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What’s in a name?

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we don’t need no stinking badges!

.

Peter Bohlin
Glenn Murcutt
Renzo Piano
Samuel Mockbee
Michael Graves
Fay Jones
Philip Johnson
Richard Neutra
Alvar Aalto
Walter Gropius

What do these people have in common? Yes they have all been awarded the AIA Gold Medal “in recognition of a significant body of work of lasting influence on the theory and practice of architecture” – but I’m not interested in that and it’s not what I am talking about. No, the correct answer is that none of them are named ‘Bob’.

Should I be worried? No disrespect to all the other Bob’s that are out there but can you really be that good of an architect when your first name is Bob? A certain amount of evidence exists that is not in our favor. Dating back to 1907, there has never been a Gold Medal winner whose name was Bob. What about the architectural equivalent to the Nobel Prize, The Pritzker? Nope – not a Bob to be found. We did get Robert Venturi in 1991 but he’s a Robert and not a Bob. From what I understand, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe used to call him Bob but they didn’t like each other and I think it might have been meant as an insult. (I’d ask Mies if he were alive and I could …. but he probably wouldn’t have accepted a phone call from a ‘Bob’)

Richard Meier
Hans Hollein
Kenzo Tange
Fumihiko Maki
Tadao Ando

These guys have all won a Pritzker Prize…seriously? Fumihiko?? You would think the law of averages – considering the number of Bob’s walking around compared to Fumihiko’s – that there is one great architect out there that actually goes by Bob. Robert A.M Stern doesn’t count – as soon as I see Bob A.M. Stern turn up in a Google search or it gets printed on a book jacket can we add him as inaugural member #1 to the “Architect Bob” list. Until then? Hrmmph.

To a certain degree I think there are no Bob’s that are taken seriously because Bob is such a casual sort of name  – reserved for comedians and uncles. If I were to ask for a show of hands on how many Bob comedians you knew or how many of you have an Uncle Bob somewhere in your family, the percentages I’m sure would be quite high. I’ve never had a nickname in my life that didn’t include Bob in it – Dr. Bob, Captain Bob, Oh Crap Here Comes Bob, etc. It would have been cool to have a nickname (suitable for public use that is – Big Daddy doesn’t count)  *sad face*

Is my name holding me back? Should I go by Robert instead? If I do some mental role-playing (something that happens a little too much) and do a compare and contrast, maybe you’ll understand what I mean:

Quick! Get Bob on the phone – the toilet’s leaking!

Quick! Get Robert on the phone – the stock market is crashing!

or

This is serious, we are almost out of beer! We need Bob to deal with this immediately!

This is serious, we are almost out of gold! We need Robert to deal with this immediately!

finally,

Excuse me Bob, but could you hand me the mustard?

Excuse me Robert, but could you pass me the Grey Poupon?

See what I mean?

The main problem might be that I see myself as a Bob and not a Robert. I don’t think the quality of my work is affected based on how I sign my name  but …wait a minute … I actually sign my name Robert, not Bob. The name on my architectural seal is Robert and not Bob.

Crap. Identity crisis in 3 … 2 … 1 …

From now on, let it be known that I shall be known as El Presidente or Captain Awesome – (your choice). And if we are really good friends you can even call me Big Daddy in public. When things get serious and I become elected as President or appointed as the Ambassador to Norway, I will start calling myself Robert and everyone else can just call me Sir.

Respectfully,

Bob AIA signature

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  • robertswinburne

    sigh…I struggle as well.

  • Simon

    I was sitting in a meeting with a client yesterday, and next to me sat a gentleman who looked like a bum. He introduced himself as “Billy” (no offense to all the guys named Billy) and wore a faded black polo with a worn undershirt that was no longer white, black sweat pants, brown loafers, and white socks. However, his glasses were thick rimmed with a little brown marbling (really nice glasses) and on his wrist he sported a Rolex…Come to find out, he is worth half a billion…wouldathunkit. To his credit, he had the best input of anyone in the meeting. Definitely more to him than was communicated in his name (and appearance).

    • I have a theory that the more money you have, the less you care about how you appear to others – especially true if it’s YOUR money and not family money.

  • Sheldon Wolfe

    Shigeru Ban Architects Wins the 2014 Pritzker Prize. Sorry, Bob. On the plus side, I don’t know any bad Bobs – they’re all great guys! Are there any bad ones out there?

    • No, there aren’t any bad Bob’s out there, we are all terrific and apparently you couldn’t ask for a better uncle than an Uncle Bob.

      so I’ve heard …

  • Joe

    • Interesting that Bob is the most common executive level name … just not at architectural firms.

      Thanks Joe

  • Nina Dmytraczenko

    Nothing is in a name except what you make of it! I hated my name with a passion until I was ~14, as it is a common nickname in Brazil. But after a certain age, I accepted it, and learned to see all the awesome aspects of it – in my case my russian family – which for you may well translate in a more human architecture, closer to the people you design for, instead of projects geared for winning a Pritzker.

    • fair enough – is Dmytraczenko a common name in Brazil?

  • BambiLYost

    There’s hope for me yet. 🙂

  • Samjoka

    “The name of a man is a numbing blow from which he never recovers” Marshall McLuhan, philosopher who coined the phrase ‘the global village’.

  • This is rather curious and accurate. It does make a difference— Bob or Robert or Bobby or Rob—and moreover, you even take it beyond the emotional and provide data of no “bobs” (almost typed boobs—i kid! lol) being mentioned in esteem etc.

    However, going forward I would suggest: perhaps it is an identity one associates with a name that leads ones’ actions, aspirations, and hence outcomes. So, it is not the fact that all these others are named bob and hence no achievement but they assumed all the identities attached to the name?

