logo
episode-header-image
Yesterday
52m 16s

#397 - Drafting Was Never the Job

Evan Troxel & Cormac Phalen
About this episode

A look back at the '90s, from Nirvana and Napster to car stereos worth more than the car, turns into a look forward at what AI leaves for architects to do. Evan, back from Autodesk University in Las Vegas, walks through the capability, alignment, and accountability framework from his workshop on building a firm's AI adoption plan. He and Cormac get into why drawings and models are the results of decisions rather than the decisions themselves, what happens to drafting, and how Cormac already uses AI as a tool on real projects.

This episode is especially relevant for practicing architects and firm leaders who can't decide whether AI is a crutch or a way to spend more time on the work that matters. It pushes back on waiting for permission and asks why you chose architecture in the first place.

Episode Links:

  • Autodesk University — https://www.autodesk.com/autodesk-university/
  • Carlo Scarpa — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_Scarpa
  • TRXL — https://trxl.co

-----

Thank you for listening to Archispeak. For more episodes please visit https://archispeakpodcast.com.

Support Archispeak by making a donation.

Up next
Sep 22
#396 - Don't Judge Yourself by the Wrapper
Evan and Cormac dig into how Lawrence Tech's architecture studio is evolving its comprehensive design curriculum in real time, and why buildability still beats a flashy final presentation. They explore a new semester experiment forcing quiet students into leadership roles, a real ... Show More
48m 50s
Aug 17
#395 - Thermal Reactive Umbrella
Some weeks the conversation just goes where it goes. Evan and Cormac spend this one reading Wikipedia and AI overviews at each other in real time — the AIA convention ping-ponging from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, SoFi Stadium sunk 100 feet into the ground for the LAX flight path ... Show More
48m 23s
Jul 27
#394 - Your Architecture Degree Isn't A Dead End
What do you do when you finish six years of architecture school, land in the profession, and realize none of it speaks to you? Evan and Cormac start with a former student on a Detroit construction tour who says the buildings around her are falling on deaf ears, and they take the ... Show More
51m 6s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2022
#283 - After Hours: The Practice of Architecture
This week David and Marina have a casual conversation about the practice of architecture, SCI-Arc's Basecamp panel, architectural education, libraries, favorite teen bands, how architecture is understood by the general public, and going dairy free. <p>This episode is supporte<spa ... Show More
1h 28m
Jul 2025
Designing for presence in a digital age
Has presence become a luxury in the digital age? And do we lose contact with the world around us when so much of our lives unfold in front of a screen? In this episode of Let's Talk Architecture host Michael Booth meets Nikoline Dyrup, architect and founding partner of Danish arc ... Show More
29m 27s
Nov 2024
#419 - Art vs Architecture
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss Art vs Architecture. They covered the similarities and differences between artists and architects; creative freedom; mediums and materials; provocative vs practicality; public perception; time pressure; pay and valu ... Show More
1h 24m
Jan 2023
#321 - After Hours: Old Clothing and Open Floor Plans
<p>This week David and Marina have a casual chat about old clothing; the value (and limitations) of open floor plans in homes (11:00); the idea of thresholds in space making; the downsides to designing houses for resale value (30:40); designing great housing that is expensive and ... Show More
1h 28m
Jun 2024
We Solved Buildings
tail spinning
52m 30s
Feb 2021
Design Matters - Podcast January 18, 2021
Episode 1: How can we overcome design biases in western education? What are some assumptions we make as designers? Is there bias in design? How has architecture served western values and what western values do they serve? This episode looks at dissecting the relationships between ... Show More
1s
Feb 2024
#383 - Program: The Boring Secret to Great Architecture
This week David and Marina of FAME Architecture & Design discuss architecture program. The two cover what program in architecture means, why it is important, how it is developed and implemented, and examples of leveraging program for creative design. This episode is supported by ... Show More
53m 4s
Jul 2013
013 Archispeak Podcast with Cormac Phalen, Evan Troxel and Neal Pann
<p>In this episode I talk with the creators of the wildly successful podcast that "dares to peek under the architectural kimono" and tell us what architecture is <em>really</em> about. Join Neal Pann, Evan Troxel, Cormac Phalen and I as we discuss social media for architects, arc ... Show More
24m 42s