Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Design Studio VII
Other languages of instruction: English
Teaching staff
Communication will be carried out through the dedicated space on the intranet.
The documentation for the subject will always be delivered through the network.
Personal attention outside of class hours is carried out by appointment by email.
Álvaro Cuéllar: arcuellar@uic.es
Iñaki Baquero: ibr@bopbaa.com
Tutorials regarding doubts about the theoretical content that has been presented in the theoretical classes, and that must be applied in the practical work, will be done individually. The schedule will be a priori the same as that determined during the face-to-face teaching phase. If there is any change, it will be communicated through the channels established by the UIC. These tutorials will be requested by email to the professor. Once the time for the tutorials has been set, they will be carried out in person or online.
Introduction
The Projects 7 subject, together with Projects 8, complete the student's training in the theory and practice of architectural design, focusing on the topic of Designing complex. Considering a changing world with imminent environmental and social challenges, the course seeks to generate reflections and develop proposals that integrate the multiplicity of variables that condition design decisions. The focus is on the architectural object and its relationship with the city, the territory, and the landscape. The exercises will test solutions for the metropolitan environment, whose complexity requires simultaneous work on all scales, as well as the integration of aspects as diverse as the circular economy, zero emissions, incorporating the gender perspective and prioritizing people's comfort. In this context, the student exercises the cyclical sequence analysis - synthesis - project through a wide range of scales and documents that constantly seeks innovation.
During this process, the student alternates group work to resolve the definition of the territorial structure and the urban areas of opportunity, with individual work to address the project of a building and the adjacent public space. The various individual proposals must contribute to the construction of a unitary and visually coherent civic matrix. Likewise, each specific intervention must incorporate the program of uses necessary to generate centrality and favor the regeneration of the metropolitan environment.
The course, as part of the last year of the Architecture degree, is understood as one more step within a process of increasing difficulty that seeks to prepare the student to develop the Final Degree Project and practice the profession with commitment and passion.
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Pre-course requirements
It is mandatory to have passed all the previous Design Studio subjects (from 1 to 6).
Advanced knowledge of technical drawing on a computer, as well as the ability to work with software for image processing and layout of sheets. Skills acquired in the subjects of Computer Science and Drawing.
Knowledge of a minimum bibliography and projects of world relevance, both classical and contemporary. What has been studied in the Composition subject will be especially useful.
Class attendance is required. A roll call will be taken, and it will be necessary to have attended at least 80% of the classes taught. Any absence must be duly justified.
It is recommended to have had experience visiting certain architectural works and emblematic places in the city.
Objectives
- To introduce students to a real design challenge, providing knowledge of urban and architectural regulations. To support their interpretation and application with creativity.
- To prepare students for multidisciplinary work and the conception of the architectural project, based on knowledge of different areas (construction, structures, installations, urban planning, sustainability, accessibility, composition and graphic expression). It is understood that constructive and structural coherence must be implicit in the project.
- To train students in the simultaneous management of the multiple scales of the architectural project. To promote the integration of the different decision-making levels, taking into account the maximum coherence between the interpretation of the city and the territory and the development of a specific building. Will be included the design of the interior space and the construction details.
- To help students develop design strategies that come from both the internal relationships of the project and the interaction with the physical and social environment.
- To train students in collaborative work. The individual project should contribute to preparing students for professional practice, through the development of a larger-scale strategic collective project.
- Develop skills to communicate an architectural project through the development of documents and oral presentations. Also, train the student for teamwork and the preparation of collective documents.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- 34-T - Ability to design, practice and develop basic and execution projects, sketches and blueprints.
- 35-T - Ability to conceive, put into practice and develop urban projects
- 37 - Ability to develop functional programmes for buildings and urban spaces.
- 38-T - Ability to intervene, maintain, restore and renovate heritage buildings.
- 39-T - Ability to eliminate architectural barriers
- 40 - Ability to express architectural criticism.
- 41-T - Ability to find solutions for passive environmental conditioning, including thermal and acoustic insulation, climate control, energy performance and natural lighting.
- 42 - Ability to catalogue buildings and urban heritage and plan their protection.
- 45-T - Ability to design and execute roads and urban development, gardening and landscaping projects
- 46 - Ability to apply urban planning ordinances and standards.
- 48 - To acquire adequate knowledge of the general theories of form, composition and architectural typologies
- 49 - To acquire adequate knowledge of the history of architecture.
- 50 - To acquire adequate knowledge of the study methods for the processes of symbolization, practical functions and ergonomics.
