David Popiel, AIAS

I used to think that it was magic that made the lights turn on and water come out of the faucet.

I never questioned how things actually worked when I was younger, I just imagined how without really asking any questions; hence, magic.

That all changed when I took a year off between high school and college and worked for a general contractor on a large automotive project in Detroit. Among the things I learned was that someone has to make the floors we walk on, connect the power to our light switches, connect our faucets to the water line, and someone has to design all of these ‘things.’ This job had a huge impact on me and awakened a curiosity I didn’t know I had about how things work, why they work (or don’t), and how we use these ‘things’.

This curiosity has taken me from construction work in St. Louis and Colorado Springs, to architecture firms in Denver, all the way to Anchorage, Alaska, and now back to school here in Denver. Along the way my curiosity has expanded into all areas of architecture, to understand how the profession works, how theory works, all in the interest of making my own contribution to the field. I’m excited to share my thoughts, experiences, and questions with our readers.

B.A. in Architecture, Washington University in St. Louis, 2003
M. Arch candidate at University of Colorado – Denver, expected graduation Fall 2013