A PRINCIPLED APPROACH TO ARCHITECTURE 101

Abstract

When asked to teach Introduction to Architecture at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), I pondered what would unite and inspire a young, diverse student population with minimal exposure to design and mixed levels of analytical skills coming from Nigeria, Colombia, Venezuela, Jamaica and Japan and throughout the United States. After researching how Intro courses are taught around the country, I came to the conclusion that the purpose of this course is to enable students to engage in architectural discourse verbally and graphically and to have a coherent set of principles by which to approach the design process. Instead of turning towards chronology as an organizing element for the course, I asked them one question on the first day and again, ten weeks later, on the last day of class – What is your favorite building? Why? I asked them to bring an image of their favorite building on class two and to be prepared to describe it to someone who is unable to see the building. This enabled us to begin to address the vocabulary of architecture. This also enabled us to address the next question – What is architecture? Beyond the incorporation of vocabulary, the underlying intention of this course is to enable students to harness what passion and interests have brought them to architecture school. By helping students identify their connection with architecture early (their favorite building), we enable them to feed from that experience in the upcoming years of education and practice. This general discussion of favorite buildings and whether they are "Architecture” continued through the term. The context for the discussion was a list of "principles” which I presented to the students: 1. Formal Ordering and Shelter 2. The Natural Environment 3. The Built Environment 4. Structure and Technology 5. History In conjunction with readings, field trips and class discussions, students were given assignments from a range of media relating to the five principles. Dialogue about their favorite buildings and Architecture increased through the quarter and by the end of the quarter they produced informed diagrammatic analyses of a building. The goal was not to define Architecture, but to use the question as a foundation for an architectural education.