The Pursuit of Healthiness: Paul Pholeros

People and Place.

The two words that should be at the forethought of any design and designer.

Alliteratively fittingly, I first heard this word combo ethos from Paul Pholeros.

Becoming the late Paul Pholeros only last year, he’d already well and truly established himself as great. A great architect, using his craft to be a great humanitarian. To design places that can reduce poverty for the people.

If you’d had the pleasure and luck of hearing him speak, you too would have been captivated by his booming, uncomplicated and egoless presence and his sentiment on these two defining principles of design. He spoke with assurance, but with love, and with a natural ease of giving inspiration to not need to be famous but to need to be good.

Watch his TedEx talk here: https://www.ted.com/talks/paul_pholeros_how_to_reduce_poverty_fix_homes?utm_source=tedcomshare&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=tedspread

And at a time when a treaty is on the cards, it’s good to reflect and pose questions and answers from many angles. I say this with as much subtly for political stand point as my sledgehammer personality can muster.

It shows that really as a designer, you are there to employ and apply all of your knowledge and skill. But more importantly you should be doing it in response, respect and harmony to the space and the users. And that those users are actually people. And the space actually becomes a place. A destination for being.

Another fantastic reminder that creativity is not a competition. True creativity will inspire others, and also yourself. It will answer a question, and to every question each person can give a different answer.

A lovely article that sums up the man and his quest/living with care and respect in mind http://www.smh.com.au/comment/pholeros-the-fearless-architect-20160203-gmkd1b.html

For more information www.Healthabitat.com