Course content

By lectures, the course offers knowledge of structures, materials, and technical installations importance to architecture. It is particularly relevant to students that see the design of buildings in cooperation with architects as their future working area, as well as those students who take a particular interest in the design aspects of engineering. Also; the course is highly relevant for students of architecture who wish to learn more about the role of technology in architecture. The main aim of the course is to stimulate an interest in, and to develop an understanding of architecture as a technological practice, as well as to enable students to see structures and other engineering devices as expressions also of cultural phenomena.

When choosing the AAR4680 Circular Studio - Tradition and conservation, AAR4250 - Architecture as a Technological Practice is a mandatory knowledge topic for students in the architecture programme.

Learning outcome

GENERAL COMPETENCE: The course aims at offering a competence in architecture and engineering as cultural phenomena, and the ability to see the relationship that exists between technological possibilities and architectural design decisions. The course will, in addition to a perspective on architecture as a technological practice,also give the students a basic competence in architecture seen as both a functional and a stylistic enterprise. KNOWLEDGE: After having finished the course students are expected to know important reference works within the history of architecture up to the present, and to understand the role played by engineering in these. Furthermore are the students expected to describe important aspects of the architectural development and the reasons behind this. SKILLS: The course is intended to prepare the students to “read” and understand the part played by structures and other engineering interventions in specific works of architecture, and thereby offering a basis for discussing structural form, the choice of materials and detailing, as well as technical installations, with professionals from other disciplines. The course also aims at offering the necessary skills to discuss and to evaluate design solutions within the engineering or architects professions as such.

Learning methods and activities

The core activity of the course is a lecture series on architectures that aims at communicating knowledge as well as stimulating an interest in the building culture which is common to architects and engineers, with a focus on presenting and discussing specific buildings. The teaching activities also consist of tutoring related to a written assignment. The assignment, in the form of writing an essay, is to be developed throughout the semester and is submitted about 3-4 weeks before exams. Architecture students who participate in this course are encouraged to choose a topic for the essay with relevance for the architectural design task carried through in the same semester.

This course may be taught in English to accommodate international master students or incoming exchange students.

The teacher will inform students at the start of the semester if there will be a voluntary excursion. Students who participate in voluntary excursions will be expected to pay an individual sum. Students who choose not to participate in the voluntary excursion will be offered an alternative teaching plan.

Compulsory assignments

• Semester test

Recommended previous knowledge

An interest in the role of engineering in the field of architecture, and in engineering design, or more generally, an interest in the influence that technology has in architecture. It will be helpful to have knowledge about building design in the preceding study curriculum, but it is not a requirement.