"Technological changes paired with economic forces are significantly altering the construction of buildings and the practice of architecture. Conventional techniques will no longer suffice if architecture is to remain a viable venture."   -Monica Ponce de Leon

The final painting of this collection will not actually be a painting of a physical building but rather an abstract one. Heading into the architecture field, there has been one important concept that I've learned by applying to schools and that is: The way we view architecture today is out-dated and needs to move toward ecologically friendlier designs where a building is more concerned about the environment around it. Buildings need to be more self-sufficient and waste less energy. 

I chose this Gustav Klimt because the trees themselves are acting as structures or at least natural ones. The way the branches stretch up with those hard lines, these trees are sturdy giants. The abstract meaning of this is that buildings need to be more natural, yet still beautiful. The colors Klimt captures with his impressionistic brush strokes creates a shade from the sun that invites you to the actual building in the background. Both work together to make a beautiful scene. But this is only accomplished by the trees working together. The sun would easily break through the branches if the amount of trees were not close together working collectively to shelter the walk-way. 

The way buildings will look will change, but the drive to make them look attractive to the eye will not, because architects are artists, sketching drafts that would eventually conceive a building. But also taking into account other details like its surroundings and its purpose. Monica Ponce de Leon is the dean of the architecture school in Michigan and say, "Our teaching methodologies and the predominant model of studio instruction has remained virtually unchanged for over 100 years. More importantly, in the last 20 years, architecture has stagnated in research that narrowly focused on topics that proved to have little consequence." What she's saying is that the field of Architecture is in need of reform. That a massive change is on the way. Designs will soon be approached with a greater interest as to how it will impact its surroundings, as well as its use of resources.