26th October 2023 Thursday - You are what you read. (article for Intersection)

I acquired a library last Friday.

About a thousand books and some magazines, from a practice that was winding down. To my surprise, the remaining staff did not want the books, and expressed surprise that someone would want them enough to buy them lock, stock and barrel. ‘The books are old, and there are not that many about architecture.’

True enough, there were more books on politics, memoirs, books about local culture and history, about flora and fauna, there were novels and scientific journals, how-to guides to water-colour, photography and Photo-shop. To be fair to his colleagues, this was his personal library lining the four walls that was his 10’ by 12’ office. Though I am sure that the generous person and teacher that he was, he would have marked pages of interest to share with his staff; to point out a detail, to re-tell an amusing story or to mark a story to re-read later on.

True enough, we found many home-made book marks in the books while we sorted them and put in boxes for transportation. Business cards, strips of old greeting cards, Ringgit notes, and photographs marking where he paused; end of a long car ride, the beginning of dinner, bed-time or boredom. The family is glad that someone would treasure them and keep them in one place - the books that shaped the man he was.

My young helpers were not packing fast enough, they were looking through the books instead of packing them. They are setting some aside ‘to look through later in the office’. I was quietly pleased because few of us continue to read after finishing university (even then the reading was based on prescribed texts to write assignment and pass exams), even fewer read for fun and those of us who continue to read often stay within the ‘tracks’ of our profession.

 You are what you eat, likewise we are what we read - once in a while it is good to add colour to what might be an unbalanced or inadequate diet.

Read:

Fiction - architects are working even when they are not; solving a detail, framing a reply to a contractual situation. Fiction offers a respite, it teaches us about human nature, improves our phrasing while ‘escaping’ for a hour.

Classics - get to know the book that was made into a film, learn how Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is related to Robert Downey Jr.

Poetry - learn about the distillation of language to paint a scene in a few lines; minimalism. 

Biographies - are written by or about people who have succeeded in some way, learn about their journey and failures. It is similar to reading about the design process which results in the design outcome/ product.  

History - without which, it is difficult to base many of our design theories and ideas on. History does not have to start 3,000 years ago, it can be from the birth of a nation.

Old books - I have a fondness for old books, I can’t explain why. Perhaps it is the notes in the margins, the inscriptions on the inside flap or the random bookmarks. Perhaps it is the sense of handing down, and the continuation of an inheritance. With this new library, I have a chance to experience all of the above.

Moreover, I am able to dip into the collection and have pot luck; dine outside my usual food-groups and learn more about the man who gifted me his books. What more can I ask for?