Architectural AssociationIntermediate 6

2007 2008

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How can the latent qualities of building fabric affect our inhabitation, behaviour or perception ofspace? How can we expect the unexpected, pre-empt spatial effects or phenomena that areotherwise hidden, fleeting? We will examine the tectonic potential of materials throughexperimentation, construction and invention. We will also study the inherent characteristics ofspaces and their surface, topological and organisational properties. The unit will focus onmeasures to comprehend, re-describe and propagate these qualities on their own terms, so asto develop a self-regulating process where an architectural language takes on a life of its own.

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We will investigate the tailoring of spaces through their effects upon movement, light, hierarchyand comfort via processes of folding, cutting, wrapping, variegation, lamination etc. Emphasis willbe given to the deformation and mutation of spatial models and the iterative development ofpatterns and taxonomies. Specialist workshops will focus upon the exploration of buildingfabric, adapting to changes in condition, scale and task.

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Ukiyo-e, fictional representations made famous by Hokusai and Hiroshige each capturedselective, fleeting parameters from the real world. The images depicted extreme social andeconomic transformations through cultural happenings and changing habitats. Using this analogythe unit will travel to Tokyo, Japan where we will explore the extremities of the city and drawout their narratives, at the intersection of the real and fictional. We will examine the intensive,interwoven topological and programmatic conditions of Shibuya alongside the expandingterritory of boutique architecture in Omotesando and Ginza. Analysis will extend to thedispersed organisational field of Harajuku, the large-scale infrastructure of Shinjuku and thevertical complexity of Akihabara.

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Propositions will be formulated for the re-evaluation of a mixture of uses within a complexarmature between road and rail infrastructure in London. Working both at a strategic level andthe scale of inhabitation the unit will operate both individually and as a collective. Using exquisitecorpse methodology, contributions will manifest themselves into a series of strategicpotentialities from which individual propositions will evolve.

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A specific instrumentation will be developed in order to reveal latent site qualities- the ghoststhat cannot be captured on film. The unit will develop mapping techniques, plotting doublesignals and tracing site conditions to create alternate readings. We will invent ‘ghost writers’ toguide our hands and initiate architectural responses that will redefine the process ofconstruction. Through consideration of material properties and spatial criteria we will crystallisecritical realisations with hidden characteristics that emerge at an unexpected moment.

Left: Transmission Towers downed by freezing rain, Quebec, 1998

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The first part of the term will focus upon the development of an individual spatial and materialvocabulary, initiated by the translation of Ukiyo-e (images of the floating world) into bothsurface and volumetric constructs.

Can materials think? The latent properties of chosen materials will be explored via a series ofoperations and techniques, resulting in the iterative development of physical models withspecific volumetric, topological and tactile qualities. Emphasis will be given to production andexperimentation via both surface and solid constructs and the introduction of composites. Theadvent of deformations and mutations may occur via both controlled (folding, laminating, carvingetc.) and uncontrolled (casting, evacuating, melting, splitting etc.) processes. Photography will beused to record, reveal and clarify these specific characteristics and deviations.

Week1 1-5th October� Student interviews and registration� 06.10 First unit meeting and introduction to Project No.1- Paper

Week 2 8th-12th October� 09.10 Tutorials JD� 12.10 Pin-up JD/DB, review and debrief. Introduction to Project No.2- Stone

Week 3 15th-19th October� 16.10 Tutorials JD� 19.10 Tutorials JD/DB

Week 4 22nd-26th October� 23.10 Tutorials JD� 26.10 Pin Up JD/DB plus guests, review and debrief. Introduction to Project No.3-

Scissors

Week 5 29th-2nd November� 30.10 Tutorials JD� 02.11 Tutorials JD/DB

Week 6 5th-9th November (Open Week)� 06.11 Tutorials JD� 09.11 Presentation Projects 1-3 JD/DB plus guests. Introduction to Project No.4- Room

Left: Crack & Warp column, David Nash

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The second phase of the term will focus upon the potential for inhabitation via a criticalevaluation of initial constructs and an assessment of their tactile, perceptual and organisationalcharacteristics.

Sectional, axonometric and exploded drawings are constructions in their own right.Representational techniques will be tailored to accommodate and reveal hidden aspects andcriteria as each student develops bespoke ways in which to frame and plot tactile, morphologicalor organisational criteria. Patterns that emerge may be re-described and their definitionsexplored.

Workshops relating to patternmaking and digital collage will provoke a questioning andcrystallisation of initial thoughts about scale, perception and orientation.

A reinstatement of specific qualities will be articulated within a ‘room’ project, to begin torealise potential scale(s) of occupation through their interpretation. Each student will develop afragment at the scale of inhabitation both through physical & digital exploratory models.

Week 7 12th-16th November� 13.11 Tutorials JD- review of projects 1-3. Seminar ‘Inhabitation’.� 16.11 Workshop JD/DB and guests.

Week 8 19th-23rd November� 20.11 Tutorials JD� 23.11 Workshop- Collage Room- JD/DB

Week 9 26th-30th November� 26.11 Tutorials JD� 29.11 Tutorials JD/DB

Week 10 3rd-7th December� 03.12 Tutorials JD� 07.11 End of Term Review Presentation Projects 1-4 JD/DB plus guests.

Above: Map of Las Vegas Strip (detail)- Robert Venturi/ Denise Scott Brown

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Week 11 10th-14th December + Week 12 17th-21st December

The unit will travel to Tokyo, Japan. Focusing upon several specific localities, each student willinvestigate situations analogous to their earlier material, spatial, topological and organisationalconcerns, immersed within the wider scale and complexity of the city.

