Architecture Design Electivessemester two, 2010

Bachelor of Architecture

ARCH1040ARCH1041

Balotting occurs on-line at:

http://www.dsc.rmit.edu.au/adballot> go to Architecture section in left menu bar

YOU NEED TO BE ENROLLED TO BALLOT

enquiries: Pia Ednie-Brown, Associate Professor, School of Architecture and Design

RMIT University, pia@rmit.edu.au

Architecturemelbourne.australia architecture.rmit.edu.au

Contents

* SSCC – Mauro Baracco – Monday, 2.30-5.30 - 8.11.46 * Stitching Form – Leanne Zilka – Tuesday 1.30-4.30, bldg 513 level 2 room 12 (Brunswick) * Rainbow – John Warwicker – Friday, 2.30-5.30, 97.2, SIAL presentation space * Greenstar Primer – Paul Minifie – Wednesday, 9.30-12.30, 88.6.14A * Reading, Writing, & Rhetoric – Susan Massey – Wednesday, 9.30-12.30, 10.11.27 * Posthuman Landscapes and Things – Helene Frichot – Thursday, 9.30-12.30, 8.12.38 * Conceptual Photography – Peta Carlin – Monday, 2.30-5.30, 8.11.46 * Rumble in the Jungle – Paul Minifie/Andrew Burrow/Gwyllm Jahn/Andy Song – Monday. 2.30-5.30, 88.5.20 * e-publishing – Tom Kovac/Michael Mei – Thursday, 6.30-9.30pm, 8.11.42 * Digivore – Bennett/Burry – Tuesday, 9.30-12.30, SIAL, bldg 97 * Photography – Hanna Tai – Monday 10am-1pm - 8.12.39 (wks2-8) 8.11.39 computer lab (wks 9-12) * Architecture Handbook Publication – Andrew Ashton, Pip Studio & Co – Thursday, 10-1, 88.5.14/14A

FIRST

YEAR

HAND-

BOOK

Offered to students enrolled in the Bachelor of Architectural Design.Monday afternoons, 2.30 - 5.30 pm Room 8.11.46Coordinated by Mauro Baracco

The SSCC (Student Staff Consultative Committee) elec-tive is a student-organized and facilitated course intended to design and initiate projects that encourage academic and social collaboration between architecture students and staff. The projects and outcomes of the course will be de-termined by the participating students in consultation with the staff advisor and other students who are already part of the SSCC Architecture Committee. Working in teams or small groups, participants will have the opportunity to pro-pose, lead and manage projects that interest them profes-sionally, personally or academically.

While the SSCC Elective course is a one-semester term, the duration of SSCC projects will vary depending on what

SSCC ELECTIVE

GUEST LECTURE SERIES

SSCC INITIATED PROJECTS:

is initiated and how many students are involved. Short-er projects will conclude in one semester while others might be on-going across several terms. Students are encouraged but not required to stay involved with the projects after the semester ends to experience the full project-management process and contribute to it as student representatives of the SSCC Committee. This system also allows the course to have an open struc-ture and broader participation as it continues in the future.

Students will be involved in organizing and managing the following tasks:- Guest Lecture Series- SSCC Website and Blog- More activities with the aim to activate at many levels (cultural, social, aesthetic and educational among oth-ers) forms of relationship between RMIT Architecture students, staff and the wider community.

Architecture+Philosophy: Posthuman Landscapes and ThingsDr Hélène Frichot, Senior Lecturer, Program of Architecture

helene.frichot@rmit.edu.auhttp://architecture.testpattern.com.au

This elective seminar will critically and creatively engage in the thematic of the figure of the posthuman, as well as posthuman landscapes, and ‘things’ (natural and artefactual), in connection with digital and/or (post)digital art and architecture. The aim of this seminar will be to survey some of the theoretical and philosophical underpinnings of (post)digital creative practices, especially where these relate to what can be identified as a new biotechnological paradigm in architecture (and beyond).

The posthuman is not an inhuman subject, nor some monster who exhibits no signs of humanity, instead the posthuman subject is one who has been radically transformed in contact with new technologies and challenging environments. The figure of the posthuman questions the enlightenment myth, which assumes that all knowledge progresses toward a brighter, more rational and efficient future. The posthuman allows us to think an ethics of difference.

Participants will be asked to attach themselves to one posthuman profile and one posthuman urban landscape or architectural environment for the semester, and an-alyse this coupling of organism+environment in depth. In addition, participants will be required to keep archives of design precedents and theoretical essays rel-evant to their organism+environment, which will be regularly updated through-out the semester. The outcome of our investigations will be a posthuman col-ouring-in book, including a series of small essays on the posthuman condition.

