Ok, so let's switch to the other part of my life. 

As an architect, I have always struggled with the idea of the competition.  Competitions are nothing new in architecture and it is very easy to get people to submit ideas for free in the hopes of gaining fame and fortune.

I have had some time lately, and some new toys, so I entered an on-line competition for a new Hotel in New York.  The contest closes in a few days.  There are many entries and many have nothing to do with the requirements of the competition except that they propose some kind of hotel.

Here is the link if you are interested:

http://www.jovoto.com/projects/rethink-hotels/ideas

This is a thing put together by a group that does an admirable job providing a platform for these kinds of things.  The sponsor is a hotel outfit and they are offering $20,000 in prizes.  What they get in return is something like $1,000,000 worth of design ideas.  Design is a commodity and we are all quick to sell out.

Don't get me wrong, I would love to win, but I did not enter with the sole purpose of winning.

I wanted to keep my design juices flowing and test some techniques.

One of the new tools is a Wacom Bamboo digital tablet.  It is a digital sketch pad that lets you create hand drawn effects right in the computer.  Very cool program and for $60, it is a steal.

I have made this an entry in my blog because it is what I have been doing instead of painting.  It is creative and the concept proposes a hotel for artists and creative business travelers.  I wanted it to have a comic book feel.  Wish me luck.  I never know what they want in these things, but they can be fun.