Course syllabus
Course-PM
ARK177 Design systems lp3 VT22 (4.5 hp)
Course is offered by the department of Architecture and Civil Engineering
Contact details
Examiner
Meta Berghauser Pont, meta.berghauserpont@chalmers.se
Teachers
Ioanna Stavroulaki, gianna.stavroulaki@chalmers.se
Lars Marcus, lars.marcus@chalmers.se
Meta Berghauser Pont, meta.berghauserpont@chalmers.se
Student representatives
Bim Byström, Hiltja Harmuth, Bongkodpast Tantipisanu (Mimi), Chi-Hua Liu, Yuren Chen
Course purpose
Buildings, neighbourhoods and cities are, besides local things, especially elements in an intertwined urban system. The components of a system are connected through networks. These are partly physical networks, such as rivers, roads, and railroads, but also include more abstract layers of social and economic networks. How cities are used, how they grow and change depends on the interaction between these networks. This might seem very complex and difficult to grasp, but if we remain close to the role of the architect in these matters, it comes down to better understanding ‘location’.
Location creates opportunities for activities dependent on its position in the system. Urban activities such as workplaces, services, and housing, are to a large extent dependent on access to other activities and especially how this access is mediated through physical (transportation) networks. This can be described through accessibility in terms of both proximity and centrality which in turn can be used to discuss issues of co-presence, patterns of interaction and spatial inequality.
The purpose of the course is to gain a deeper understanding of the concept of 'location' and how it provides opportunities for activities depending on its position in the system, models are used. Such models can be either conceptual or also involve mathematical and algorithmic aspects that reveal the system dimension of location. In the course, we will use conceptual models to be able to describe location from a system perspective and to be able to engage with question about accessibility in terms of both proximity, visibility and centrality which in turn can be used to discuss issues of co-presence, patterns of human interaction and spatial inequality. The course is explorative and uses research by design to investigate how system thinking can be used in a design context.
Schedule
Course literature
See Course description (PDF)
Course design
The course consists of lectures and seminars/workshops through which a variety of theories and methods in the field of systems thinking are presented, tested, and discussed. It includes weekly assignments where concepts are introduced and discussed in spatial terms to enable design explorations. We will work on three scales: city, neighbourhood and building scale. At city scale, we discuss how the location of urban activities affect society. At neighbourhood scale, the focus shifts to patterns of movement and for the building scale, we discuss human interaction in public buildings.
Each week starts with the identification of location qualities where we distinct local qualities and contextual qualities. In the next step, we will dig deeper to understand the system effects and discuss tools for intervention. This will then be used to propose intervention in the system to change location.
Changes made since the last occasion
A new examiner is assigned for the course and the content of the course is more focusing on the spatial dimension of design systems.
Learning objectives and syllabus
After the course you should be able to:
1) Understand system effects, the role of networks in systems, and its relevance for architecture.
2) Discuss accessibility in terms of both proximity and centrality and how this can be used to discuss issues of co-presence, patterns of human interaction and spatial inequality.
3) Apply the understanding of system effects in a design context.
Examination form
Every week a presentation is given of the week's exercises and a simple report is compiled. At the end of the course, these three reports made for each week are compiled in one PDF including an overall reflection on the learning outcomes of this week that is handed in on Canvas.
The grade is a weighted average of the following aspects:
- Results: the result of the exercises for each week compiled in one final report (including all exercises)
- Communication and presentation (orally and in written form including illustrations)
- Attendance: less than 70% attendance pulls down the grade
- Attitude: active participation during the seminars