Jerzy Gorski Faculty of Architecture, Warsaw University of Technology, Poland 307
Generally the topics of architectural design are as follows:
- semester - small abstract studies concerning feeling of material, texture, scale, light.
- sem. - spatial arrangement for individual person,
- sem. - single family house,
- sem. - interior design / small public building in landscape,
- sem. - multifamily housing,
- sem. - public services building (school etc.),
- sem. - commercial building,
- sem. - diploma (bachelor degree),
- sem. - supplementary residential building within city development,
- sem. - big commercial building,
- sem. - modernization and conservation,
- sem. - diploma (master degree)
Additionally there are some elective designs of specific types of buildings.
At school face-to-face contact is limited to interrelation between student and
teacher but usually both act as architects. The discussion is carried within the realm
of the same profession with its dreams, priorities, visions. Visions and ideas of other
professionals with whom the architect constantly deals in real life may be quite dif-
ferent from those of architects. The school curriculum covers other areas of knowledge
(technical, economical, historic) but they are taught as separate subjects and treated
by students as non-architectural elements. The interest of this type of knowledge
should start at the design studio treated by students as the only really architectural
part of their study. If at the studio it is stated that the ideal form should be sup-
ported by rational knowledge of technical, economical, logistic elements and this is
necessary for transferring the design to real building (which only then may be called
an architectural object) there is a chance that students will look for such knowledge.
If they acquire at least part of this knowledge during study period they may be less
shocked when meet realities of professional life.
I would like to present an example of design class where we tried to supplement
architectural designing with practical elements, especially trying to imagine client’s
attitude to planned investment. It was organized in the mixed group of students
taking part in exchange program between Warsaw University of Technology, Faculty
of Architecture and University of Detroit Architectural School. The visiting professor
from Detroit was an architect Frederick Bidigare.
The design was divided into three parts. The objectives of the first one were as follows:
PROJECT NO.1
AIM: To act as both an architect and a client in the development of an architectural
project.
REQUIREMENTS: As a client you are to have your architect design a small shop in one of
the empty retail spaces. The store type is to be selected by you as the client (preferable
being something that you are knowledgeable about or interested in (i.e. pet shop, ice
cream parlor, skydiving shop, tattoo parlor, etc.). You will select the specific site with
your “architect”. Try to be specific as possible.