Technology-based Design – Technology and Architecture Studio

The studio examines contemporary design and manufacturing technologies in the implementation of architectural design at varying scales. Our students examine the impact of technological developments on architectural and cultural issues, and their expression in an architectural language.

Possible topics for working in the studio are many and varied. They range from: algorithm-based parametric design, historical developments, industrial processes, and patterns in the development of societies, cultures and urban forms, and more. While the subjects are diverse, all share an affinity for technology and use its capabilities to shape society and space. Parametric design is just one expression of technology and can be used by students in creating new design tools whether on an urban scale or on an architectural scale.

The studio's moderators will lead the students through the definition of the subject and the development of the research question, establishing the selected topic in the broad theoretical context, analyzing topics such tectonics and materiality related to the subject, and exploring the potential for spatial discovery and expression.

The Course Process

Students are asked to arrive at the beginning of the year with an idea about an issue or an architectural challenge in which they would like to engage. The freedom in choosing the subject is absolute but the choice must correspond to the course of research and methodology of the development of the project’s thesis. The first semester is dedicated to research that proceeds at the theoretical level along with an architecturally based research and planning. In the second semester, the emphasis is placed on a tangible architectural project where architectural research provides a basis for methodological planning with which the students plan exciting and meaningful architectural work.