Thursdays: 9.30-11.30 in 8.12.38Thursday evenings 6.30-7.30 when Architecture+Philosophy Public Lecture Series events are sched-uled. http://architecture.testpattern.com.auTuesdays: Occasional Afternoons with the Informal Urban Practices collaborative. 88.5.14, from 1.30 (tbc).

THURSDAY6:30 - 9:30 PM8.11.42

TOM KOVACMICHAEL MEI‘Everything in the book intends to be part of a unified mediation on the melancholy of the creative mind’s desperate insistence upon priority.’ Harold Bloom, the Anxiety of Influence.

E-PUBLISHING explores the process of traditional book making and e-book publishing, through issues related to the presentation of architecture projects – via DRAWINGS, DIAGRAMS, TEXT and IMAGES. Using Illustrator, Photoshop and Indesign, the elective explores the technique of layout and presentation in order to develop a system to best describe architecture projects. Student will research successful architecture books, websites, posters and exhibitions, to analyze their strengths and weakness, and develop a prototype for e-publications.

DESIGN LAB:

DIGIVORESIAL ElectiveSemester 2. 2010Tuesday 9.30-12.30.Room: 97.3.02

Taught by:Barnaby Bennett with Mark Burry

Open to Students of:ArchitectureInterior DesignIndustrial DesignFashionLandscape Architecture

This elective will use an exciting live project to investigate cutting edge design issues around space, contemporary medias, and the interface between them.

It will investigate how urban vibrancy, creativity and quality of life canbeenhancedbytheimpactoflocation-specificurbandigitalsocialinformationnetworks and public displays in and on the City of Melbourne.

This is a real project with great project partners. The project looks at taking digital content and anchoring it in the physical world. You will work on the design of a pilot project to digitize the St Ali Sensory Lab café (www.stali.com.au) in the Melbourne David Jones department store with interactive media screens and WiFi network allowing users to post media, stories and events, via an app for smart phones that are locally relevant for other proximate users to consume. Future expansion of this work will include prominent outdoor locations around the city.

Design components involve: advanced interior and spatial design, web presence and interface design, lifestyle and customer experience, communication design, branding.

Imagine just one scenario: Jane is a tourist arriving in the city for a brief visit. Based onherhotellocationandprofile,Jane’sphonegivessuggestionsforwheretogetherfavourite blueberry smoothies. At the café, Jane waves at a digital wall to check out what the locals have been up to and the wall previews a jazz festival venue for that evening. UsingalocalGPS‘insidetrack’historyguideJanetakesinsomesightsanduploadsavideoclipofastreetartist.Atthejazzfestival,Jane’sclipappearsbrieflyonagiantout-door screen, and she gets to choose some other clips to watch. Her comments on the festival introduce her to other jazz fans. Happy, the next day she gets connected up to share a ride back to the airport.

This project is part joint initiatives between SIAL and UrbanAid at the University of Technology Sydney, that includes a development programme with St Ali, the Sonnenreich Corporation, the

Committee for Melbourne, the City of Melbourne, SmartSlab and the Fivex Property Group.

University of Technology, Sydney School of Architecture and Design. RMIT.

RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE

SCRIPTING IN RHINO WITH GRASSHOPPER AND PYTHON

TUTORS: PAUL MINIFIE, GWYLLIM JAHN, WITH ANDREW BURROW (SIAL) AND ANDY SONG (COMPUTER SCIENCE)TIME: MONDAYS 2:30 - 5:30ROOM: 10:11:24 SIAL COMPUTER LAB

Scripting offers a whole new and exciting set of powerful generative design tools.

Students will explore parametric and code-driven design methods for producing responsive, adaptable and fabulously beautiful archi-tectural forms.

Students will work in collaborative research groups with computer science students exploring ideas such as physical form-finding (think Gaudi's string models, Frei Otto's surface and fibre models) flocking and behavioural agent systems, implicit surface models, and a host of other advanced methodologies. Computer science students will develop back-end function libraries, while architecture students will use these libraries in their scripts to tackle design chal-lenges. The kind of models produced will be suitable for cad-cam fabrication. We will focus on the Python and Grasshopper scripting languages for Rhino, but many other softwares will be available for exploration (including Maya).

PREREQUISITES:

This elective is available to Masters students, and Bachelors stu-dents who have completed Communications 3. It assumes a good general knowledge of Rhino.

ASSOCIATED STUDIOS:

Please add a note in the comment section of the online ballot form with the studio name if you are intending to enrol in either of these studios.

