Dan Schoedel and I recently attended a chapel service at the new Pilgrim Chapel at Dallas Baptist University.  While it is always profound to be in at the beginning of a project then see the completed version, this one was particularly significant to me because it is at my alma mater.

BMA Architects in Duncanville, Texas did a fantastic job of creating beauty within the space. (A much different experience than 20 years ago when we used to have chapel in the athletic complex.)  The music was rich and enveloping.   Students lead music from the stage and everyone else sang along. 

My role at Acoustic Dimensions is in marketing and while I understand enough about the engineering to be able to talk about it from an overview standpoint, experiencing a venue where those on our team who understand the depths of it have carefully designed each piece is pretty amazing.

--Cathy Hutchison

Pictured l to r:  Craig Janssen of Acoustic Dimensions, Guy Geier of FXFOWLE and Leevi Kiil of the Global Design Alliance

Acoustic Dimensions is part of an organization called the Global Design Alliance.  GDA is an alliance of like-minded firms with common values that is an "experiment in trust" (as one of the founders quite accurately put it).  The level of transparency in the GDA has created a vehicle for corporate transformation that is truly remarkable.

While the work of the GDA happens all year, we meet face-to-face three times a year hosted in different cities by each of our member firms.

This week we are in Omaha hosted by RDG--the Renaissance Design Group.  Their corporate name is an appropriate one.  The firm is a mix of architecture, engineering, innovation, art and media.  It is possible that this DNA came about by the cities in which they are located.  Both Omaha and Des Moines are cities rich in visual art.

The team at RDG arranged for us to spend Thursday evening at Hot Shops--a community of over 70 artists.  We saw demonstrations in blacksmithing, glass blowing and throwing pots. It was both interesting and inspiring to hear the artists speak about hand crafted door handles for worship projects and custom crafted tiles with children's artwork for a hospital.

Many of us stayed after dinner to engage with the artists to learn about their craft. We even had the opportunity to work with the potters wheel, smith or blow glass.  As we returned to the hotel, we stood in the lobby of the hotel talking with several architects.  The energy sparked by discussing the magic of going from molten glass to finished product was tangible.

Perhaps the most incredible thing about GDA is that it creates a beaker for creativity and connection. One of the architects captured it well in our meetings when he expressed that the value of GDA is hard to quantify, but inevitably the interactions that happen here influence a few key decisions in our firms each year that direct our course and make us better.  Given that "better together" is the heart of GDA, I believe it is accomplishing its mission.