    Regardless, you can defy all rules. Bob Borson. The coolest architect alive whose name goes down in history for….

    Imagine an article begins: Although one would not notice the name Bob Borson, it has changed and altered….

    I know. My imagination. I write, what can I say…. lol

    I think your last name actually adds a sizzle to the Bob.

    I don’t know why I am glad you wrote this post. I am not any kind of Robert. However, it was in 10th grade when I first pondered this question. Not kidding. : ) LOL And not just for any name, but this name. Although, personally speaking, I have no issues when people accidentally call me Anna but I do correct them if they say Anne. But I never thought of it the way you have for any other name but Robert. LOL

    by the way, usually follow link directly to a post, hadn’t arrived here just via homepage, main url, and must say: i like!!! very nice lay out. : )

    will RT share tomorrow . was just taking a sanity break, um, also known as writing break.
    : )

  • GirlFuturist

    You could try translating your name into different languages. In Greek its ROMPERT (so says the internet). That sounds intriguing, like some exotic architect. Roberto is always good (for lots of reasons). The web is handy for this. Or you could change to all lower case, just because it’s all about the work. Hmmm… just my thoughts. 🙂

    • awesome – some of my friends pull out Roberto from time to time, but they don’t use it in a professional / architectural sense, they say it that way when I’m looking good. Maybe it’s an Italian or Spanish thing.

  • ah, quit your whining. Whether it’s in English or Norweegie, you are a Bubba-Joe-Bob till the end. But I do find you to be super Bob-a-tastic. And Bob-a-licious. I’m sure there’s a 60s song there somewhere – Ummm, Bob a doo wop a doo Bob.

  • p.s. who keeps all their badges?

  • LOL!!! This is exactly why I went from Marcy to Marcela….the fact that I am short, and look younger than I am (no luck with getting my hair to turn nice and white like yours), made me think that maybe I should not be called Marcy if I wanted to be taken seriously.

    But in reality….you could be the first Bob to get the AIA Gold Medal….you won’t be the first Bob to be FAIA….Bob Meckfessel here in Dallas did that. And Bob Meckfessel is an awesome designer….I think he also goes by Robert, but more often than not it is Bob….(so you are in good company there)

  • cyraduquella

    My neighbor moved away and left behind his cat named Bob for me to adopt. (Yeh, such a nice guy.) That one syllable thing bothered me. He is now KittyBob. Maybe you could add something to the beginning of your name ;_)

  • As a person who has never met another with my moniker, I’m at a bit of a loss as to being able to empathize on this one. If it is of any consolation, though, many people call me “Cham”…pronounced “sham”. If a name is truly everything, then I feel that these others must view me to be very hypocritical and lead a facade of a life. *le sigh

    • and what profession lies on your horizon? You must complete the picture for me…

      • Ironically, I’d like to write fiction… perhaps a name really is self-defining.

  • Even if you went by Robert some people would call you Bob. I go by David but some insist on calling me Dave.

    You and I think alike in one regard, Robert. When Obama was elected President, one of the first things I said was, “What are the odds we’d have a President named Barack before one named David?” I predict that a “Bob” will win the Pritzker before a “Barack” will, if it makes you feel any better.

  • There’s always Bob Stern (okay, Robert AM Stern).

    • he doesn’t count because he doesn’t actually go by Bob. It’s like coming out of the closet, if HE went by Bob maybe it would make things so much easier for the rest of us…

  • mgerwing

    I feel the same way about “Mark” and being an architect. Game over. I suggest “Roberto”.

    • I really feel your pain Mark – it’s the monosyllabic thing.

      Mark = awesome guy you talk football and drink beer with, maybe do a garage renovation with while;

      Marcus = multiple AIA Award winning architect with groupies…

  • On behalf of Norwegians everywhere, may I say how much we look forward to welcoming you as our US Ambassador, Bob… I mean, Sir! 😉

    • Can you imagine:

      Det er vår store glede å introdusere den Amerikanske Ambassadøren til Norge, Bob Borson, (men du kan alle kalle ham Big Daddy hvis du vil).

      • Wermund

        Is that Google translate or do you actually know norwegian?

  • I’ve never had an Uncle Bob, but I have had an Uncle Febbo, and an Uncle Rocco, so consider yourself blessed. It seems that every general contractor I meet is named Bob, so there does seem to be some connection between the building industry and the name Bob. Of course if you really want to differentiate yourself you could go by Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Bobby Benny. That would turn some heads, and could end up in the annals of nursery rhyme tongue twisters akin to Susie Sells Seashells and Peter Piper.

    • Bobbo isn’t so far from Febbo or Rocco and I get that…. I was also thinking that I have also been called Bob Juan (like Don Juan). I really think that if your first name is monosyllabic, you are out of the nickname sweepstakes.

  • I do have an Uncle Bob! And, I agree that our identity is closely tied to our name (at least in our own minds, anyway!). I practically had a nervous break down when I had to take the last name of “Spell”. I think it is ridiculous given my first name, “Serena”…which I have always loved! (if you are old enough to remember “Bewitched”, you may understand why I was so loathe to take on the current last name!)

    • That is hilarious!! but I wouldn’t have made that connection without some help.

      I was so in love with Elizabeth Montgomery. Never missed that show when I was younger (Durwood)

  • Well I hate to say it, no matter what, you will always be Bob to me…

    Robert looks better on formal documents, while Bob shows a level of being approachable – just my .02

    • I have always been Bob with no variations. I thought it was interesting in how much of who we perceive ourselves to be is tied into what our names our. Do I try to be funny because I’m a Bob? If my name was Henry and I went by Hank would I be more likely to be a better baseball player? Maybe if I believed it to be the case.

      I will always be a Bob and I actually like that quite a bit. (c’est la vie Pritzker Prize)

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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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