{"id":6325,"date":"2017-05-11T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-05-11T19:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/?p=6325"},"modified":"2025-01-17T00:58:16","modified_gmt":"2025-01-17T08:58:16","slug":"36-all-nighters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/36-all-nighters\/","title":{"rendered":"36 All Nighters"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the Fall of 1996: Architecture Department at Rhode Island School of Design<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

According the \u2018The Telegraph\u2019 Architecture school has a drop out rate of 7.2%<\/a> which puts this path of study at the 8th highest for student drop outs. I feel like that number is a little low. Architecture programs are notorisously hard and some people just can\u2019t deal with that level of stress. My program started with over 100 in the sophomore class and by 5th year we were to 60 maybe 70 students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over my art school education I pulled a lot of all-nighters. I found that I got more done without the distractions of the day: less people around, less going on in general and I was just able to function better. By 5th year at RISD my ability to stay up had been honed like a battle tested sword and I started documenting my nights in charts and in a series of Polaroid photos. During this specific semester in the Fall of 1996 I tallied\u00a036 all-nighters<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #2: wearing my prized terrycloth shirt. I seem to have lost photo #1.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This was the year of my degree project. Every Architecture student must create a self-initiated project from concept, pitch and execution over their final year. The Fall semester is the pitch process\u2013but you are still completing other course work so it\u2019s like doing two full-time studios at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #3: In the streets of Providence powered by Jolt Cola.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #4: In the studio, chugging Dew, playing with gelatin.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #5: At my college apartment. I don\u2019t know where I got this tree.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #7: in the studio with my fuel\u2013Mountain Dew.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #8: Faux Tattoo on my hand showing my school spirit.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #9: Wearing my \u2018Denny\u2019s \u2019Til Dawn\u2019 T-shirt, looking happy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

My all-nighter rules are as follows. If I was awake at 6AM, then I had officially pulled an \u2018all-nighter\u2019 and at some point between 5AM and 6AM I took a photo. The situation would vary, but more often than not, I was in my studio at the Architecture building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #10: Tracy and I. Photo #11: My mac at home. Photo #12: 5:22 AM and my bed is taunting me. Photo #13: Messy studio desk with Huxley\u2019s \u2018Brave New World\u2019<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There are a few tricks that I can impart on staying up late. First, you have to eat. You can\u2019t eat at dinner time, say 5PM, and expect to survive until 6AM on caffeine. You have to have 2nd dinner or at the very least multiple snack breaks. Caffeine is a huge help of course, but I always found that augmenting that with sugar was a great turbo-combo. Sugar gives you the short burst, caffeine the longer burn and real food for the duration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #14: Studio desk with model making materials.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #15: Chocolate helps a lot.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

During this time I started to skew away from traditional Architecture processes. I started using painting and collage for my drawings. I was creating some unusual models with gelatin, mold making and found objects. I wasn\u2019t making most of my professors very happy. Some encouraged these activities, but that was kind of rare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #16: Home with my tree. Photo #17: Home with the mac (no clue what is on screen). Photo #18: Studio night with Matt and Lihwa. Photo #19: Mirror tricks at the studio.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ll notice that most of these photos are just me. A lot of people stayed late at the studios, but most bailed at some point to get a few hours of rest. I never really found that worked for me. I\u2019d end up sleeping half the day and just throwing my schedule way off. My plan was usually to leave the studio around 6AM and go get a good breakfast and then act like it was any other day and continue on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #20: Milkcrate storage at home.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #21: My bedroom window at home.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #22: Reject posters in the stairwell.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At some point during the semester, we submitted our proposals for our degree project and a handful of us (9 if I remember correctly) were told that our proposals were rejected. This group, which I was proudly a part of, declared ourselves, \u201cthe Rejects\u201d and I started posting around the building with messages to display our displeasure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #23: Mahjong solitaire at home. Photo #24: My apartment (?). Photo #25: Inspired by Keith Haring I started writing on walls with chalk. Photo #26: Light tricks.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I would break my work down into two main categories: thinking and execution. Thinking work consisted of detailed drawings or concept work. Execution work was the brainless execution side, where I knew what I needed to get done. Thinking work was scheduled for the evening. Execution work was always saved for the early morning hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #27: Media, Pennsylvania, where I grew up. I\u2019m assuming this was Thanksgiving break.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #28: My childhood bedroom with 80\u2019s skate posters intact.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #32: Getting artsy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #33: Wearing one of my favorite Hole Proof T-shirts designed by Andrew Jeffrey Wright.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

My degree project proposal needed to be re-worked after my rejection and it took an interesting turn. I moved towards the idea of reclaiming unused (or under utilized) public space for a greater good. I was inspired by Keith Haring<\/a>, Burnside skatepark in Portland<\/a> and David Hammons<\/a>. Each of these inspired me to take action in real life\u2013not just in a hypothetical school project. My first real-world test was inside the Architecture building. There was room on our floor that was commonly known as the worst room for critiques. It had some 70s-style carpeted step seating and poor ventilation. I did a survey of the students and asked what they wanted in that space. The results: a bar and an art gallery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over a long weekend, I destroyed and rebuilt that room as the first part of my new degree project. The Architecture department was not pleased and I was called to the office promptly the following Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #34: Destruction complete, raw materials saved for the new program.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Photo #35: Rebuilding the room with a gallery wall in the foreground.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Nothing really came of my antics, aside from the fact that I received a very poor grade on my degree project. This set me back some and I had to make up some credits\u2013but eventually I got my diploma and life went on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo #36: The last in my batch (maybe there were more?). Group shot late in the semester.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Studio time, especially the late nights, were easily a highlight of my college years. There were heated debates about the work, which music was playing, food and coffee and lots of laughter. We worked really hard and everyone was so earnest about what we were making. Life was much simpler then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I still stay up super late, often until 2 or 3AM. I may have broken my internal clock during my college years\u2013who knows? Or maybe I\u2019m just one of those people who can function with very little (or zero) sleep. I don\u2019t really worry about it, I just do my thing and if I feel like staying up and continuing then I do just that.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the Fall of 1996: Architecture Department at Rhode Island School of Design According the \u2018The Telegraph\u2019 Architecture school has a drop out rate of 7.2% which puts this path of study at the 8th highest for student drop outs. I feel like that number is a little low. Architecture programs are notorisously hard and some people […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[22],"tags":[16,105,7,8,107,106],"class_list":["post-6325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-personal","tag-architecture","tag-art-school","tag-creative","tag-design","tag-risd","tag-sleep"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6325"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6325\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6360,"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6325\/revisions\/6360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johnfreeborn.com\/words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}