X_TREMES INTENSIVE (UPPER POOL STUDIO, TUTOR: TOM KO-VAC ETAL)

THIS ELECTIVE WILL PREPARE STUDENTS FOR THE X_TREMES INTENSIVE STUDIO IN SEPTEMBER. THIS ELECTIVE IS STRONG-LY RECOMMENDED FOR STUDENTS TAKING THAT STUDIO.

THE CITY AND THE CITY (LOWER POOL STUDIO, TUTORS: JES-SICA IN AND PAUL MINIFIE)

THIS ELECTIVE WOULD BE BENEFICIAL FOR STUDENTS DOING THE CITY AND THE CITY STUDIO.

This Elective is intended as a mechanism to produce a First Year Architecture Handbook and strategy for communicating and building the culture of the program. The content and outline for the Handbook have been developed by the SSCC Group of Students, who have indentifi ed the need as a way to welcome and initiate students in to the culture of Architecture at RMIT.

When : Thursday 10am to 1pm

The Elective will be coordinated by Andrew Ashton, Studio Pip and Co –

Born in Sydney Australia, Andrew Ashton graduated from Randwick School of Design in 1989. In 1994 Andrew co-founded design partnership and boutique design studio Nelmes Smith Ashton, which transformed into corporate design practice Precinct Design. After a six month sabbadical In 2002, Andrew left Precinct Design to established boutique communication practice Studio Pip and Co. in 2003. Studio Pip and Co works with no specifi c type of client or industry sector. The studio strives to help clients understand how they can communicate points of difference and connect with their desired audiences with clarity. The studio‘s solutions are developed from research and audience insights, attention to detail and design craft, collaborating with clients and creative partners, to foster productive relationships with inspired and effective outcomes.

visit peoplethings.com often

The Elective will be coordinated by Andrew Ashton, Studio Pip and Co –

Born in Sydney Australia, Andrew Ashton graduated from Randwick School of Design in 1989. In 1994 Andrew co-founded design partnership and boutique design studio Nelmes Smith Ashton, which transformed into corporate design practice Precinct Design. After

SHOCK!PUBLICATION ELECTIVESOLVESPROBLEMS

Students will learn how to use a digital SLR, and how to use camera functions to control the results of their photographs. Hands-on classes will explore the photography basics (aperture, shutter speed, ISO, light direction) and how a combination of these factors can be used to control depth of field, motion blur and image quality. Understanding the vocabulary of photography will also assist in the use of modern render packages which make extensive use of camera attributes.

The second phase of the elective focuses on two themes: intervention and perception. Shooting exercises will focus on the photographic possibilities of documenting objects in different contexts.

Students will also learn how to use Photoshop to import and manipulate images, and to resize and output them for various media, including print and online sharing.

Photography will be used in several ways in the elective: to document and represent, and in processes and presentation. Classes will be a

BACHELOR STUDENTS CLASS*Classes commence W2 Monday 26 July*

Architecture Design ElectiveSemester 2, 2010

12 credit points

Tutor: Hanna TaiTime: Mondays, 10am-1pm

Location: 8.12.39

combination of practice and theory. Students will engage in regular feedback sessions, as well as the critical examination of work by photographers, artists and designers.

Ideas and images will be developed throughout the semester, contributing towards the creation of a major photography project for final assessment.

PHOTOGRAPHYUse a digital SLR to generate images and ideas.

CONCEPTUAL PHOTOGRAPHYDuring the 1960’s, photography was employed by a range of artists who were not formally trained as photographers, the camera enabling them to devise & implement photographic strategies, which would challenge the status quo. Through photography, Bruce Naumann, for example, questioned the nature of sculpture & the performative role of the body in his ‘Self-Portrait as Fountain’ (1966-1967/70); Giulio Paolini in his ‘Delfo’ (1965), contested the limits of painting, its material constructs & the activity of the artist; & Mel Bochner, in ‘Surface Deformation/Crumple’ (1967) confronted the concept of the photographic surface & the construction & depiction of pictorial space. In each of these instances, the idea, a conceptual proposition, was central to artist’s investigations in the critiquing of the limits of genres & institutions. This project-based Communications Elective seeks to familiarise students with some of the practices of conceptual photography, & its potential to challenge architectural norms, and exists as a complement to the Photograhy elective.

OBJECTIVES / LEARNING OUTCOMES- knowledge of a selection of photographers who have influenced architecture, art & design- the ability to examine images, texts and spaces in context, reflect on them, intelligently assess accepted interpretations of the material & develop sophisticated responses- the ability to analyse problems from a number of disciplines & arrive at appropriate architectural solutions - the ability to communicate effectively in person & via architectural representation - the ability to access a range of publishing & art databases, and bibliographic sources and to catalogue and present them appropriately

On completion of this course a student will be able to demonstrate: 1. an introductory knowledge of a selection of the influential photographers & their practices 2. a critical understanding of selected influential photographic theories relevant to the representation of design outcomes3. an appreciation of the relationship between photography & architecture, & the role that architecture plays in the context of broader critical & cultural concerns4. an ability to critically engage with architecture/photography projects & to develop challenging responses5. written, graphic & verbal communication skills adequate to communicate the above. 6. research & organisational skills adequate to the complete the above.

