Integrated Research Seminar: Urban Information and Architectural Design

The aim of our course is to train our students in the professional use of urban information systems, to guide them in their analysis of the acquired material and to encourage them to transfer their findings to their architectural design studio. Each student is free to choose an urban plot within Zurich for the analysis. For the first time at the Dept. of Architecture, the seminar will combine these three aspects – information, analysis and design – in an integrated learning environment.

In the first part, the «information part», we introduce our students to the use of professional urban information systems. The course is based on a collaboration with four municipal agencies in Zurich: GIS-Kompetenzzentrum (centre for digital geographic information system), Baugeschichtliches Archiv (archive for building history), Hochbauamt Planarchiv (archive of the architecture department) and Tiefbauamt Planarchiv (archive of the civil engineering department). Each of the four government agencies will give lecture inputs and then support our students in their research.

In the second part, the «analysis part», our students are encouraged to find innovative ways of interpreting the acquired materials, and to study their selected cases on four successive scales: urban structure (1:10’000), urban space (1:2’000), architecture (1:500) and urban detail (1:100).

In the third step, the collaboration with the architectural design course of Prof. Adam Caruso, we are curious to test innovative ways in supporting our students to transfer their findings to the design studio. The setup of an integrated learning environment in the studio is fundamental in our aim to link analysis and design.

The project is planned for a pilot phase of two semesters. The output of the project will be a step by step tutorial on the acquisition of urban information, a documentation of the students› case studies and furthermore the fundamentals for a course that shall be permanently established in the curriculum of the department.

• The students could come in contact with city information authorities and use their findings in the architectural design
• Through the teaching setting in the design studio, the students could learn to break the strict schism between research and design

In this teaching format, research becomes part of the design.

Prior to the seminar, all involved candidates have to be carefully briefed, that the aim of the seminar is to break up the usual separation of research and design by all means.

Very practical skills.
The format shows, how research can be “helpful” in the design process.

• The separation between research and design is culturally very strong.
• To bring theory (spacially) into the design studio is a very important step.
• Less lecturing, insead: Involving the students into a group discourse by asking carefully aimed questions.