Architecture is (not) Enough
Honour your Desires and Grow Beyond the Mainstream
‘Why does a field of study that teaches students to envision and create so subjectively, generate graduates that view their career path so objectively?’ This is a question design professional Cory Wingelaar heard a professor ask back at architecture school.
We spend years learning to push boundaries and imagine radical solutions — from underwater cities to shape-shifting dwellings and self-healing materials — yet, past graduation, most of us follow a single path: join an architecture firm, get licensed, open a practice, build.
Build for who? Usually, a very particular clientele.
I have seen students come up with the craziest, most inventive work in school — designs that reflect ingenuity, care, novelty, beauty; concepts that are deeply personal and non-linear — only to graduate and pursue the same well-trodden outcomes: high-end dwellings for the ‘upper classes’; often with little consideration for context, communities and place, and accompanied by stunning renders that, upon closer examination, don’t say much. Rarely do I see a graduate who challenges their assumptions and truly breaks the mould.
Luxury architecture isn’t a problem per se, nor is pursuing licensure. The problem is when they become the default for so many graduates, limiting the exploration of other possibilities.
And honestly? I’m not surprised.
1 - Identify the Main Stream:
So, why are students encouraged to create with such subjectivity, yet generate career paths with such objectivity? Why does a creative field of study breed such uncreative futures?
Maybe because architecture school isn’t as innovative or creative as it seems. Yes, you were tasked with imagining radical ideas — but how radical are they, really?
It seems to me that most boundary-pushing still happens within a certain stream, a narrow current of mainstream thinking.
Take underwater cities, for example. They look excitingly groundbreaking — but if you look closer at the designs and renders, it seems like these structures are simply plastered on the ocean floor, imposed in an act of domination rather than integration. Where is the consideration for marine life corridors? Have the cultures already living with these waters been studied or respected? I doubt it.
Or shape-shifting dwellings. The idea of a structure that dynamically moves, changes form and responds to environmental factors is intriguing. But if it perpetuates the same patterns of consumerism and ever-increasing economic growth, doesn’t it just add complexity to an already flawed system?
These examples reveal a deeper systemic issue in our field.
Our industry’s rush to build often exploits the environment, polluting and wasting precious resources, while hoping that a tech-driven revolution will fix our shortcomings. We talk about ‘sustainability’ while often demolishing perfectly functioning structures in the name of ‘development’. Now we have set our sight on carbon — as we’re responsible for 38% of global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions — being told that the solution to climate change is to decarbonize.
However, the challenge runs deeper — it’s a systemic issue that demands holistic thinking and multi-faceted changes, like:
Biodiversity recovery *more than just planting trees*
Food sovereignty *more than just community gardens*
Soil regeneration *more than just greening spaces*
Local economies *more than just sourcing locally*
Decentralizing energy systems *more than just solar panels*
Integrating indigenous wisdom *more than just acknowledging*
Rethinking overdevelopment *more than just limiting urban sprawl*
Shifting consumer awareness and habits *more than just a conversation*
Empowering communities *more than just consulting people*
Changing education *more than just updating curricula*
The list goes on. In essence: addressing this deeper systemic issue in our field demands more than ‘architectural' solutions. It means questioning the default assumptions that are baked into our education and professional practice. It means realizing that the so-called ‘radical’ ideas we explore in school are often just variations of mainstream thinking — not true departures from it.
To truly break free, we must first identify this mainstream current we’ve been silently groomed towards. Only then can we decide if we want to drift along or chart a completely new course.
What assumptions about architecture have you recognized or unconsciously accepted? Are they truly serving you?
The mainstream is strong — but remember: your capacity to diverge is stronger. Will you conform, or will you honour your desires that pull you towards more?
2 - Architecture is not enough:
Do you get entangled in complexity when you actually long for simplicity?
Do you despise the often hyper-competitive architecture culture and wish you could step away from it?
Do you sometimes feel like you studied the wrong thing?
Do you wish architecture was less about rigid frameworks and more about creative liberation?
Are you satisfied with adding landscapes in AutoCad, or would you also like to work with your hands, directly on the ground?
Do you dream of collaborating with artists, ecologists and thinkers outside the architectural bubble?
