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ccooney

Jul 03
Love0

The Architect’s Way

By Blog

I turned 65 in December 2023, and I really started to think about what that means. I’d been doing succession planning and having conversations with other business owners, especially in my Women Presidents Organization chapter, and realized that I do not want to retire. I love what I do, and I don’t want to phase out or sunset. In fact, I want to do just the opposite. 

I’ve been calling 2024 “the year of Pam.” I know that sounds weird, self-absorbed, and probably not the right way to say it. I think what I really mean is that I want to continue to grow in all the expansive ways. I still want to learn all the time. That’s what is at the core of everything for me. That includes learning about me. 

At the end of last year, there was a lot happening in my personal life. I felt…stuck. I started to really dive into Transcendental Meditation. Well, not dive, it’s too simple to call it diving. But simple does not mean easy. Not at first. My mind would wander to literally every other place than in the moment, and so it took, and continues to take, practice. With TM, you’re not clearing your thoughts from your mind. Instead, you focus on a mantra (a word or phrase that becomes the object of your attention) and for 20 minutes, you direct your consciousness to that mantra. Every day. It becomes a practice. And an emptying. It’s something I look forward to most days. 

On the heels of venturing into meditation, I signed up for a women’s yoga retreat to Costa Rica. I hate yoga. Or that’s what I’d convinced myself of. What I hated was the stillness and the breathing. I am a die-hard fitness junkie, always moving, always going hard. That’s not what happens with yoga. And the retreat, which was led by Ilana Siegal of Lifeworks Studio, was so much more than yoga. It was deep healing and I wanted to continue that journey after the plane landed back in the states. 

After several people recommended it to me, and because I had such a transformative experience in Costa Rica, I decided to take a 13-week course, “Get Out of Your Own Damn Way” (perfect title, let me tell you), that Ilana also teaches. The entire course is based on The Artist’s Way, by Julia Cameron.  Through the course, I started journaling. 

I’m going to say that again. I, Pam Sandler, started journaling. 

Let me tell you, writing was something I never did. I avoided it at all costs. This time though, I was spilling all over the page (and “spilling” is my nice way of saying emotional vomiting and other splattering). I wanted to write. I WANT to write, so I do. No editing as I go, just writing. 

I also started to sketch again. You’d think that, as an architect, I’d be sketching all the time. But I mean sketching for the sake of sketching. You just start. Every morning, I sketch for six minutes. At first, that was a nightmare. A lot of those early sketches ended up in the trash because I didn’t like them. They weren’t perfect. But I realized, the whole point is not to perfect, but to process. To be in those six minutes, just performing the act of sketching and enjoying it for what it is. I’ve also rediscovered the joy of exploring art, painting, and color. Even in my presentations to clients, I’ve gotten more creative with how the presentation conveys not just the aesthetic and design of the project, but the artistic energy of it. I want to help them feel it as much as I want them to see it. I recently met with a young couple about a project. They have a child, just a baby, and as we were talking through ideas for the space, I was able to see, thanks to my own 65 years on the planet, more than 35 of those years in the industry and nearly as many years raising my own children, how the plan needed to grow with the family. A lot of the conversation was “Have you thought about…?” 

In my home life, I’ve made some of my own adjustments. I got rid of my TV. Instead of picking up dinner on my way home from the office and eating it in front of the television, I get home, put on music that I like and cook something nice for myself – very simple cuisine right now. My friends wouldn’t have believed that if my life depended on it! – set my own place at the table and enjoy my simple cuisine. 

These small steps have led to something bigger. They’ve set me free to do anything I want. It sounds hokie, and it is, but this is a new beginning for me. I’ve been able to really home in on causes and organizations that I’m passionate about and want to support in meaningful ways. I’m able to be a mentor to the young people in my firm, and to my sons, and anyone who asks for advice or guidance. I feel the purpose of that in my life. 

Not surprisingly, this week’s theme in The Artist’s Way series was all about enthusiasm. I’m going to Iceland in the fall to see the Northern Lights. How’s that for enthusiastic? 

 

May 13
Love0

The Berkshire Edge: A minimalist condo with maximum light

By Blog, Press

We often referred to this project as the “house of glass” because there is glass everywhere.

BY PAMELA SANDLER
Originally published in The Berkshire Edge on May 10, 2024.

Condominiums are tough. When I was just starting out in the Berkshires, one of my earliest jobs was a condo back when condos were not “a thing” here. Obviously, a lot has changed since then. But what hasn’t changed is the limitations of condominiums, and this one was no exception. It was very chopped up, typical late 1980s design. We couldn’t make any structural changes to the exterior, so we had to utilize the space we already had. That included the screened-in porch, which we brought into the square footage of the house, enclosed it, and it became the main living space. Multiple French doors—French doors everywhere, really–and angled windows (all custom, and cut flush with the roof line) opened the space up tremendously. That was one of the main goals our client had. Even when you are inside the living room, you feel like you are outside because of all the glass and light.

In fact, we often referred to this project as the “house of glass” because there is glass everywhere. The windows, the doors, those are the obvious features. But then there is all the glass detail. Tiny, tiny glass tiles in the kitchen, concave and convex glass tiles in the bathroom, plexiglass stairs and glass risers, frosted glass cabinets; no view inside or out is obstructed. In fact, glass is the true “canvas” for our client’s expansive art collection. So expansive, that we catalogued the art before we began the build and afterwards hired someone specifically to hang the art.

