I can’t believe my year as

President is coming to an

end already and this will be

my last newsletter. During

the last 11 months I was

really glad to hear that

members actually read my

reports and even had kind

words to say.

In November, I was proud to

see our member firms

participate in Canstruction in

which the seven teams

collected and donated over

44,000 cans of food to the

local food bank. The

Livingston Mall was gracious

enough to leave the entries

up for over a week allowing

the public to see some of

the fundraising efforts by

architects. The mall also

gave us a table to man over

the Thanksgiving holiday

weekend. During my few

hours at the desk I was

really pleased to see interest

by the public in our

Canstruction sculptures as

well as in our profession.

Like any professional

organization, individuals give

a little to be part of

s o m e t h i n g b i g g e r .

Something that will give us

the opportunity to meet

each other, learn new

concepts, share our ideas,

recognize our talents and

just meet old friends. So

w i t h l a s t m o n t h ’ s

Canstruction the AIANS

definitely achieved a

‘something bigger’ moment.

This organization is more

than just about architecture

- it is about people. That is

why I continue to be

involved with the AIA. I

only hope that more people

see the importance of our

organi zat ion fo r our

profession and volunteer to

keep it strong for years to

come.

I want to take this final

opportunity to thank all the

people who have helped and

supported me throughout

the year. Thank you to all

the board members who

have committed their time to

run this organization. Thank

you to all committee chairs

and members who did all

the dirty work in arranging

and executing our various

programs. Thank you to our

a d m i n i s t r a t o r , J u l i e

Pagnotta, who has taken

care of all the other things

that seem to just happen

magically. Thank you to our

s p on so r s who have

supported us generously.

Thank you to my family for

allowing me to spend so

much of my personal time

on AIA duties. And of

course, thank you to all of

o u r m e m b e r s f o r

participating in our events. I

truly was honored and

enjoyed my time to serve

you.

I look forward to seeing you

all at our last general

meeting on December 7th

and at the Past President’s

Banquet on Jan 21st.

Y o g e s h M i s t r y , A I A

AIANS President 2011

President’s Message

Rostrum 2011

AIA Newark and Suburban Architects A Section of AIA New Jersey

AIA New Jersey is a Chapter and Region of the American Institute of Architects

DECEMBER 2011

Issue 12

The Rostrum

The official newsletter of the

Newark & Suburban Section

of AIA-NJ

Published monthly

Submit events, case studies,

photos, comments, or other

content for consideration to:

rostrum.ns.aia@gmail.com

President’s Message 1

Upcoming Events 1

CANstruction Report 2

Architect: Left off the team?

4

Inside this issue:

Upcoming Events The Annual Meeting of the

Section will be held on December 7 at the Hyatt in

Morristown, NJ. Bring an unwrapped toy for the Toys

for Tots drive. The evening’s program : Digital

Fabrication in Architecture and Design will be presented

by Larry Sass, Associate

Professor, MIT. Register.

The evening of January 21,

2012, the AIA Newark & Suburban Past Presidents

banquet will be held at the

Manor in West Orange, NJ. Sponsorship information is

available.

It feels so good to give.

Now that the year’s end is quickly approaching, it’s time

to ask ourselves about the contributions we’ve made –

whether they are tangible or intangible, whether it’s on

professional or personal level, or applicable to just

one or to the masses.

Whatever our efforts, these contributions, large and

small, are what make our world continue to be a great

place.

This year, we had 7 teams enter the Canstruction

competition. Of course, the efforts to execute the team

sculptures extend far beyond just the teams: there are

sponsors , vo luntee rs , tremendous amounts of

support , ta lent , and

coordination to make it all work.

Ultimately, over $4,500 from the AIA and approximately

44,000 cans of food are being donated to the

Community Food Bank of

New Je r sey . Th i s organization distributes 37

million pounds of food and groceries a year, ultimately

serving 1,500 non-profit programs including 436

programs served by its

P a r t n e r D i s t r i b u t i o n Organizat ions (PDOs).

Through their combined

efforts, they assist 900,000 low-income people in 18 of

New Jersey’s 21 counties.

Our generous sponsors include AIA New Jersey,

Goya, Turner Construction, Extech Building Materials, &

Kolbe Windows & Doors/Garden State Millwork.

Without their contributions,

we would have never been able to pull this event

together, and in turn give so much to those who need it

most.

