The fourth edition of the Collective Architecture Studio will foreground and explore two key registers on which the concept of the common, collective good played out in Yugoslavian, and specifically Belgrade, architecture: first, the production and conception of urban and architectural space for the common good (with an emphasis on the material and architectural effects of Yugoslavia’s constitutional “right to housing”), and second, the conception of self-managed, group authorship and ownership that was implemented and performed through self-managed architectural enterprises. Important historical caveat: group authorship in such structures did not automatically mean no authorship. S25 Collective Architecture Studio will thus actively study and self-experiment with forms of coauthorship. We will focus on the architectural repair of existing, as well as the invention of new modes of cooperative housing in this context. Everything we make (including our building proposals) will also function as critical broadcasts, catalyzing discussion and/or revelation among our projected audiences.

Research and project activities, which cover the range represented by the various research interests and projects in the department. Students who wish a letter grade option for their work must register for 4.URG.

Research and project activities, which cover the range represented by the various research interests and projects in the Department.

Are you aspiring to thrive as an independent creative professional or to launch your creative practice?

This half-semester course offers students in art, cultural, and creative disciplines fundamental tools and strategies for building their careers as independent professionals.

Students will: A) Develop an understanding of the international framework of institutions, relations, and policies that serve as a foundation for professionals seeking to make an impact through their creative practice and how this knowledge can translate into offerings that stand out and create a competitive advantage.
B) Learn concepts and mechanisms commonly found in the economics of art and culture and understand how critical issues can be transformed into opportunities.
C) Explore the diverse values generated by cultural production and learn how to combine these into distinctive offerings. Students will also examine relevant business models within the creative industries and develop the skills to adapt and thrive in dynamic market landscapes.
D) Acquire practical skills in branding, legal business structures, and intellectual property, enabling students to protect and leverage their creative work while building a sustainable professional practice.

 

This course is an exploration of the later stages of architectural design that occurs in architectural detailing and construction mock-ups. To initiate this course, students will select a building threshold from a project that they have previously designed and use it as a basis to produce 5-10 new threshold variations. The threshold variations will be a detailed response and study of select architectural precedents. For the final project, students will select one threshold design to build a physical model at full (or half) scale.

Students will explore the design potential of building thresholds, passages, and openings. Every threshold is on the verge of–. Choosing and isolating a threshold allows for an in-depth study of the passage between interiors, and exteriors, and of the in between space itself. For example, in Marcel Duchamp’s door 11 rue Larrey from 1927, the threshold is an opening to, a closure of, and as such it holds the space between both conditions.

In their threshold (re)designs, students will explore multiple threshold design options–each approached through a different tectonic lens. The variations will be supported by two studies: 1. an exploration of a range of cross-cultural threshold precedents drawn from editions of GA Detail, Global Architecture, El Croquis, and when possible, detailed vernacular and classical examples to establish the tectonic lenses; 2. An exploration of material, spatial, and atmospheric properties and qualities, and the bodily performances required of the passage.

The approach to tectonic studies is informed by a range of precedents from literature, mathematics, art, music and architecture. In art and music, instructional compositions are informed by repetition, variation, and singularity (uniqueness). Examples are the chance compositions of John Cage and the wall drawings of Sol Le Witt. Other models for this exploration include Elements of Style by Raymond Queneau and 99 Variations on a Proof by Philip Ording, two works that begin with a simple premise that is reinvented one hundredfold by a new set of principles, techniques, contexts, and histories.

Queneau the cofounder of OuLiPo (workshop of potential literature) begins with a narrative, while Ording begins with a theorem, yet each uses the same method to generate new perspectives of the original through an exploration of style. The class will draw from these examples to devise constraints and rules to conceive of and structure thresholds.

Since the threshold selected by student is from an original design that was given much consideration previously, each new speculation suggests alternative design approaches and potentials for the original building design, and, for their future approach to design in general.

Students select thesis topic, define method of approach, and prepare thesis proposal for SMArchS degree. Faculty supervision on an individual or group basis. Intended for SMArchS program students prior to registration for 4.THG.

Introduces critical theories and contemporary practices in the field of urbanism that challenge its paradigms and advance its future. Includes theoretical linkages between ideas about the cultures of urbanization, social and political processes of development, environmental tradeoffs of city making, and the potential of design disciplines to intervene to change the future of built forms. Events and lecture series co-organized by faculty and doctoral students further engage and inform research.

This edition of the class will be structured around four key debates: 1) the city and the urban, 2) spatial forms of the political, 3) world systems and urban economies, and 4) environmentalism. We will analyze these topics both cross-historically and cross-geographically, consistently moving between historical and contemporary urban formations.

The class will explore these four questions by examining the various artifacts and mechanisms that make up the urban environment (infrastructures, buildings, plans) and the spatial structures they generate. Throughout, we will consider cities as part of broader processes of territorial structuring, investigating how cities depend on these processes for their functioning while also contributing to their shaping.

The class debates will be complemented by an individual, semester-long design-research project, which will be discussed through presentations and dedicated workshops.
 

Spatializes large technological systems of energy, analyzes existing and speculative energy visions, and imagines energy futures in relation to concerns of ecology, politics, and aesthetics. Identifies different scales of thinking about the territory of energy from that of environmental systems, to cities, regions, and global landscapes. Readings and students' research projects draw on critical geography, history of technology, environmental history to synthesize energy attributes within the design disciplines.

Preparatory research development leading to a well-conceived proposition for the MArch design thesis. Students formulate a cohesive thesis argument and critical project using supportive research and case studies through a variety of representational media, critical traditions, and architectural/artistic conventions. Group study in seminar and studio format, with periodic reviews supplemented by conference with faculty and a designated committee member for each individual thesis.