Research will manifest itself via an extensive series of individual mappings and notations,diagrams, and three-dimensional model representations. The task will be to unravel, record andredefine latent qualities, intensities and patterns relating to built fabric and its occupation. Thiswill reveal different scales of operations, the relationship with infrastructure, open space,mixtures of programmes, temporal issues etc.

Above: Instruction-based drawings- Sol Lewitt

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Following a review of the Tokyo research, the second term will focus upon the development ofcollective site research and strategies for a site in Kings Cross. The site for proposedintervention is a prominent urban block, peripheral to the territory of the Kings Cross CentralMaster plan. The group will focus upon the investigation of the physical locality, site qualities andan evaluation of policy before publishing a comprehensive site research document reflectingtheir findings.An exquisite corpse workshop will yield unexpected group strategies and form a loose series ofstrategic concerns that will be developed by unit clusters. This work will also form an appendixto the site research publication and a starting point for individual propositions.

Week 1 7th-11th January� 07.01 Tutorials JD� 11.01 Review of Tokyo Research JD/DB plus guests.

Week 2 14th-18th January� 15.01 Introduction of Site Research Brief JD. Seminar ‘Mapping’� 18.01 Group Tutorials JD/DB.

Week 3 21st-25th January� 22.01 Group Tutorials JD.� 25.01 Pin-up/ Progress + Group Tutorials JD/DB.

Week 4 28th-1st February� 29.01 Group Tutorials JD.� 01.02 Strategic Workshop JD/DB.

Week 5 4th-8th February� 04.02 Group Tutorials JD.� 08.02 Pin-up/ Progress of Strategies + Group Tutorials JD/DB.

Week 6 11th-15th February (Open Week)� 12.02 Group Tutorials JD.� 15.02 Group Presentations of site research, group publications JD/DB + guests

Week 7 18th-22nd February� 19.02 Introduce Project 7- Proposal JD/DB� 22.02 Individual Tutorials JD

Left: Study models, SANAA

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The final phase of the year focuses upon individual propositions. Each student will develop abrief positioned within the physical, social and political framework of the site. An individualstrategy will evolve from collective proposals and may also reflect earlier concerns within Tokyoresearch. Workshops early on in the last phase will focus on production through the translationof strategies into the development of skins, surfaces, patterns or layers. The evolution of apattern may allow individual elements to respond or adapt to local site conditions, creatingghosts of the parent original.

Week 8 25th-29th February� 26.02 Individual Tutorials JD� 29.02 Workshop- (Non) Repetitive Pattern- JD/DB + Guests

Week 9 3rd-7th March� 04.03 Technical Tutorials- Development of Strategy JD/ SA� 07.03 Tutorials JD/DB.�

Week 10 10th-14th March� 10.03 Individual Tutorials JD� 14.03 End of Term Review JD/DB + Guests

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Within the final term a number of pin-ups will focus upon individual drawings in order to refinethe organisation and structuring of each individual portfolio.

Left: Extract from Architecture Principe,Claude Parent/ Paul Virilio

The objective will be to develop a scheme from strategy to detail, developing initial spatial,material and organisational approaches. Incorporating the final stage of technical studies, eachstudent will produce material fragments, both drawn and modelled, at a variety of suitablescales. Each will redefine tectonic fabric in relation to technical concerns alongside the inter-articulation of specific spatial, topological and programmatic characteristics.

Week 1 14th-18th April� 15.04 Review JD/DB + Guests� 16.04 Tutorials JD/DB

Week 2 21st-25th April� 22.04 Inter Previews JD/DB� 23.04 Inter Previews JD/DB

Week 3 28th April-02nd May� 29.04 Technical Tutorials JD/SA� 02.05 Tutorials JD/DB

Week 4 5th –9th May� 06.05 Technical Studies Interim Review JD/ SA� 09.05 Review- 1:100 Ground Plan JD/DB + guests

Week 5 12th –16th May� 13.05 Tutorials JD� 16.05 Review- Axonometric/ Exploded/ 3d Drawing JD/DB + guests

Week 6 19th –23rd May� 20.05 Tutorials JD + TS Final Submission� 23.05 Review-1:20 Section JD/DB + guests

Week 7 26th –30th May� 27.05 Tutorials JD� 16.05 Tutorials JD/DB

Week 8 2nd –6th June Intermediate Jury Week� 03.06 Tutorials JD� 06.06 Final Jury JD/DB + Guests

Week 9 9th –13th June� 03.06 Tutorials JD� 06.05 Tutorials JD/DB

Week 10 16th –20th June� 16.06 2nd year End of Year reviews JD/ DB� 20.06 3rd year Tutorials JD/ Exhibition meeting/ building

Week 11 23rd –27th June� 23.06 Intermediate (Part 1) Final Check JD/DB� 24.06 Intermediate (Part 1) Final Check JD/DB

Week 12 30th June– 4th July� 01.07 Intermediate (Part 1) External Examination JD� 04.07 Opening of Exhibition

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Unit Master: Jonathan Dawes BSc(Hons) AA Dip ARB

Unit Tutor: Dagobert Bergmans Ir.

Visiting Critic: Ellis Woodman, Buildings Editor, Building Design Magazine

Technical Consultant: Scobie Alvis- Technical Director, Structures, Hyder Consulting

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Repetitive Pattern/ Building skin: Drusilla Cole, Author ‘Patterns- New Surface Design’

Tokyo Workshop: Yuji Fukui- Tokyo Geidai University, Ueno, Tokyo

Patternmaking Workshop: Bora Aksu, Fashion Designer

Site Strategic Workshop: Unit Staff & Guests