—imagining follies. These are follies in the sense of a " structure, such as a pavilion in a garden, that is chiefly decorative rather than practical in purpose." They include houses with feet and personality—animal-like houses.

—imagining follies. These are follies in the sense of a " structure, such as a pavilion in a garden, that is chiefly decorative rather than practical in purpose." They include houses with feet and personality—animal-like houses.

—imagining towers. To paraphrase Gaston Bachelard, A [sketch] is a bud attempting to become a twig. How can one not dream while [drawing]? It is the pen which dreams. The blank page gives the right to dream.

These sketches are six inches by six inches in size, drawn in a Fabriano Quadrato Artist's Journal with Birmingham Bourbon ink and Prismacolor highlights.

When asked by a friend, "What is the art that is defined by the zeitgeist or spirit  of our age?" I thought of how Jackson Pollock and Brice Marden's art expressed the action and abstractions of Modernism. Our time is a digital age; an obsession with the small screen of the iPhone. It is ubiquitous and yet an interface that will be with us for maybe a short time until replaced with a new interface. I thought of David Hockney's embrace of the color copier and the ipod/ipad and thought of how one might embrace these commonly available technologies. “In his Retrospective, Hockney wrote that “New technologies have started revolutions that need not frighten us.” For Hockney, technology was never a threat to creativity because it could be “humanized by artists”. In fact, Hockney has continuously experimented with new kinds of everyday technologies, like the iPhone and iPad, and transformed them into devices of art creation for the modern age.” [https://www.myartbroker.com/artist-david-hockney/articles/david-hockney-xerox-prints]

The smartphone has trained us in a language of motions and gestures. Every day people use their fingers to swipe and shift across a small screen. This is what we see people do to check the news, look for companionship, or distract themselves for hours during the day. I posit these gestures at some level define our age.
I used these same gestures, quick simple swipes, and taps, to create a series of patterns on the iPhone screen using a sequence of drawing applications. I then processed the images through several filters. An application called "Trace" was used to draw the strokes. Then the images were opened and filtered multiple times using an application called "Prisma." (By filtering an image multiple times, it becomes more difficult to duplicate just as Hockney separated his first color copier images so they would require the color layers and precise order to be reproduced). The filters must be applied in a specific order for the same outcome. Finally, I transformed some into tiled patterns using Adobe, "Capture."

The patterns and forms from these gestural iPhone sketches also inspire my pursuit of a system of architectural ornamentation for our time.

—obsessed with an iconic painting by Rene Magritte. The painting depicts a water glass on an umbrella. Magritte thought of the combination as a new object that simultaneously "wants and doesn't want water." An amused Hegel might take a holiday just considering it. Thus the name, "Hegel's Holiday."

Magritte's painting is an object with a simple non-contextural background. I explored placing the composition in a natural context with a horizon and setting sun. By exploring the context, I discovered ambiguities consistent with the spirit of Magritte. Is the umbrella sitting on the horizon? Is the glass sitting on the horizon? These representations, place Magritte's object in an ambiguous relationship with its context and with one another. Is the umbrella balancing on the moon or sitting on the horizon?  Then I moved on to explore inverting the two elements—effectively canceling the intended use of each—placing the glass upside down to prevent it from collecting water and flipping the umbrella to collect water rather than shed it.  The new object is thus canceled and Hegel's Holiday would certainly be canceled, too! 

These meditations on the Magritte painting, "Hegel's Holiday," led me to design the Hegel's Holiday House. A house that wants and does not want water. 

Might this amuse Magritte? Who knows, he may even Praise the Dialectic.

—along with Craig Purcell and Lynda Burke, co-founding and co-editing the experimental, independent architectural journal T3XTURE. The journal creates literary connections with forty-five architects, artists, researchers, and others from the US, South America, Europe, Africa, India, and Asia. The “archizine” explores how aspects of architecture – texture, ornament, and pattern – missing from the modern architecture of the past century–connect architecture to people, place, and time. The original concept is inspired by the 1960s periodicals, Archigram, AD, Casabella, and Domus—launched in response to social, political, and artistic changes. 

The first five issues were: T3XTURE #1,  #2 "Ornament is Splendid",  #3 "Pattern is Maddening, " #4 "The Edge of Edge." and Issue #5, "Repose and Motion." Issue #6, Ornamenting Kosmos through Mythic Eyes" is forthcoming from Hapticity Press.

Besides editing and publishing, Randy created the publication's graphic design and layout. He also contributes critiques, think pieces, and illustrations to coincide with the the

In "Draw • Model • Prompt: Tectonic Speculations, Drawing, Modeling, and AI in Architectural Design" Sovich documents use of technology in the creative process including line drawing, computer-aided modeling, and AI.