Search result: Catalogue data in Spring Semester 2023
Architecture Master  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Core Courses | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Field of History and Theory of Architecture | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | Title | Type | ECTS | Hours | Lecturers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 063-0314-23L | History of Art and Architecture: Digital Matters  | W | 1 credit | 1V | N. Zschocke | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | What is the materiality of the digital and what significance do digital media have for the experience, use and production of real environments? The course discusses works of art and architecture that explore or redefine relationships between digital, physical and social spaces. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Knowledge of the recent history of art and architecture as well as media theory. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | What is the materiality of the digital and what significance do digital media have for the experience, use and production of real environments? The lecture class examines the material dimensions behind seemingly immaterial flows of data, but also the question in which different ways new information and communication technologies change reality. What do works of art and architecture teach us about interconnections between private and public spaces with personal devices, sensors and data - and what can we learn from them about the infrastructures of the digital? How do artists and architects work within the new hybrid environments defined by different (also sometimes hidden) actors? Discussed are works of art and architecture that were produced since the middle of the 20th century, and which explore or redefine the relationships between digital, physical and social spaces. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 063-0316-23L | History of Art and Architecture VI: Antiquity and Medieval | W | 2 credits | 2V | C. Rachele, M. Delbeke | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | This lecture studies Antiquity and the Middle Ages through their reception since the Renaissance. We will investigate the role of history for architects then and now through analysis of how architecture has been defined in relationship to the antique and medieval past. Short readings and class participation required. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Deepen basic knowledge, improve ability to critically analyze architectural history texts, develop humanities-based reasoning and argument skills. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | In the Renaissance, the practice of architecture fundamentally transformed into the design-based discipline it is now largely assumed to be. Both then and especially in nineteenth- and twentieth-century architectural history, this change was understood in opposition to “good” ancient and “bad” medieval models. This course investigates Antiquity and the Middle Ages as variously fashioned in the mind of the architect and the architectural historian. How does our understanding of these periods inform our thinking about the use of history for the contemporary architect? This course is a combination lecture and discussion class. Occasional at-home reading and active in-class participation are required; the final assignment is a written research assignment (due during the exam period). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literature | Scans of the readings will be made available on the course website. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 063-0804-23L | History and Theory of Architecture VIII: Seen from the South | W | 2 credits | 2V | C. Nuijsink, T. Avermaete | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | This course is a quest for non-Eurocentric paradigms and perspectives in urban theory developed in the South. By highlighting different urban logics and experiences, the course aims to broaden our understanding of the heterogeneity of urbanisms around the world. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Upon completion of the course, students will have: (1) gained an awareness of why curriculum decolonisation is crucial as part of our commitment to justice; (2) identified the existence of alternative canons of knowledge which have been previously marginalised or dismissed, yet whose inclusion and discussion are essential to expanding the canon; (3) acquired in-depth knowledge of multiple urban theories developed in the South; (4) learnt to contextualise non-Western histories and knowledge within the framework of imperialism, (neo)colonialism, and power structures; (5) strengthened their analytical skills by engaging in in-class discussions and weekly responses. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | Our understanding of how urban designers and architects can design cities is still largely affected by Western urban conditions and perspectives. The European city, in particular, with its steady and controlled growth, has served for a long time as the background against which new urban design methods and instruments are developed. As scholars who advocate a decentring and reframing of the widest conceptualisations of the urban have argued, urban design history is still based upon the dichotomy of “First World” model cities that generate new theories versus problematic “Third World” cities in need of correction. However, if our urban theorisations remain anchored in this Euro-American experience, we will be incapable of analysing and understanding the heterogeneity of urbanisms around the world. This course sets out to overcome this asymmetrical ignorance by recalibrating the gaze. Course reading, lectures and in-class discussions centre around urban theories developed in cities in Latin-America, Africa and Asia to illustrate that urban design and urbanisation are not prerogatives of the Western world. The course will highlight alternative canons of knowledge which have been hitherto marginalised or dismissed because of (neo)colonial power structures, yet are crucial in understanding the design and production of cities. Through studying urban theories based on cities that develop according to other logics and generate different urban experiences, this course seeks to extend our knowledge of urban design, interrogate its assumptions, and enlarge our intellectual horizons to include a wider range of perspectives. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lecture notes | This course is curated by senior staff of the Chair of the History and Theory of Urban Design (GTA), who will ensure a wide range of voices and perspectives are represented. The course will start with a series of input lectures by scholars whose work will bring fresh perspectives to the realm of urban theory. Each input lecture will be followed by a critical reflection and in-class discussion. During the semester, students will work on the final assignment: writing a short biography of one protagonist whose work is discussed in class. Two sessions in the course are entirely dedicated to working on this assignment, acting as peer-review sessions in which students critically review each other's work. 'History and Theory of Architecture VIII: Seen from the South' is considered the first in a series. The focus of the required reading and the invited guests will change each year. The Spring 2023 course will explore the concept of “public space” in non-Western contexts. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literature | During this course different texts will be discussed. Both required and further reading will be made available via the website of the course prior to the start of FS2023. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prerequisites / Notice | This course is a 2 ECTS Kernfach for Masters students offered by the Institute for the History and Theory of Architecture (GTA). The course will be graded as follows: Active participation in the course: 30% Active participation in class is defined by weekly attendance, the ability to ask mature questions in response to the guest lectures, and the provision of constructive feedback to fellow students during workshop sessions. Responses to reading: 30% This course requires students to demonstrate active engagement with the urban theories offered on the course by submitting weekly responses to the required reading. In addition, each student will be asked to engage with further reading at least once during the semester, write a response to it, and contribute this additional knowledge to the class discussion. Final assignment: 40% The final group assignment consists of: 1. Writing a clear and concise biography of one of the protagonists discussed in class 2. The creation of a select bibliography of the protagonist's work using MLA citation format. 3. Locating a portrait image of the selected protagonist, and providing the photo credits. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 063-0802-23L | History and Theory of Architecture: New Brutalism | W | 2 credits | 2V | M. Delbeke, L. Stalder | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | The course offers an advanced introduction into the practices and debates of architectural history and theory. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Basic knowledge of the history and theory of the architecture. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | Maarten Delbeke, Rococo This lecture series explores and interprets the rococo church architecture of what is now Southern Germany, by examining its religious and political context, by proposing a close reading of a number of case-studies, and by offering a thematic analysis of some of its key features. The course is intended at once as a thorough introduction and an open-ended process of discovery, where preliminary observations will be weighed and discussed collectively. Laurent Stalder: What is new about New Brutalism? LIVESTREAM/RECORDINGS: https://www.video.ethz.ch/lectures/d-arch/2022/spring/063-0802-22L Taking the English avant-garde as an example, the lecture examines the deep transformations in architecture during the postwar period. The focus lies on the question of performance in architecture, from constructive questions (e.g., prefabrication), structural challenges (e.g., theory of plasticity), physical properties (e.g., isolation), infrastructural changes (e.g., pipes and machines), to spatial challenges and their aesthetic consequences for people, architecture, and the environment. The goal of the lecture is to use the recent architectural history to shed light on different concepts still relevant for contemporary architecture. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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