“Draw!” yells the art teacher, and “Draw what?” you reply.
Without clear instructions on how, what and why most of us are stuck and that’s a tragic situation for any designer to be in. Yet it’s a common reality and the reason why so few of us have artistic vision. 5 years of architectural training at University level does not guarantee the ability to design. While most architects appreciate good design, very few architects actually know how to produce it. Most end up talking more about design than doing something about it.
Taras Wolf has always been someone who prefers doing more than talking. He has often claimed to be less of an academic in that sense. Rather than reading up on theories and debating ideas in great depth his preference was always to get out there and make something. Too much thinking and talking can stifle creativity and slow you down. Furthermore he has always had the ability to create something from nothing and start without a reason. How is that possible? Perhaps it’s a matter of confidence, courage or bravery but whatever it is the point is to get moving.
“Progress is more about movement than direction and sometimes that even means going backwards. I’m not afraid to make mistakes. The worst thing for me is staying still for too long. Movement supports change and change is the way of the universe”.
The 22 man challenge and many of Taras’s elaborate drawings are a result of just getting started. None of them were planed out carefully from the start. It was simply the desire to create and explore. Moving the pen across the page creating lines and shapes that slowly formed meaning was an exercise in design. Starting and not knowing where you may finish was a common brief for many of Taras’ early works and in fact a lot of fun.
Much of Wolf architects approach to its clients and projects remain true to this method of just getting started and stuck into it. Obviously there are elements of research and study necessary with every project but most of our designs are a result of exploration rather than having a preconceived idea or concept for how things must be.
“Let’s just start and see where we end up, and because we are flexible and good at what we do I’m confident that the results will be great”. Taras Wolf