4.297
Special Problems in Architecture Studies—
Precedents in Critical Practice
Instructor: Ana Miljaki
Phone: 617-452-2023
miljacki@mit.edu
Units: 3-0-6
Level: H
Prerequisites: Permission of the Instructor
The objective of this seminar is to produce a map of contemporary architectural practice and to develop tools for scrutinizing that map, through formal reading, an understanding of (and speculations on) popular culture and politics, and by using our general grasp of the recent history of architectural thinking.
The seminar will open by examining several collective attempts at theorizing the current situation in architectural discourse, published recently in Hunch, Log, the last issue of Assemblage, and in the Harvard Design Magazine. Drawing out the most salient themes from these, the course will be
structured in terms of 6 headings, or rather, 6 coupled themes: City –> Global Economy, Urban Plan –> Map of Operations, Program –> Performance (Relations, Effects, Atmospheres), Drawing –> Scripting, Image –> Surface, Utopia –> Projection. These will each be examined in terms of the recent history of the coupled subjects – as topics that are in the process of definition, rather than as singularly defined themes.
In order to set up each topic we will consider a combination of texts and recent architectural work. A map of contemporary practice and discourse will emerge as the course unfolds and as our terms/themes accumulate, allowing us to consider certain works through a variety of lenses and forcing us to invent new lenses to accommodate relationships that will inevitably emerge from the course. We will dedicate a large portion of our time to situating projects within a disciplinary and cultural context, which will directly involve
formal reading of buildings in conjunction with the reading of relevant texts.
STRUCTURE:
Each of the six themes for the course will be developed over a period of two weeks. Each class will begin with a lecture/presentation by the instructor of the contemporary writings outlining the topic of the debate (and some of its earlier variations) and a presentation of architectural work. The second portion of the class will be devoted to student presentations assigned for that meeting, followed by an open discussion intended to question the issues and topics introduced in that session.
REQUIREMENTS:
- attending the weekly seminar session
- completing all readings in time for respective class discussions,
- producing one question weekly (due before the class)
- delivering two 30 min. presentations over the course of the term (each presentation will deal with a specific theme or body of work chosen in a short discussion with the instructor),
- producing a visual dossier on a theme, or body of work, that is of a particular interest to the student, which has to include a critical analysis/text of 1000-2000 words. The final form of this “deliverable” will be determined in a conversation with the instructor.
BASIS FOR THE GRADE:
- class presentations (and handouts) in pairs (or groups of 3)
- contribution to class discussions
- the visual dossier
WEEKLY READINGS:
All the required readings will be available on the Stellar course site as pdf files.. Also, all the books I am recommending you peruse will be available on reserve at the libraryDownload the Course Description and Syllabus
