Great Door Prizes by: Alabama Stone, Appleseed Workshop, Bear Creek Glass, Cementry,
O’Henry’s Coffee, Sloss Metal Artist,Yucatan.

SAVE THE DATES

November 13th –Chapter Meeting –
Don’t Miss This ONE – 1 LU
Cementry – 11:30 – 1:00
109 43rd Street South
Members $15 interns $5 non members $25

Business owners Tracy Smitherman and Renée Généreux have taken courses with Buddy Rhodes Concrete and The Concrete Countertop Institute.  Get hands’ on at this meeting (wear your play clothes)!
Great Door PRIZES from Cementry, Stolisma/Shea Scully, Joe McCrary/Sloss Metal artist, Leslie Martin Artist, Tracy Smitherman. Catering by Dave’s Pizza.

December 4th -  Chapter Meeting – 1 LU (click for photos)
G & L Marble 4500 5th Ave. South
Birmingham, AL 35222
11:30 – 1:00
Members $15, interns $5, non-members $25

January 15th- Chapter Meeting – 1 LU
How to Gain Recognition for Your Projects
Presented by Constructive Communication
Members $15, interns $5, non members $25
11:30 – 1:00 venue TBA

Pecha-Kucha in Birmingham!
Yes, AIA Birmingham will host the first Pecha-Kucha in the South (okay, they have done this in Atlanta and Miami).  Pecha-Kucha Night was devised in 2003 by Klein Dytham Architecture in Tokyo.   It is an event created to allow designers, architects and artists to meet, network and socialize with one another.  More importantly, it allows designers of all kinds to present their work in a public, informal, intimate and concise method in a relaxed environment.  It is an opportunity to present fresh, innovative and creative work, ideas or concepts.

Each presenter is allowed 20 slides that are displayed for 20 seconds each for a total of six minutes and 40 seconds of presentation freedom.  There is a 20 minute Q & A between each presenter. Presentations can be about ideas, newly built works, research, events, or projects of any kind - in any field of design.

Anyone can present, anyone can watch, everyone is welcome.
Click here for more info!

Are You a BIKER or Just Like to RIDE??
AIA wants to know how many architects have motorcycles.
Would you be interested in an AIA day trip (on your bikes, of course)?
Are you a fair weather rider (I am)?
We are running out of weekends this year, but we are very interested in putting together a day trip in early 2008.  We need to know how many people would participate so we can start the planning now.  Please email aiabirm@aiabham.org and please include what type of bike you ride.  Can’t wait to see who rides!
In the photos: Joe Swaika, Richard Carnaggio, and Mike Meyers.

AIA4 SHELTER Announces Design Competition
AIA4shelter is a small committee of the Birmingham Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The goal of the committee is to work towards reducing the number of homeless people living on the streets of Birmingham and surrounding areas. We are currently working in three main areas of focus.  

1. We are working with other organizations around the city to educate the public and increase awareness of the realities of homelessness and to help break down some of the barriers to potential solutions. Thus far we have participated in the Mayor’s Committee to Prevent and End Chronic Homelessness in creating the 10-year plan, and we are now working to help implement the plan.
2. We are working with Metropolitan Birmingham Services for the Homeless and their member organizations to help them with front end programming and conceptual designs for new projects that come on-line.
3. We are working with Alethiea House on a single family residential design competition that will be open to all AIA members and the public.

MORE INFO COMING LATER THIS MONTH!

New Golf Tournament Record!
Do you remember years ago when the AIA Golf Tournament was at Highland’s?  Can you imagine us trying to play there now!  Ty Cole and Angela Nash brought the AIA Golf Tournament to what it is now.  They realized the potential, brought in the right people on the golf committee and what happened?   The tournament was moved to Robert Trent Jones, Valley AND Ridge courses and this year we set a new record: 231 players!!!  If someone did not have a good time, then they took it way too seriously or they were mad the drink cart did not come by enough.  It was a perfect day to be on the golf course.
We would like to thank everyone on the golf committee:  Tim Ayers, Ty Cole, Janet Cox,  Jeanne Gallagher, Roman Gary, Angela Nash, Gary Nash and Scott Walls.
Please click here for a list of sponsors and business who donated prizes. Click here for our photo gallery.

Portico Wants to Hear From YOU!
Portico is always looking for great story ideas for the Interiors/Exteriors department which runs in each issue. During 2008, the February issue focuses on preservation and restoration in addition to historic hotels in and around Birmingham. The April issue covers renovation, remodeling and gardens. June is waterfront living and July has seconds homes as well as pools, patios and outdoor living.  September emphasizes architecture and design while October contains a Home Idea guide. And, of course, we always need to know about holiday houses we can photograph a year in advance. Please feel free to contact Lanier Isom at lanier@porticomag.com with ideas about fabulous houses, interesting people in the business to profile, current trends and any other topic reflecting the beauty and diversity of talent in Birmingham.

Artist Tommy Thompson
Tommy Thompson, a traditional plein air oil painter, is a Silver Sponsor of AIA/Birmingham.  Thompson has been an artist for more than 30 years. The plein air painter has captured on canvas various regions of the country, including Alabama, Connecticut, Maine, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Wyoming. Most recently he traveled to the Canadian Rockies to record the natural beauty found there. This month Thompson's 48" x 48" oil painting of Lake Louise, Canada, is featured in a Middle Tennessee Parade Home at Stream Valley near Franklin, TN (Corkie Waller, interior designer). His work was featured in the May/June 2007 issue of Greater Nashville House, Home, and Garden magazine. The Mountain Brook (AL) Art Association invited Thompson to present an oil painting demonstration to their group at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens on October 25, 2007.   At the invitation of the Brentwood, TN, Art Association, Thompson conducted a one-man exhibition of his work during the month of October.  Also in October the Alabama artist painted the Atlantic Seacoast with the host of a PBS art show.  The Birmingham Botanical Gardens has invited Tommy to conduct a one-man exhibition of his latest work during March/April 2008. 
When your designs require original oil paintings, Tommy Thompson will be happy to work with you and your clients to produce paintings of any size to meet your specifications.  You can check out his work at www.tommythompsonart.com