Through the analysis -verbal and diagrammatic- of a work created within the fields/symbolic media of architecture, visual and performing arts, literature, cinema etc, the students are asked to design a piece of clothing or rather a full scale prototype structure to enfold their body with.
Our intention is to explore intrinsic properties of the architectural design process given the thesis that:
1) A work of architecture and spatial meaning is constructed through dense cross-modal design operations. Translating works across different symbolic media helps us to first,identify their similarities, the common ‘areas’, where transference of meaning takes place; secondly we can better study and define the distinct properties of every medium and therefore develop clearer definitions of architectural forms and architectural design.
2) Clothes provide an excellent model for the exploration of the relationship between the body and its immediate spatial environment. Aspects of spatial intimacy and self identity are also taken into account.
3) Architectural forms are mainly explored through their fundamental property: configuring human performativity.
Throughout the course, we intend to open issues related to the technical and aesthetic characteristics of the design object, of architectural forms, given the fact that architecture intertwines with other symbolic media –the arts- their history and theory, by transferring symbolic meaning, and contrasts with them due to its technical nature, by being used.
We focus on this contradictory ground in order to develop a better understanding of the most distinct property of architecture: constructing relationships among human subjects in space. [Official Journal of the European Union, L 255/47, Architectural Education, points 1,2,3,5]
Baxandall, Michael,Patterns of Intention: On the Historical Explanation of Pictures, New Haven, Yale University Press, 1985.
Goodman, Nelson,Languages of Art: An Approach to a Theory of Symbols, Indianapolis, Hackett Publishing Company, 1976.
Peponis John, Spatial construction of meaning: four papers – Formulation, in The Journal of Architecture, Volume 10, April 2005