Jury Day
Having people that haven't seen your design process critique you final work is always hard and nerve-wracking because, on-top of the fact that you don't know them most of the time and hence don't know how they judge a project, nerves rattle you up and you forget to mention important aspects of the design. It's hard by itself when the jury is made up of professors that have seen your process or that you at least know; a design is something very personal to a person [or people] that created it and having it being potentially pulled apart [which is what usually happens] right in front of you can be difficult if you don't have tough skin.
On the other hand, its always nice when the jury can tell you you were wrong in a way were they want you to learn from your mistakes, and also praise you for you hard work and design skills even if it wasn't completely on par with the initial intentions of the project. That was the case this week were my group was told that, although our design was nice and had the potential to create a very enjoyable space for beach goers and the general public, it wasn't what was called for. We misunderstood the instructions and the intentions of the project' but with their help we were able to understand where we went off track and are now on the right path.
This is part of the Juan Navarro-Reinterpreted Project that has its own page on my blog site [which you are invited to visit, read, and maybe give me your feedback on the comment section of this post] and explains more in depth our design ideas and why we were off track.
The jury is an important aspect of the design process, in my opinion, as the people we will later encounter in life as architects wont be completely emerged in our design process and we must learn to communicate our whole design in an interesting and concise way. It is also important to learn that not everyone will like your design and that is okay as long as its well designed, well though out, well presented, etc. As much as I hate to admit it, I don't posses thick skin and the intense criticism we receive can be difficult at times but this helps us develop that thick skin we need to, not only survive but strive in such a competitive career path.