This is my interview with architect Don Scott Fraser.
We met in the lobby of the newly completed TyMe Institute.

I’ll get right to it. Don Scott, how do you design a building?
First, acknowledge the Void from which your design will emerge.
Don’t clutter the Womb with preconceptions.

Preconceptions about what a building should look like?
Yes.

So how do you know what it’s going to look like?
I don’t.
See me as a facilitator.
I suspend consideration of what it will look like.
My task is to discover the Nature of the Structure.

What is the process of this discovery?
Knowing the site and the intended use, I might develop a schematic plan, while also considering may palette of materials. It is important to understand the Nature of materials.

What do you mean by the Nature of materials?
To understand materials, we should know whence they are derived.
My palette is derived of rocks.
Concrete, masonry, steel, aluminum, gypsum board, plastic, and even wood are all given birth by rocks.
Through Force and Fire we extract the Structure.
A Structure is a pile of rocks. I’ve said that more than a few times.

You’ve spoken before of the Alchemical Process of Architecture. Will you explain?
Alchemy is the transformation of base materials into substance of great value.
I transform rocks into Authentic Architecture.
The Cauldron’s usefulness is in the Void Space that it surrounds. Like the hub of a wheel; like a bellows.

I’ve read the Tao Te Ching a few times, too. What has this to do with design?
I start with a clean Cauldron. No preconceptions, as I said.
Add only true elements to the mix. Start with just one such truth that you know. It can be anything.
Hemingway said that he starts with one true sentence. I start with one true line.

How do you identify that line?
That line identifies itself.

Help me understand this.
OK. Let’s say I’m designing a doctor’s office.
I’ve visited his current practice and understand a bit about his operation.
We’ve had several subsequent meetings, some with his staff attending.
Our collaboration has resulted in an organizational strategy.
Generally, we know the functions of various spaces, and their relationships to one another.
Perhaps these connections can be depicted diagrammatically?
Do we see any True Lines lurking within the implied geometry?

Function, Materials, and Geometry now combine with Intuition and Myriad Considerations.