In the ten years before I entered medicine, I devoted myself to architecture. To me, I didn’t really travel that far, in the journey from architecture to psychiatry. When they are practiced as they should be, their goals are much the same: to discern how human beings are truly meant to live, and to align inner life, social relationships, and physical surroundings so that they are supportive of human nature. The physical, social and personal levels of functioning are simultaneous and congruent manifestations of our basic desires, through which the divine energy is ever evolving. Such was the approach of by my mentor, the revered architect Louis Kahn.
What I can offer in the realm of your built environment is the fostering of a certain approach to any project your are contemplating, a spirit that will help the built form to nurture and express the deepest truths for those who will dwell within. In conventional terms, these are often referred to as “pre-architectural” professional services. When the time is approaching to build or to renovate, I could assist in these ways:
- Clarifying how you wish for your environment to foster aspects of your life.
- Freeing your desires from preconceptions about methods and materials of building.
- Selecting an architect or builder who will serve you well, and acting as your mediator, translator, and ombudsman, in the intense relationships that develop with those who are doing the work.
- Deciding how you can acquire the knowledge (and perhaps building skills) that you will need in order to achieve what you want.
Through the entire process, despite all the distractions, pressures, and limitations that occur, helping you to keep your values fully in view, as you make a personal investment and a lasting mark on the body of Mother Earth.