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You are here: Home / Blog / Photo’s #frommydesk

Photo’s #frommydesk

February 19, 2014 by Bob Borson 18 Comments

“What it’s like to be and work with an architect” … that’s the unofficial tagline for LifeofanArchitect.com – my little experiment I started just over 4 years ago. I chose those ten words off the top of my head because I thought they got right to the point of what you might find “content-wise” here on this site. Part of the process I go through when choosing what I am going to write about is generally influenced by what I happen to be doing at that moment. There isn’t an editorial calendar and I don’t plan ahead (but you probably could tell that). There is a goal to make my job as an architect more transparent in an effort to help people understand what it is that I actually do … how do I spend my day?

One way that I accomplish this is by using the social media platform “Instagram” to illustrate certain moments of my day – which can range from what I feel is quite exciting to mind-numbingly boring … sort of like talking to a structural engineer at a cocktail party. [shudder]

Texas Society of Architects on Instagram

One of the extra-curricular activities I spend my time on is working with the Texas Society of Architects (TxA) – the state level component of the American Institute of Architects – as their Chair of Digital Communications. [Hmmmm … wonder how I go that job?] At any rate, one of the activities we are about to kick off is on Instagram, my favorite social media platform – particularly for architects. Let’s face it, architects take cool pictures, at least most of them do and if you are an architect, you should play along with us.

Here’s how it works:

Step 1: Take a picture from your desk – it can be of your desk, a view from your desk, a thing from your desk, etc.

Step 2: Post that picture to your Instagram account. If you don’t have one, take the plunge with me here and sign up. There’s going to be all sorts of cool things we are going to do this year.

Step 3: Add the hashtags #frommydesk and #TexasArchitects  If you don’t know, adding a # in front of a word instantly makes that word searchable. This means you can click on any word that has a hashtag in front of it and all the pictures that have that hashtag will come up for viewing. Depending on the level of participation, we might even curate some of the pictures into an article on the Texas Society of Architects website.

Step 4: Follow txarchitects on Instagram (you can follow me as well if you aren’t already). Just so you know, there will probably be prizes at some point.

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For fun, I thought I would look back at a block of photos that I’ve posted to my Instagram feed that would have worked well with the #frommydesk hashtag. These photos are in chronological order starting December 1st, 2011 and include all sorts of things. I also think the word “desk” can be somewhat loosely defined … sometimes it’s my desk at the office, sometimes at the house, a concrete slab on a job site – there’s even a bar tabletop included in this series.

Bob Borson Instagram Dec 1 2011December 1st, 2011
“good times – not taking calls – deadline approaching – music playing“

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Bob Borson Instagram Feb 9 2012February 9th, 2012
“poor Cubebot … wrong place, wrong time“

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Bob Borson Instagram May 13 2012May 13th, 2012
“This is what I’m doing … what are you doing?”

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Bob Borson Instagram June 5 2012June 5th, 2011
“this is my “magazines to read later” pile… I’m starting to worry about my desk collapsing”

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Bob Borson Instagram June 7 2012June 7th, 2012
“I don’t remember taking a class that taught this when I was in architecture school”

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Bob Borson Instagram June 13 2012June 13th, 2012
“moved a drawing set from my desk and these pens fell out from the pages” #ridiculous

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Bob Borson Instagram Oct 18 2012October 18th, 2012
“so what’s the architects preferred consumption sequence with these M&M’s?”

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Bob Borson Instagram Oct 26 2012October 26th, 2012
“This is what my office did for lunch” #beer and napkin #sketches

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Bob Borson Instagram Oct 31 2012October 31st, 2012
“the moon is looking good from my desk” #architect #startingearly

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Bob Borson Instagram March 28 2013March 28th, 2013
“Commercial Pre-Construction meeting this morning and I brought a pink cup” #really

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Bob Borson Instagram May 1 2013May 1st, 2013
“a little job site math … all you need is a fat pen and some concrete” #construction

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Bob Borson Instagram Aug 10 2013August 10th, 2013
“concept assembly sketch for a modern house I will feature on LoaA” #vegetativeroof

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Bob Borson Instagram Aug 23 2013August 23rd, 2013
“and so it begins … #design #sketch #architect” #architecture

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Bob Borson Instagram Sept 5 2013September 5th, 2013
“this morning’s version of BIM – #sketching is still faster for me, old habits die hard”

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Bob Borson Instagram Oct 29 2013October 29th, 2013
“Research for a presentation … on “Awesomeness””

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Bob Borson Instagram Nov 5 2013November 5th, 2013
“FYI – sketching with a black pen is always more fun than sketching with a red pen”

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Bob Borson Instagram Nov 19 2013November 19th, 2013
“Quick sketch for Thursday’s annual “What to get an Architect for Christmas””

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Bob Borson Instagram Nov 26 2013November 26th, 2013
“Down and dirty layout concept sketches for our new office”

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Bob Borson Instagram Dec 5 2013December 5th, 2013
“Traveling and working … realized that I have a sofa doodle? on my project notes” #sketch

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Bob Borson Instagram Jan 26 2014January 26th, 2014
“Typical Sunday afternoon – except this design sketch is for me” (photo by @mborson) #architecture #sketch #design #architect

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I know there are a lot of Instagrammers out there, I hope you will participate in our hashtag event. Just remember to use the hashtags #frommydesk and #TexasArchitects (no spaces between words).

Writing this #frommydesk,

Bob AIA signature

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Filed Under: Blog, Observations, Office Tagged With: instagram, photography, TxA

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The complimentary advice provided on ‘Life of an Architect’ is based on an abbreviated examination of the minimal facts given, not the typical extensive (and sometimes exhaustive) analysis I conduct when working with my clients. Therefore, anything you read on this site is not a substitute for actually working with me. Following my casual advice is at your own peril … if you want my undivided attention, I would recommend hiring me. Cheers.

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