Architecture

The class focuses on learning how to look at and to analyze Egyptian art and to place it in its historical, artistic, and cultural context. It focuses on Egyptian art from the end of the Middle Kingdom into the Ptolemaic Period (a review of earlier periods is provided) and includes: modes of representation, role of Egyptian art, reliefs, statuary, architecture, and minor arts, illustrated with images. Elements of Egyptian art that have influenced modern art are also discussed. This course involves a certain amount of memorization, which improves students’ memory capacity, so that each student has a "database" of images and can use it to situate monuments and artifacts within Egyptian history, as well as to develop visual awareness and memory. There is a focus on oral and written communication. Field trips include the Cairo Museum and pyramid sites such as Sakkara and Dahshur.

This course examines architectural history and theory. It includes a concise chronological survey of key periods of architectural history from antiquity to the mid-nineteenth century, as well as closer investigation of some particular architectural themes and ideas across history. Students will interrogate these themes through intense study of significant buildings, which they will research, document, and analyze. They will be introduced to fundamental principles and skills of scholarly research in the discipline, including locating and evaluating sources, and constructing arguments.

Tracing the development of modernity in western architecture, this course examines a series of movements and cities from the mid-18th century to the present. Major examples include Neoclassicism in Washington, D.C., Haussmann’s renovation of Paris, colonialism in Hong Kong and Shanghai, skyscrapers in Chicago and New York, and the international spread of Modernism and the diverse movements that have followed it. Emphasis is placed on construction technology, architectural theory, and the way buildings express institutional ideologies. Tutorials include visits to local buildings.

This course examines how the basic physical and cognitive principles (ergonomics, heuristics, human-centredness) are incorporated in successful designs across a wide variety of different sectors.

This course introduces the basic theories, design, and evaluation techniques required in future architectural practice, focusing on thermal environmental factors.   

The field of architectural environment refers to the technical area that deals with the physical performance of buildings, which must be considered throughout the process of producing architectural structures. The physical performance of a building depends on the spatial elements, thermal/light/sound environment factors, indoor air quality factors, and the architect's knowledge and experience related to the integration of these elements. 

The course prepares students to create comfortable indoor environments, as well as to design environmentally friendly and energy-efficient buildings. This course covers architectural sustainability, environmental control and passive design in architecture, and the basic principles and performance evaluation methods for building environmental systems: heating, cooling, lighting, and energy. 

This course examines the relationship between the behavior of materials, its nature and the fabrication process. It covers the theoretical and practical knowledge of chemistry, physics, mechanical and technological properties of materials most used in construction. Topics include the knowledge of properties and characteristics of materials, the right way materials must be used, how to preserve these materials, and the constructions where they have been used, develop the right criteria in order to a proper selection of materials, and the technical legislation dealing with these materials.

In this course, students gain the knowledge and the abilities needed for solving more difficult constructive solutions. Topics include the constructive invariants needed for developing constructive solutions with a higher complexity level, the common singular sections for the different constructive techniques considered out from the basic construction, and constructive solutions by using the current building regulations. The course includes a strong design approach and at the conclusion of the course, students design a building from the construction point of view. The course requires background knowledge in basic constructive systems, constructive materials, and technology. 

This course examines the technological properties and behavior models of concrete, steel rebars and steel tendons, both individually and globally, to resist mechanical and chemical actions. Students learn to understand and apply the European standard (EUROCODE 2, EN-1992) for the design and construction of reinforced and prestressed concrete structures. Additional topics include the different structural analysis methods for concrete structures according to European standard, competence in the project, design construction and maintenance of reinforced concrete structures of moderate complexity, and the behavior and design of statically determinate prestressed concrete members with pre-tensioned tendons, and of the materials and construction systems involved. This course requires students to have prerequisites and background knowledge.

This course covers the overall product design process and context, addressing general concepts of design history and methodology and the fundamentals of user-centric design and sustainability. The class requires a basic design product as a final project. No prior knowledge of design is required. 

The course covers the following topics: 

• Products and their artificial environment: functional history of the industrial product; linking design project with small and medium-sized enterprises, crafts, artisanal communities, production lines, and their role in added value.
• Design Process: methods and their scope; User-Centered Design (UCD); sustainability
• The Language of Form: Form, function and manufacturing; form, function, and expression; 2D Idea Development
• Value Proposition and Validation
• Comprehensive Product Communication

Taught by numerous site visits to historic buildings alongside lectures and seminars, this course introduces students to the study of architecture by exploring buildings in the London area from the start of the 17th century to the accession of Queen Victoria in 1837. During the course, students witness London burn to the ground, be comprehensively rebuilt, and then expand from a small European capital into the largest city in the world. Along the way, students encounter a wide variety of buildings including cathedrals, palaces, churches, synagogues, breweries, shops, and hospitals. Students acquire skills in looking at, reading, and understanding buildings and become adept at using them as historical evidence. Students also learn how to relate architecture to its social, political, and intellectual context, and develop insights into the ways that buildings may carry and convey meaning, whether to an expert or to a more general audience. No prior knowledge of architecture or architectural history is required to undertake the module. When timetabling, allow yourself an hour's travel time either side of the class for site visits.