A Communications Elective with Peta CarlinTime: Monday, 2.30-5.30 pmRoom: 8:11:51

A Green* PrimerAffordable, Sustainable, Multi-Unit Housing

The design of sustainable, affordable housing is an in-creasingly pressing matter. Not only does it require con-siderable architectural thought and innovation, but finding solutions is likely to become a significant part of Architect’s future bread and butter.

One approach to achieving sustainability is through the holistic ‘Star Rating’ tools provided by the Green Building Council of Australia. www.gbca.org.au The green building council have recently published the ‘Multi Unit Residential v1 Environmental Rating Tool’, which will enable star rat-ings to be given to multiple residential buildings.

Rob Adams, at the city of Melbourne, has recently pub-lished an essay which discusses the densification of Mel-bourne focusing on sites along existing transport routes. http://tinyurl.com/mf6abh

Alejandro Zaera-Polo from Foreign Office Architects, dis-cussed sustainability as not only an environmental impera-tive, but one of the most significant drivers of architectural innovation and formal opportunity.

This elective will focus on understanding the GreenStar framework and it’s application to a multiple residential housing development on an inner urban site.

Students will work in teams to understand the constraints and opportunities of the greenstar framework in some detail. Using this understanding, students will prepare a schematic design for an affordable apartment building that could achieve a 5-star rating under the scheme.

Although there will be significant quantity of conceptual and technical content to this elective, the intended out-come is to provide a speculative vision of how our city may be sustainably transformed.

There will be input from various environmental profession-als, including Glenn Alman, environmental engineer at Wood and Grieve, Jim Minifie, Chief Economist at Boston Consulting Group, and others.

Subject: ElectiveTutor: Paul Minifie and FriendsRoom: TBCTime: Wednesday 9:30 - 12:30

CULTURAL FIGHT CLUBEVERY WEEK!

RENE DESCARTES vs KRAFTWERK

AFRIKA BAAMBAATA vs REM KOOLHASS

ORNETTE COLEMAN vs PETER ZUMTHOR

AND A 3-WAY BOUT BETWEEN ... GEORGES PEREC vs EDGAR VARESE vs

CO-OP HIMMELBLAU

THE GENERATION & PRESENTATION OF IDEAS – AESTHETICS • (GRAPHIC) DESIGN • STRATEGIC THINKING AND RESPONSES• TYPOGRAPHY • PHILOSOPHY • SCULPTURAL FORM •WRITING / NOTATION • CULTURAL ALCHEMY • PUBLISHING ... EXPLORED AND MADE THROUGH 3-D, FILM, PRINT, ELECTRONIC AND SONIC MEDIA ...

Reading, Writing, & Rhetoric + Building Provocations for a Rote Relat ionship

[Tschumi] proposes a critique of the limits of architectural thought and space through the transgressive act of finding pleasure and beauty in the rotting corpse of Modernism’s first born. ”

—Renata Hejduk. Death Becomes Her: transgression, decay, and eROTicism in Bernard Tschumi’s early writing and projects. Journal of architecture, 2007 Sept., v.12, n.4, p.395

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In the last several years, studios have become influenced by literary theory (Roland Barthes’s The Death of the Author, Italo Calvino’s Invisible Cities, Jorge Luis Borges’ “On Exactitude in Science”) and there has been increased engagement with fictional constructs as springboards for the imagination. But, in addition to the translation of sites from literature, and the interpreting and re-appropriation of existing narratives, writing is poised to be a function of design rather than just a framework for it. As such, this elective will explore reading, writing, and rhetoric within theory proper and without, as a means and as an end, from the notational to the annotated, questioning the relationship of each to the building, the process, the practice, and the discipline.

*

*As a theory practicum, this course will be comprised of lectures, discussions, and a workshop aimed at developing textual or narrative critique or expression (through presentation/ representation) and will allow you to synthesize your design coursework with the seminar’s assignments. Major Project students may find this course especially beneficial as they frame their engagement with an architectural condition as part of the design process.

Tschumi on Corbusier’s Villa Savoy

Semester 2,1020Wed. 9:30-12:30

10.11.27Susan Massey

is a visiting Fulbright

scholar with a background in design and history/theory

design research.