¡Big, Dumb Building!
2017
#notmypresident
Architects make big, expensive stuff.
The project required proposals for a mixed-use building, often seen as a positive contribution to urban development. However, the scale of such projects can overwhelm and displace existing communities. Architects are responsible for more than just creating expensive objects—they shape environments and, in doing so, hold a social responsibility. Winston's approach recognized that this project could serve a populist agenda, and he chose to design in a way that resisted this complicity.
Build with protest in mind.
During his research, Winston encountered local piñaterias selling piñatas of Donald Trump—symbols of resistance that transformed a cultural tradition into a tool of protest. Inspired by the community's creativity, Winston sought to reflect this spirit in his building, creating a structure that wouldn’t disrupt the neighborhood but would instead comment on the forces that created it.
Challenge the status quo in architecture.
In the wake of Donald Trump's election, Winston Alford-Hamburg was tasked with designing a three-million-square-foot megabuilding in Lincoln Heights, a predominately Mexican neighborhood in Los Angeles. The assignment raised ethical concerns about the impact such a massive development would have on the community, questioning the role of architecture in shaping vulnerable neighborhoods.
¡Celebrate it!
Winston’s solution was to design an elevated building, allowing the structure to rise above the existing urban fabric without displacing the residents below.
¡Resist it!
Experimenting with playful materials like Play-Doh and pencils, he developed a concept that increased population density while leaving the neighborhood intact.
¡Ornament it!
Drawing inspiration from the piñata’s cultural significance, Winston infused the concept into the design. The piñata symbolizes the triumph over evil, and in Lincoln Heights, it became a powerful tool of resistance against oppression. The colorful spirit of the piñatas guided the architectural process, turning a culturally intimate object into a statement against majoritarian politics.
Big, dumb model.
Winston’s design echoed the ironic architecture of the 1970s and 1980s, where architects like Robert Venturi used wit and ornament to start dialogue on social issues. His "big, dumb model" incorporated simple, colorful details that blurred the line between the ordinary and the political, reclaiming tradition to critique the destructive face of administrative intervention.