If you answered Yes to any of the above, you have desires you are not honouring. A part of you knows you want more, but another part of you wants to fit in. Fitting in makes you feel safe. But what price are you paying?
Exhaustion? Unfulfillment? Ill-health? Burnout?
It may seem hard to break out, but you know what’s even harder? Pretending to be someone you’re not, holding back, living a lie.
In your desire to fit in, you've absorbed beliefs shaped by the dominant culture — beliefs that don’t serve you and keep you trapped in misaligned patterns:
I am only accepted if I don’t challenge the status quo.
If I question ‘architecture rules,’ I’ll be dismissed or humiliated.
I am not smart or creative enough to forge my own path.
There are no viable alternatives to the mainstream career path.
All the alternatives are taken.
These aren’t your beliefs. They’re inherited, limiting beliefs. I have a feeling you’ve suppressed your real desires for far too long, striving to fit into a stream that might have never been yours to begin with. Subtly seeking approval — from family, friends, colleagues, tutors, professors. Trapped in mental frameworks that keep you locked into a system you think you need to fit into; bending to society’s narrow idea of what an ‘architect’ should be.
You tell me: Is there only one way to practice architecture — and who decides the limits of this role?
Consider this.
What if your dissatisfaction comes from trying to squeeze into predefined moulds of what ‘architecture’ is supposed to be? What if the key to your liberation is actually embracing your difference — leaning more fully into your own values, aspirations, desires, skills and story?
Your struggle to fit in isn’t a failure; it’s a rallying cry to stop shrinking.
I know this in my bones because I’ve been there — doubting myself, struggling to fit in, thinking I had a problem because I couldn’t find my place in ‘the profession’.
During my Bachelor studies at the TU Vienna in Austria, I was convinced I wanted to become an architect, namely to design and maybe even develop buildings. But then during my Master’s in Holland, my perception of architecture exploded through a series of experiences. I realized I no longer wanted to become an architect, at least not in the traditional sense.
I no longer wanted to focus on designs that would benefit only a privileged few. *too little meaning in the grand scheme*
I didn’t want to sit behind a screen all day and night, let alone be told what to do. *I’m not a machine*
I didn’t want to scrape by financially. *I actually like money and want to use it as a force for good*
I didn’t want to confine my creativity to just designing spaces. *I LOVE designing, but it’s not enough*
All of this left me wondering whether something was wrong with me. I thought, If I don’t want to design spaces, am I even ‘architectural’ enough? Did I study the wrong thing if I don’t want to join a typical architecture firm after graduation?
I was searching for something more. But what?
I wasn’t exactly sure, but I knew this: I didn’t want to be depressed and stressed like the stereotypical architect you hear of. I wanted to wake up with fire under my feet, knowing that my contribution makes a difference in the world. I somehow yearned to expand the perception of architecture and blend my many passions into something bold and alive — like a spring bursting forth in a desert, rejuvenating everything it touches.
Too much to ask for?
I know you want these things too. You want to share your gifts in a way that feels unique to you. You crave meaning, fulfillment, adventure, creativity and freedom — yes, even in a field as seemingly rigid as architecture. I don’t think you really want to draft another partition wall, unless there’s a good reason for it. At heart, you want to disrupt, express, transform and feel like you are moving the needle in some way, whether it’s ‘inside’ the field, ‘outside’, or somewhere ‘inbetween’.
You want to embody possibility and inspire others do the same!
You are different, and it’s time to accept that.
Imagine a role that is taylored to you, that evolves with you, that is you. A role where you are free to explore, collaborate and create without imposed rules and borders. Imagine outgrowing the version of ‘architecture’ you’ve been taught — and creating one that feels alive, personal and true.
Enough of the ‘archi jargon’, wearing all black, copying form languages for the sake of it and conforming to a path that doesn’t feel aligned. You’ve likely tried all that — and still, something was missing. You’ve been searching for more.
But what is this ‘more’?
To find out, you must untangle yourself from any preconceived ‘rules’ and admit that you don’t fit the traditional path. You need to start honouring yourself and your desires. You need to accept that you want more.
This acceptance alone releases a lot of pressure and creates space to find new answers.
So, what is ‘more’ for you? How does it look, smell, feel, sound and taste like?