- 51 - To acquire adequate knowledge of the study methods of social needs, quality of life, habitability and basic housing programmes
- 53 - To acquire adequate knowledge of architectural, urban development and landscaping traditions of Western culture, as well as their technical, climate, economic, social and ideological foundations
- 54 - To acquire adequate knowledge of the aesthetics, theory and history of Fine Arts and Applied Arts.
- 55 - To acquire adequate knowledge of the relationship between cultural patterns and the social responsibilities of the architect
- 56 - To acquire adequate knowledge of the principles of vernacular architecture
- 57 - To acquire adequate knowledge of urban sociology, theory, economy and history.
- 58 - To acquire adequate knowledge of the methodological principles of urban planning and metropolitan and regional development.
- 60 - To acquire knowledge of civil, administrative, urban planning, building and professional regulations.
- 62 - To acquire knowledge of property valuation.
Learning outcomes of the subject
At the end of this subject, the student should be able to:
- Deal with the development of hybrid functional programs for buildings and urban spaces, in accordance with the current needs of society.
- Develop a critical argument for intervening in existing buildings, as well as creating new buildings.
- Dimension volumes and spaces (interior and exterior), corresponding to the use of the developed building.
- Consciously and autonomously apply work with multiple scales and diverse disciplinary approaches to develop the architectural project, and will be able to inscribe their individual proposal within a collective overall vision.
- Offer a complete graphic and written explanation of the developed building in all aspects and scales of the Basic Project. Likewise, he will orally communicate his proposal with solvency, accompanied by the appropriate models and audiovisual resources.
Syllabus
The contents of this subject are arranged in line with the objectives specified above, in order to develop the corresponding competences. In particular, the following topics will be addressed:
Topic 1. Urban renewal and new construction works. How to approach the analysis and diagnosis of the context at different scales, to find the area of influence and relationship of the intervention. 1.1. Gathering information and preparing own documentation. What is intentional cartography? 1.2 Visit to the study area and construction of the view of the place.
Topic 2. Study and research of contemporary programs, paying special attention to hybridization and temporality. 2.1. Reference analysis and study of similar projects. 2.2 Functional relationship schemes. 2.3 Sizing of spaces and proportion of uses of an architectural program.
Topic 3. General strategies for implementing the project in the context, emphasizing the systemic nature and flexibility of the design. 3.1. Analysis of reference offices and their design strategies. 3.2. Comparative study of the design approach of the great masters of architecture in situations similar to the case study.
Topic 4. Synthetic volumetric model and organization of the program in space. 4.1 Development of scale documentation and digital models that allow exploring the internal form-function relationship. 4.2 Relationship between project and context through models and plans. “The Urban Section”.
Topic 5. Relationship between the structural model and the spatial form of the building. 5.1. Structural typologies, regularity and structural symmetry. 5.2 Ideas about recycling and reusing structures.
Topic 6. Global understanding of the material envelope, considering that 25% of greenhouse gas emissions come from construction. 6.1. Correlation between construction elements and contemporary architectural space, with special emphasis on materials with low emissions (wood, baked clay, plastics and less polluting concrete). 6.2. Study of material options and construction systems, seeking overall coherence between concept and work. 6.3 Case studies that stand out for their constructive conception and applied systems. Deepening the application of materials and technological innovations.
Topic 7. Basic solutions to integrate passive-active conditioning criteria and general installations for bioclimatic architecture from the beginning of the project. 7.1. Climate and its relationship with the work, as a vector of form. 7.2 Discussion on reference examples that achieve habitability (comfort, safety, and health) in the interior space.
Topic 8. Project representation and choice of explanatory material for a multi-scale project. 8.1 Elaboration of a script that summarizes the main ideas of the project. 8.2. Examples of useful graphic techniques to achieve expressiveness and rigor in the documentation. 8.3. Guidelines on how to communicate research orally through the project.
Teaching and learning activities
In person
Design Studio 7 takes as its starting point the work previously developed in the Urbanism III subject (4th curs), taking advantage of the acquired knowledge and large-scale documentation produced on the work area as an introduction. While in Urbanism III the architectural definition is close to the 1/500 scale, in this subject, the work begins from this scale, until reaching an increasingly detailed definition. The process includes a constant change of scale.
The subject is structured as follows:
1st part: 6 weeks. The work focuses on the elaboration of an urban structure project developed in a group by all the students in the workshop. The organization of the areas of opportunity is developed in small groups of 2 to 6 students and the fitting of the individual architectural intervention coherent with the premises of the program and urban and territorial articulation studied in the previous levels.
