 |
| Material Structure Workshop: LGA France |
Thesis Studio
2003-2007
Shotton, de Paor, Campbell
Technical Intuition
abstract of presentation to EAAE 2004 " Intuition and concepts constitute, therefore, the elements of all our knowledge, so that neither concepts without an intuition in some way corresponding to them, nor intuition without concepts, can yield knowledge… thoughts without content are empty, intuitions without concepts are blind" Kant, Critique of Pure Reason
 |
| Design studies 2004 |
The structure of the final thesis year at University College Dublin has been in a state of reappraisal and transition for a number of years. The primary objective of defining a position within the broader architectural discourse and its translation to architectural form has been consistent throughout but a more recent objective regarding the material authority in the development of the project has occupied our thinking for the past few years. The current structure of the final year is a slight recalibration of the previous model, extracting for reuse the most positive components and adding additional layers which specifically address the ideas of research, the individual polemic and the thorough investigation and translation of the polemic to material form. The objective was to make explicit the material imperatives of architecture and its impact on the conceptual formation of the design.
The counterpoint position we have hoped to inspire would be an approach which recognized these material imperatives as inspiration in conceptual thinking. What has become clear in these experiments is that the positioning of the influence these material imperatives have in the conceptual framework of the design process is critical and that the students needed to develop an attitude regarding these issues, informed by their specific thesis intention, prior to the schematic design phase. This approach could enable the students to develop strategic design skills, in fact to use these issues as strategic initiatives in formulating a more precise definition of the polemic which they were to test in their thesis project. Implied in this conclusion is that this initial phase of thesis definition, of research, is in some measure the rational side of design where issues are confronted, be they theoretical, social, material or contextual, and carefully analyzed as to content and relevance. In contrast the design process itself is, in the best case, an intuitive process responding to a latent or unconscious understanding of related issues with its success being wholly dependent on the depth of prior analysis. In principle then we have aimed to strengthen the reasoned, analytical framework of the research portion of the thesis in an effort to underpin and liberate the intuitive design process to follow.
This restructuring has been based on a sequence of research workshops loosely described as; thesis; precedent study; environment and economy; material and structure; context and brief. These workshops are used as instigations for students to research these imperatives relative to their thesis intention through both reading and small design studies. The intention is to both deepen and broaden the polemic as well as to equip students with strategic design skills which can be brought forward to their primary design study in the following term.
The success of the year structure has become apparent in the results achieved which bear directly on the students attitudes towards material issues in their future role as practitioners. Rather than teach specifics regarding technological knowledge we have invested the students with a critical attitude toward their relevance in the creative design process which provokes a continual pattern of research and experimentation.
The lessons gained from this work is now being formulated within the 4th year of the programme through a new course called Design Technologies, involving both architectural and engineering staff, which will address themes on material relevance and performance analysis both through lectures and, more significantly, through direct interface with the design studio.
As the years progressed, after this was written, the workshops became central to the development of each student's work - though the workshops were organized as team projects, each student was able to extract lessons and attitudes toward environmental or material issues which would surface in later design studies, as becomes apparent in a review of individual work and group workshops below.
The counterpoint position we have hoped to inspire would be an approach which recognized these material imperatives as inspiration in conceptual thinking. What has become clear in these experiments is that the positioning of the influence these material imperatives have in the conceptual framework of the design process is critical and that the students needed to develop an attitude regarding these issues, informed by their specific thesis intention, prior to the schematic design phase. This approach could enable the students to develop strategic design skills, in fact to use these issues as strategic initiatives in formulating a more precise definition of the polemic which they were to test in their thesis project. Implied in this conclusion is that this initial phase of thesis definition, of research, is in some measure the rational side of design where issues are confronted, be they theoretical, social, material or contextual, and carefully analyzed as to content and relevance. In contrast the design process itself is, in the best case, an intuitive process responding to a latent or unconscious understanding of related issues with its success being wholly dependent on the depth of prior analysis. In principle then we have aimed to strengthen the reasoned, analytical framework of the research portion of the thesis in an effort to underpin and liberate the intuitive design process to follow.
This restructuring has been based on a sequence of research workshops loosely described as; thesis; precedent study; environment and economy; material and structure; context and brief. These workshops are used as instigations for students to research these imperatives relative to their thesis intention through both reading and small design studies. The intention is to both deepen and broaden the polemic as well as to equip students with strategic design skills which can be brought forward to their primary design study in the following term.
The success of the year structure has become apparent in the results achieved which bear directly on the students attitudes towards material issues in their future role as practitioners. Rather than teach specifics regarding technological knowledge we have invested the students with a critical attitude toward their relevance in the creative design process which provokes a continual pattern of research and experimentation.
The lessons gained from this work is now being formulated within the 4th year of the programme through a new course called Design Technologies, involving both architectural and engineering staff, which will address themes on material relevance and performance analysis both through lectures and, more significantly, through direct interface with the design studio.
As the years progressed, after this was written, the workshops became central to the development of each student's work - though the workshops were organized as team projects, each student was able to extract lessons and attitudes toward environmental or material issues which would surface in later design studies, as becomes apparent in a review of individual work and group workshops below.
No comments:
Post a Comment