Building Communities - A place in Havana Cuba

The work for the semester is about the following issues:

how to understand and design for a different culture form what we know...

how to design places where living, working, shopping can intermix...

how to design a village in the city...

how to design building that can intermix uses...

how to design in a tropical climate...

The project to explore these issues is the redesigning of a block in Havana, Cuba. It is a typical area about the size of a Law of Indies block in Havana that presently has mixed use of housing, work, and shopping in buildings that need to be replaced or rehabilitated. There is also vacant land and buildings that are not used. Part of the blocks fronts the Malecon, the street next to the water. The other part fronts a typical neighborhood.

The intention is to study the culture through an understanding of one area of Havana and then design and "echo" in architectural form. The design will include a small plaza as well as buildings, some new, some rehabilitated.

The work will start in Boston with lectures about Cuba, readings, background information about climate, site information and design attitudes about the program and form before we go to Havana. We will then travel for a short but intense period to gather information about the culture through understanding a small neighborhood. Coming back from Havana, designs that have attitudes about the"village in the city" will explored.

During the semester there will be feedback from architects from Cuba currently at GSD. We will also have exchanges with GSD, since an urban design studio will be looking at the larger area including our block.

Other concerns for the semester

understanding the space between buildings...

understanding the idea of "micro villages"...

understanding an attitude about architecture, followed by form making...

More at show and tell and much more at first studio...