PolyGlobal Event: Clive Wilkinson: Architecture's Transformative Power for Communities

It was truly an honor to hear Mr. Clive Wilkinson speak. His credibility as an architect who has conducted business with major companies like Google, Disney, and such is impressive, but I was especially touched by his role in helping homeowners rebuild post-fire disaster. He began his discussion by talking about his origins from Cape Town, South Africa, and his original aspirations of being a writer. However, because he had other interests, that allowed him to fail and succeed in architecture school, as he approached it fearlessly. He then came to work under the renowned Frank Gehry before Wilkinson started his own practice. His expertise in his craft is shown by his international work in South Africa, Sydney, Tokyo, New York, and Los Angeles. 

His work in Los Angeles was especially interesting to me as he described the specifics and details that he was to incorporate in designing houses in fire-affected areas, like Altadena. I learned about the different grade woods and the required perimeter of plants to the main house that are needed to build these houses. All of his pro-bono work really opened my eyes to the community support that architectural jobs provide for families. 

Some of his other works that really stood out to me were a project he did in Pasadena and his design of Googleplex. During his discussion, he showed images of his design of Disney Headquarters, which he reconfigured from a laundry service warehouse. The design details of the honeycomb, illuminating the space with bright honey-yellow, and the soft foam bricks, which could be taken down and repositioned to create new spaces, really intrigued me. Wilkinson’s creative mind and passion really engaged me and sparked a personal interest in the architectural field. 

Seeing his genuine interest in his career transformed my opinion of the architecture field to be something more authentic, intentional, and thoughtful, rather than just crafting layouts. I hope Mr. Wilkinson will come to visit Poly again and inspire others to optimize their creativity. Thank you!