Is it a slower, more intentional pace? Maybe faster construction speed? Merging your love for neuroscience, jewelry and digital fabrication? Being part of a thriving work culture? Building less but better? Humanitarian aid? Exploring temporary structures? A strong sense of community? Designing for disassembly? More power in the local? Connection to place? More inclusive and fair design? Leveraging forgotten spaces? More effective workflows? Dignified living? Simplicity? More creative freedom? Dream clients? Holistic design strategies? Biomaterials? Teaching differently? A combi?
Acknowledge what’s coming up for you. Perhaps a feeling? A whisper? An idea? A ‘very naive’ desire?
Is there a project you secretly dream of — one so ‘out there’ that you’d only dare pursue it in an alternate reality?
Maybe it’s transforming the nursing home down the street. Maybe it’s rethinking what a ‘graveyard’ could be. Maybe it’s designing a new kind of church. Maybe it’s creating proper sanitation systems for underserved communities. Maybe it’s reviving a derelict petrol station into a cinema, like London-based Assemble did with their stunning Cineroleum.
Your dislikes often hold clues to what you truly value. Your dissatisfaction carries the seeds of your transformation.
Don’t like self-important buildings? That’s a clue. Despise cut-throat architecture competitions? That’s a clue.
The discipline of ‘architecture’ as we know it is nowhere near what it could be. And its actors — us — are more often than not shadows of what we could become.
Burned-out graduates.
Depressed professionals.
Systemic injustices.
An outdated education system.
Environments that disconnect instead of connect.
There are so many paths that still need to be explored — we’ve only scratched the surface of what’s possible. Pay attention. Honour your desires. Begin designing the path — and the world — you truly want.
Step out of the field if you need to.
Take another position.
Go back into studying fashion design.
Learn new skills.
Take a leap.
Dissapoint people.
It’s time to stop hiding behind the system’s failures. We are capable of more. You are capable of more.
What if ‘architecture’ isn’t enough? Maybe that’s your greatest opportunity.
2 - Learn from others, but don’t imitate:
Assemble calls itself a 'multi-disciplinary collective'; their story demonstrates what's possible when we dare to think differently. No fancy business plans or rigid strategies. Just a group of friends (architects, anthropologists, philosophers, set designers, …) meeting at the pub, dreaming up possibilities more meaningful and exciting than their day jobs. United by a love for 'making' and the raw creative process, they experimented and transformed a run-down petrol station on Clerkenwell Road.
Over a hundred volunteers came together, improvising on site. They used affordable and reclaimed materials, crafting everything by hand — from flip-up seats to a massive curtain, hand-sewn with three kilometers of roofing membrane seams.
The result? A space that did more than show films. After each film, the curtain would rise — suddenly transforming cinema magic into street theater — a reminder that creativity can elevate even the most mundane spaces. Since this self-initiated project in 2010, Assemble has evolved into an award-winning collective, maintaining their democratic, cooperative spirit at various scales while they continue 'both making things and making things happen’.
Is this inspiring, or what?
Stories like this make me want to leap from my chair and do something similar! But here's the thing: while we can look to others for inspiration, the actual magic happens when we resist the urge to imitate. Why?
When you imitate, you limit yourself to what’s already been done — stifling progress and true innovation. Not only that; by copying others’ methods and footsteps, you’re walking someone else’s path — not yours.
What if Assemble Studio had simply copied? They wouldn’t have moved the needle and created such emotionally-resonant, community-engaged and place-based solutions. Their courage to forge a new way when no one could see it is precisely what turned them into the very example we admire today.
So don’t try to be the next Daniel Libeskind or Chris Precht. Sure, learn from their journeys. Absorb their knowledge. Study their methods and processes. Seek out those whose work resonates with your values. Observe how they’ve broken barriers, redefined norms and opened up new frontiers. Take what fuels your creativity and discard the rest. Build on it. Then shape it to your own values, aspirations, desires, skills and story.
When you fully trust yourself, you’ll not feel the urge to imitate at all. That’s because a deeper part of you knows what needs to be done. You don’t need to have the whole blueprint laid out. You just need to take that first step and let the vision open up as you walk, like a mist clearing to reveal a landscape.