Thanks also to Solutions Architecture and Thornton

Tomase t t i f o r t he i r contributions to the event.

The competition was judged by the Mayor of Livingston,

Rudy Fernandez; Art and

Architecture Critic for the Star Ledger, Dan Bischoff;

AIA New Jersey President, Michael Hanrahan; AIA

Newark & Subu rban President, Yogesh Mistry;

and Director of Food Sourcing for the Community

Food Bank of New Jersey,

Tim Vogel.

Build Day was held

Thursday, November 17, and the awards and judging

were November 18. The

structures remained on display at the Livingston Mall

in Livingston, NJ through Thanksgiving weekend. The

Gensler structure, “All In

Against Hunger,” will remain on display

through the end of the year.

Congratulations to all teams involved:

De Biasse & Seminara Architects – “Andy CAN”

Gensler Morristown – “All in Against Hunger” (2011 Structural Ingenuity award)

Jacobs – “Green Eggs & Ham for All!”

Milrose Consultants – ‘The “CAN” Film Festival’

NK Architects - "15 Minutes of Fame to Fight Hunger" (2011 Best Use of Labels & Juror’s Favorite awards)

Skanska USA Building – “Help take a “SLICE” out of Hunger!” (2011 Honorable Mention)

USA Architects – “Egg-nite the F i g h t Ag a i ns t Hunger” (2011 Honorable

Mention & Best Meal awards)

A tipping of the hat to all

involved; this event was a great success as we were

able to donate so much to those in need. We hope

next year others can join in to enable us to give even

more.

Christy Di Bartolo, AIA CANstruction Chair 2011

CANstruction 2011: “A Great Success”

Rostrum 2011 Issue 12

Page 2

AIA Newark & Suburban

Officers & Trustees

Officers

YOGESH MISTRY, AIA

President

KEVIN McCORMICK, AIA

President-Elect

LOUISE ADDONIZIO, AIA

First Vice President

LISA SAN FILIPPO, AIA

Secretary

JOHN A. CWIKLA, AIA

Treasurer

JUDITH DONNELLY, AIA

Past President

Trustees 2011

ELLEN HARMON,

ALLIED MEMBER

ALOK SAKSENA,

ASSOC. AIA

Trustee 2012

STEPHEN ROONEY, AIA

Trustees 2013

CHRISTY DIBARTOLO, AIA

ALEX GOTTHELF,AIA

RICARDO SOARES,

ASSOC. AIA

CHRISTOPHER STONE, AIA

NATASHA SUZANSKY, AIA

Honorary Affiliate

DAN BISCHOFF

Section Administrator

JULIE PAGNOTTA

aiaadmin@verizon.net

Rostrum 2011 Issue 12

Page 3

Left :

NK Architects

15 minutes of Fame to fight Hunger

Right:

Milrose Consultants

The CAN Film Festival

Left :

Skanska USA Building

Help Take a Slice Out of Hunger

Right:

Gensler Morristown

All In Against Hunger

Left :

USA Architects

Egg-nite the Fight Against Hunger

Right:

Jacobs

Green Eggs and Ham for All

Lower Left:

De Biasse & Seminara

Andy CAN

Rostrum 2011 Issue 12

Page 4

The path from architecture school to architect is about more than ARE tests, IDP hours, and

bathroom tile pattern design. The newly minted architects that are best prepared to contribute to firm practice have (of course) done all this stuff, but they’ve also been eased

into firm culture, mentored, and encouraged to use their design talents to give back.

Architect: left off the team?

Is it true that the Architect is

no longer the Project

Leader? Is it true, that the

contractor/project manager

is the “go to” member of the

building team? Is the

Architect even on the team

any longer? A small group

of us (architects) got

together, at the behest of

the Section, to explore these

thoughts, and find out what

the “value” of the architect

is beyond just the paper and

pencil.

We lead in our use of

technology, but do we lead

with the use of our minds?

Do we lead by providing

value; or do we lead by

command, to an army that

wants to go in a different

direction? Do we even know

what leadership is?

If these comments make

you mad or you just think

they are irksome, then come

and join us at our next

meeting.

We are looking for ways to

make the Architect not only

a vital part of the building

team, but a Leader in the

community. We are in the

brainstorming phase, and

look forward to your help in

providing insight and value

to your colleagues in design.

Kenneth Fox, AIA