Everything is custom built. Everything. Glass shelves are backlit and filled with sculpture and other art. We made light boxes for specific pieces, and when younger, more curious guests would come (the kind who can really do some damage to glass), we designed wooden panels to cover the light boxes…just in case. Every corner of this house is a curation. A vignette that you discover as you wander through. And, of course, the stairs, which are central to the entire space. We’ve started calling them the “Pam stairs,” as they have turned up in subsequent projects. (I am mildly obsessed with stairs. My team and my kids might argue more than mildly.)
During the build, the grandchildren started arriving, and the space needed to take those curious visitors into consideration. And it needed to be fun! The loft area is one of my favorites. Everything is multi-functional. The L-shaped seating area transforms into a bed and the coffee table surface can be flipped over and used as snack trays. There are drawers built into the steps leading up to the loft that are used for extra storage. The office off the first-floor bedroom—the headboard and adjustable lamps as well as the closet behind it all custom—is still called the “baby’s room” even though the babies are all grown up. With our client’s feedback through every step of this project, we were able to achieve a modern space that would allow for growth—with the art, the grandkids, and the changing needs of our client.
Ironically, the more limitations we have, the easier it is to be creative and to allow for a vision to come into focus. Inspiration comes directly from the needs and desires of the client, and the functionality of the space. That’s why I sit and observe my clients in their home. It’s part of the process because with architecture, the end user is always right!
Nov 30
Love0

Mama Mia! An architect journeys to Venice and Milan

By Blog

Forty-two years ago, I was in Venice…for one night. At the time, I was a student and couldn’t afford to spend an entire day there. It was a gift that my dad had given me as a college graduation present – six weeks to travel around Europe.

Of course, I always wanted to go back. I honestly didn’t think it would take me this long! My son (the same son who convinced me that he needed to study photography in Venice for two months when he was 20 years old), Andrew, along with his wonderful partner, Cody, planned the whole trip which also included four days in Milan.

 

Venice (Venezia)

In Venice, the buildings have been settling for decades, and the only way to really travel is by boat taxi and by foot. There is, understandably, always construction happening in that sinking city, and you can see that there is yellow tape and huge drapings around many of the buildings. This is Venice, after all, and they will never not focus on aesthetics and beauty. It still must be beautiful.

Venice is tiny, and full of tourists, but the locals are dedicated to trying to keep their space. There is a feeling of joy at every moment and every new day was a new experience.

We went on a few tours. One of them was a three-hour food tour lead by a woman who seemed like a typical, eccentric tour guide. She was incredibly knowledgeable about the food and the history of the city. We started drinking at noon. We did some digging later (via Instagram, naturally) and discovered that our tour guide had some other unique identities, not the least of which was as a fetishist who had a thing for painted-on latex dresses.

We toured the Doge’s Palace, an impressive work of Gothic architecture that is a layering of constructions and ornamentation spanning from 1340 onwards. We also took in several architecture exhibits through the Venice Biennale, a yearly celebration of the city’s art and architecture that includes performances and installations. We walked the entire city, and ate, and walked some more, each of us falling in love with the place.

On our last day, I had the mother of all pastries. The sfogliatelle, otherwise known as the “lobster tail” stateside. I needed a nap! But that didn’t stop me from devouring it. I ate my way through this trip because that is how you experience Italy.

 

 

 

 

 

Milan (Milano)

We took a Leonardo da Vinci tour, touring all over Sforzecso Castle, the largest citadel in Europe. We learned about da Vinci’s unique journey and his major impact on Milan. We found out about a Leonardo da Vinci exhibit at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana. It was incredible. The library (Codex Atlanticus Leonardo da Vinci – Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana) had everything, including da Vinci’s notebooks, which were astonishing. His brilliance was particularly evident at the Milan Cathedral, the Duomo, where construction began in the late 1300s. Leonardo da Vinci was one of a long succession of architects at the head of this ongoing project, and at the end of the 15th century was given the Herculean task of designing the tiburio, the polygonal lantern tower that rises above the four arms of the cruciform. It was spectacular.

In fact, every detail was. Cody is an illustrator, and he and I really got off on the mosaics. They were everywhere. Built into the city as a necessity, not a luxury.

We enjoyed a roof tour, walking through the archways and seeing all the gorgeous pink marble up close. What looks like buttresses are just ornamental. They used a very porous marble which means that they are always replacing and doing renovations. There are hundreds, maybe thousands, of individual sculptures throughout Milan, none repeating, including Mussolini and Napoleon and other controversial figures who, it seems, will remain there until they crumble.

We shopped at vintage clothing stores and peeked into high-end retail spaces like Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton. I got in a little bit of trouble –mostly disapproving looks– because I was apparently underdressed for some of the shops! The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is a pedestrian mall housed within a four-story double arcade and consists of two glass-vaulted arcades intersecting in an octagon covering the street with an arching glass and cast-iron roof. The Galleria is teaming with high-end couture shops and home to some of the oldest shop spaces and eateries in Milan. We treated ourselves to a visit to Café Aperol, one of the oldest cafes in the city.

Do you know what was really cool? Europeans still shop. It was wonderful to see people out on a weekday, having lunch, shopping. They really enjoy it. Americans don’t shop like that. Not since the pandemic, and not even before that. We’ve lost that culture, or we never really had it.

Italians also don’t take huge breakfasts, but there are always pastries and every pastry I had was better than the previous, and every cup of coffee, too.

The Mama

Young people are so much fun to be with. Several times I’d be taking pictures and it felt like Andrew and Cody were the grown-ups, and I was the kid. We also discovered that the password in Italy is “mama.”

“They’re gonna let the mama pay for dinner!”

“Bring out extra limoncello for the mama!”

I felt like I was put on a pedestal. It was weird, but I did just fine with it. There are very few places in the world that make you feel like Italy does.

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