Manhattan during sunset.

Philadelphia

During my stay in New York City I visited several other cities, like Philadelphia and Boston.

Boston

Washington DC: The Inauguration of Barack Obama

During my internship Barack Obama and John McCain were all over the news. Since I’m really interested in American Politics, I consider myself lucky doing an internship in the US during the elections of 2008.

Wether Obama or McCain would win, I wanted to go to the nation’s capital for the Inauguration in January 2009. That’s why I booked my hostel prior to election day (in September). On a side note, this saved me lots of money, since I payed normal fees instead of the ridiculous fees hotels charged in and around Washington DC after Obama was elected. Obviously, I didn’t anticipate for such a historic election and Inauguration. Needless to say, I had a great time in DC.

in architecture, personal, photos, travels
4

Student exchange in Italy

Together with a friend, I went to Italy from October till December 2006. We were the first students from our school, the ROC Friese Poort, to be selected to attend classes at the Technical Institute ‘Alessio Tramello’. Also we did three short internships at several architectural and constructional companies in the afternoon.

Technical Institute ‘Alessio Tramello’

We attended classes at this institute every morning, five days a week from 8 AM – 1 PM. We studied subjects like Topography, Building construction, Plants, Drawing, Italian and English. We met a lot of people, learned a lot about the ‘Italian way of construction’ and had a great time at this institute.

Internships

We did three different internships. In the first 3 weeks during our visit, I went to the architectural company owned by mrs. Mitzi Bollani. Mitzi Bollani is the vice-president of an European expert group on accessibility and specializes in making buildings accessible to people with various handicaps. During this internship I performed a variety of duties including creating a 3D model of a large block of apartments, drawing various 2D and 3D models of buildings and drawing several pieces of furniture.

During the fourth week, we did an internship at ‘Edilstrade’. This is a large building construction company in the Piacenza region. This internship was less practical, but we learned a lot about Italian architecture, and visited an Italian university and a hotel.

The last internship lasted four weeks. Together with my classmate, I went to Cooperation Construction Val d’Arde (Firenzuola). This is a large architectural and construction company in the city of Firenzuola. During this internship, we spoke with the architects, discussed different aspects of construction with the firm’s employees and saw many construction sites in Piacenza, Firenzuola, Parma and other towns.

The experience

This was a great experience. I learned a lot about the Italian way of construction, the Italian school system and the Italian people. I saw many, many places and visited a lot of cities in the whole country. I visited Rome, Milan, Florence, Parma, Genua, Cremona, and of course Piacenza. Also, I went to the Alps and Rome.