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Archispeak

Archispeak

By: Evan Troxel & Cormac Phalen
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What’s it really like to work in architecture? The hosts of Archispeak know, and they’re here to share real-life experiences. Since 2012 architects Evan Troxel and Cormac Phalen have been podcasting their brand of real talk on everything from design, tools, and work/life balance to generational differences, mentoring, job hunting, and more. Probing questions, revelatory interviews, and unique insights have grown their audience and become a weekly ritual for students and seasoned professionals alike. To join the conversation or learn more about the hosts, visit archispeakpodcast.comArchispeak Podcast. All rights reserved. Art Career Success Economics
Episodes
  • #382 - AI, Meetings, and the Architecture Grind
    Dec 1 2025

    In this episode of Archispeak, we pull back the curtain on what modern practice actually feels like when AI, meetings, and the architecture grind all collide. We talk about coming back from travel feeling not three weeks behind but three months, calendars that look like Tetris played on hard mode, and what happens when you join a call and realize you’re the only human in a grid full of AI note-takers. Cormac and Evan dig into how AI meeting companions, transcripts, and recordings change the way we think, remember, and take responsibility for decisions—and why it’s getting harder to even know where the “real” record of a project lives when it’s scattered across Zoom chats, email, Revit, and shared drives.

    From there, we zoom out to the bigger question: what this nonstop communication and tool-stack chaos is doing to actual design work, mentorship, and the next generation coming up inside firms. We wrestle with whether AI is really relieving the grind or quietly raising expectations so everyone is “on” all the time, and we talk honestly about boundaries, attention, and how to carve out space for deep work in the middle of the mess.

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    Have a question for the hosts? Ask it at AskArchispeak.com

    Thank you for listening to Archispeak. For more episodes please visit https://archispeakpodcast.com.

    Support Archispeak by making a donation.

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    53 mins
  • #381 - Anthony Laney on Craft, Clarity, and the Definition of Home
    Nov 25 2025

    In this episode of Archispeak, we sit down with architect Anthony Laney to explore the ideas behind his new book, Poetics of Home. We talk about what it really takes to design spaces that feel deeply human and how his team at Laney LA has built a practice around clarity, rigor, and emotional resonance.

    We dig into the invisible forces that shape a great project: the trust between architects and builders, the discipline required to strip a design down to its essentials, and the humility it takes to let a home reveal what it wants to become. Anthony shares stories from the field, from working with an extraordinary build team to navigating the inevitable surprises that show up during construction, and how those moments often lead to the most beautiful outcomes.

    Across generations in our profession, there’s a hunger for meaning in the work. This conversation gets right to the heart of that. Whether you’re just entering architecture or you’ve been at it for decades, Anthony’s perspective is a powerful reminder of why we do this in the first place: to create places where people can live well.

    Episode Links:

    • POETICS of HOME by Laney LA
    • Amazon Link

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    Have a question for the hosts? Ask it at AskArchispeak.com

    Thank you for listening to Archispeak. For more episodes please visit https://archispeakpodcast.com.

    Support Archispeak by making a donation.

    Show More Show Less
    54 mins
  • #380 - The Vibe
    Nov 17 2025

    In this episode of Archispeak, we talk about that elusive quality that aligns people with great art (and spaces)—but this time through the lens of a real-world architectural field trip. Evan shares his recent trip to Iowa, where he spent time touring projects and hanging out with the folks at OPN Architects. We dive into why the atmosphere of a place, both in architecture and in practice, matters more than most people realize.

    Episode Links:

    • Watch this episode on YouTube (with all the pictures that go along with the conversation!)
    • Jeff Skunk Baxter - Harmonic Vibration & the Human Spirit (YouTube)
    • The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin (Amazon)
    • tetragrammaton podcast
    • Rick Beato’s interview of David Gilmour (YouTube)
    • OPN Architects
    • Pickle Palace

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    Have a question for the hosts? Ask it at AskArchispeak.com

    Thank you for listening to Archispeak. For more episodes please visit https://archispeakpodcast.com.

    Support Archispeak by making a donation.

    Show More Show Less
    52 mins
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