Hobart and William Smith Colleges

9 July 2010 Creating blue prints and elevations

Jason Braverman 12 is assisting an architect this summer as an intern at Hopkins and Porter in Potomac, Md. An architecture and music double major, Braverman has been given a full workload, with a variety of tasks ranging from traveling to measure and photograph existing structures, to creating materials and models to present to the architects clients. The most unique opportunity of the experience, however, is designing a tree house.

Most of the projects that we are working on are extensions to residences, but I am currently making my own design for a tree house that we have been commissioned for, which will compete with my bosss tree house design to be built, says Braverman.

Much of his responsibility includes creating materials for client presentations. These include: blueprints, elevations and construction drawings from photos and sketches, and virtual 3-D models based on the architects ideas. He also takes views from these and arranges them into a portfolio-like packet. He credits HWS course work with giving him a critical eye toward architectural design.

What I have found to be the most useful was Stan Mathews Visual Culture class. I am constantly comparing my bosss work and suggesting ideas by referencing other architecture that I would not have been introduced to otherwise, he says.

In addition to his internship at Hopkins and Porter, Braverman is also working on an independent study that consists of learning how to make a small-scale architectural model. He is building a 1:960 scale model of Geneva which, upon completion, will be roughly the size of a queen size mattress. His progress can be seen at http://modeling-geneva.blogspot.com/.

While this summer fuels Bravermans interests in architecture and model-making, he is still deciding whether his career path will lead him in that direction. He is also participating in the Elementary Education Certification program at HWS and is considering a career in either elementary or music education. On campus, he is a member of the Colleges Chorale, Cantori, Karate Club and Brass Ensemble, as well as the musical director of the Perfect Third a cappella group.