Allow yourself the freedom to fail, to experiment, to explore — even together with communities! Carve out your space. The world doesn’t need more of the same cookie-cutter designs — it needs your full, unrestrained, raw edge.
What does that look like? Show us.
Yes, I'm saying you are an innovator, a pioneer. We are all here to pioneer new ways of being and doing — contributions that shift perceptions, open hearts, uplift communities and regenerate our planet.
3 - Architecture is enough:
The built environment has long been entangled in a monolithic system — rigid, extractive and pushing for more. More profit. More growth. More consumption. More dominance. All at the expense of nature. Picture this system as a massive, vertical block — imposing almost identical structures across different contexts with little care for the species in and around them, generating energy-hungry buildings at lightning speed while waste piles and ecosystems suffer beneath. It’s a system that reflects a mindset: masculine, hierarchical and perpetually craving more.
But here’s the thing: this system isn't an enemy.
It's upheld by people — each doing what they can with the awareness they have. Behind profit motives and corporate structures are generations of inherited conditioning and limiting beliefs. So the issue is far more complex than simply pointing at a few individuals; what manifests externally reflects our collective consciousness at any given moment.
Food for thought: What if you partly carry this monolithic mindset in you? What if you get so fired up about the system because you haven’t yet acknowledged it in yourself? Where are you also craving for more?
Not everything about this monolith is flawed. It’s just incomplete — too maschuline, too linear, too disconnected from the organic, flowing nature of life itself. So understanding it, rather than blaming it, opens the door to compassion — and ultimately, systemic transformation.
We don’t need to attack this monolith head-on to create change; that will likely only harden its edges. Instead, let’s grow out of it, like nature does — curving and branching in spontaneous ways.
What if you carved your own path in the architecture world, like a persistent plant breaking through concrete — not to build another monolith, but to pioneer something more fluid, more alive?
The future of architecture isn’t about erecting another tower of ideals. It’s about embracing both profit and purpose, standardization and context, global knowledge and local wisdom, technology and craft, control and emergence, structure and flow, outcome and process, left-brain and right-brain, head and heart. It's about moving from rigid hierarchies to fluid networks, from uniformity to diversity, from extraction to regeneration. It's a return to the wilderness — a reclaiming of our feminine, non-linear powers to create spaces that serve life.
A recognition that you are nature: resilient, adaptable and endlessly creative.
Rather than waiting for the system to change, why not reclaim your power to create something different?
If you're ready to explore what’s possible together – through speaking engagements, transformative workshops or creative campaigns – I'm here: www.wasdnty.com
Imagine environments that breathe and evolve in harmony with the world around them. Where boundaries between the 'built' and the 'natural' dissolve. Where spaces nourish, feel safe and focus on the essential. Where materials tell stories of renewal and resilience, reminding us of our own beauty.
Now imagine you — unconstrained by invented rules, creating your own. Cross-pollinating ideas. Breaking silos. Challenging borders. Redefining 'architecture'. Growing into unexplored territory and liberating yourself and in turn the discipline.
Start small.
Take what works from the old, leave the rest.
Grow in unexpected directions.
Trust your edge.
Let the vision unfold, step by step.
Maybe, like the Assemble crew, it all starts with a desire, a few friends — and a beer.
In wild solidarity,
Inés
If you’re new here — hi and welcome! I’m Inés, an architecture graduate who refused to be boxed in by conventional ideas and expectations. Having struggled to fit the 'architect' mould myself, I now use my voice to instil self-awareness and inspire new possibilities — guiding fellow graduates out of the same constraints I once knew to discover your unique potential and create the systems change our world needs.
Be sure to also visit my other Substack, LEAD, where I delve deeper into further reflections that aim to complement, support and expand your journey of transformation.
Thanks for being here! :)
Additional reflections:
Disclaimer: Architecture Is Not A Box explores perspectives on alternative career paths and applications of architectural thinking beyond traditional practice. While discussing the field of architecture broadly, any references to architecture-related work refer to activities that don't require professional licensure, unless specifically noted otherwise. This content is for educational and inspirational purposes.
Bravo!!!! 👏👏 Such inspiring piece, I felt like getting up from my chair and start doing stuff! You are right, the industry is in this state because we are playing small and that doesn't help people and planet, time to break out of the box!