2nd part: 4 weeks. The design of the building and its immediate surroundings are addressed in greater depth. The student acquires control of the built form at the basic project level and establishes the general criteria for structures, installations, and construction. The design of the public space associated with the building is also developed, indicating the main urban development criteria.
|
TRAINING ACTIVITY |
COMPETENCES |
ECTS CREDITS |
|
Lecture class |
34-T 35-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 45-T 46 48 49 50 51 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 |
0,78 |
|
Participatory class |
34-T 35-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 45-T 46 48 49 50 51 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 |
0,78 |
|
Practical class |
34-T 35-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 45-T 46 48 49 50 51 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 |
0,85 |
|
Tutoring |
34-T 35-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 45-T 46 48 49 50 51 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 |
0,85 |
|
Individual or group study |
34-T 35-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 45-T 46 48 49 50 51 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 |
3,25 |
| TRAINING ACTIVITY | COMPETENCES | ECTS CREDITS |
|---|---|---|
| Class exhibition | 34-T 35-T 36-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 42 43-T 44-T 45-T 46 47-T 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 61 62 | 0,78 |
| Class participation | 34-T 35-T 36-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 42 43-T 44-T 45-T 46 47-T 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 61 62 | 0,78 |
| Clase practice | 34-T 35-T 36-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 42 43-T 44-T 45-T 46 47-T 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 61 62 | 0,85 |
| Tutorials | 34-T 35-T 36-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 42 43-T 44-T 45-T 46 47-T 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 61 62 | 0,85 |
| Individual or group study | 34-T 35-T 36-T 37 38-T 39-T 40 41-T 42 43-T 44-T 45-T 46 47-T 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 61 62 | 3,25 |
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
The evaluation of Project 7 will be carried out on the basis of deliverables with graphic documentation and an oral presentation where specific content must be communicated. Overall, the process of defining the project will be evaluated, from the urban scale (1/1,000) to that of the building (1/200)
Delivery 1. Week 2: The collective project of territorial structure, the general organization of the areas of opportunity and the proposal for specific intervention specified in the design of a building and its immediate surroundings will be evaluated.
Model of the volumetry and its surroundings - Hand-drawn sketch of an element that explains the territory - Document justifying the program.
Delivery 2. Week 4: Public space and users define the character and volume of the building
Model of the volume and its surroundings - Plans of the most representative part of the project's open space (access, semi-public patio, etc.)
Delivery 3. Week 6: Zoning and distribution of the program, indicating routes, spatial sequence, circulation elements (hall, stairs, elevators...)
Model of the building's operation - Plans of an element of the building's circulation.
Delivery 4 Week 8: The environment shapes the building. Contact relations with the neighbors
Model of the building and its surroundings - Representative section of a façade and its surroundings
Delivery 5 Week 10: The art of designing is a constantly evolving process.
Plans and models of the process and final result of the proposal.
The graphic and written documentation of a basic project (scale 1/200) will be evaluated, including some documents at smaller scales (details). General criteria for structures, facilities, construction, sustainability, accessibility and public space will also be reviewed. The programme and its adopted references will be considered.
At the end of the course, the student has a weighted average of the practical exercises (deliveries).
Delivery 1: 0% Delivery 2: 5% Delivery 3: 10% Delivery 4: 20% Delivery 5 (Final): 65%
For approval in the 2nd Call (February), all documentation related to the project (individual and collective part) will be submitted again.
Students who miss the continuous assessment and are absent for more than 80% of the compulsory classes without justification, must make a final delivery without prior corrections.
Bibliography and resources
- A Matter of Things. Manuel de Solà-Morales. Ed. NAI Uitgevers/Publishers Stichting; N.º 1 edición, 2008.
- The endless city: the urban age project. London School of Economics and Deutsche Bank's Alfred Herrhausen Society. London: Phaidon Press Limited, 2007.
- Pensar la arquitectura. ZUMTHOR, Peter. Editorial Gustavo Gili. Barcelona 2004
- La habitación: más allá de la sala de estar. Xavier Monteys. Editorial Gustavo Gili, ISBN: 978-84-252-2739-4
- Modern Architecture since 1900. Curtis, William. Phaidon, 3ª edición, 1996
- Arquitectos Contemporaneos 1.AA.VV. Ed. Loft publications. 2012.
- Material de trabajo de Urbanismo III
- Cartografía Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (escala 1/1.000)
- Cartografía Institut Cartogràfic de Catalunya (escala 1/5.000)
- Pla General Metropolità de Barcelona
- Pla Territorial de la Regió Metropolitana de Barcelona