Architectural Theory 3

Code:

400403

Acronym:

400403

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
CNAEF	Architecture and Urbanism

Instance: 2010/2011 - A

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Arquitectura (A)
Course/CS Responsible:	Integrated Master Degree in Architecture

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
MIARQ	176	MIARQ	4	-	9	-

Teaching language

Portuguese

Objectives

Teoria 3 is a theoretical and practical, full academic year curricular unit of the Integrated Master Course of Architecture of the U.Porto Faculty of Architecture, preferably to be attained during the 4th year or 7th and 8th semesters. Its methods and contents were lectured and experienced from 2002-’03 to 2006-‘07 , under the name and in the realm of Public Space and Forms of Public Facilities, have been adjusted to an average of 3 hours per week of student contact. Each week master lecture (for all the students) where critical thinking is practiced, is followed by a seminar or group tutorial meeting, where study cases are planned and structured to fulfil one or more presentation of in progress results before the whole class.
Aims
1. Concepts acquired in precedent units of architectural theory will be enlarged and methods oriented towards autonomous thinking required for nestling personal research fields.
2. Information and critical analysis of cases will be inscribed in the pursuit of a definition of Public Space as a space category, architectonic, morphologically related to Forms of Residence and Forms of Institutions.
3. Theoretical and critical knowledge endeavours strategic formulation which, in the domain of Architecture, is operated and attains full expression by the project.
4. To build state of the art knowledge about the physical organization of Public Space and Common Facilities, embraced under the unitary concept of Forms of the Institutions, by means of systematic study and documentation of existing cases, in Portuguese soil or abroad. Observation, register and comprehension must be undertaken as an exercise of methodical search both for architectonic universals and circumstantial factors that individuate Form.
Experimental research is the essential requirement for any theoretical formulation in Teoria 3, followed by the demands of demonstration (facts and arguments) through the disciplinary instruments of architecture (hand and computer drawing, measuring and calculation, photographic or other image capture means, graphic design of text and image maters) complemented by bibliographic research and, eventually, by interview (authors, users, promoters, constructors).
It is privileged any research on a public space or a public building, freely chosen by each student but necessarily visited. By recognizing that, architectural research implies types of reasoning that belong and sometimes are dominant in artistic fields of knowledge, such as projective and synthetic thought, among the case study options, the student may consider the existing public spaces inscribed in the scenery of the exercise of the Architectural Design unit he is attending.
New technologies required by Teoria 3, for production, register, discussion and archive, have the primary purpose of development both instrumental crafts and communication habits, that serve in first instance, freedom of speech fed by debate apprenticeship and, as equally valuable, the digital archive that allow others to read, criticise and continue one’s work.

Program

1. Urban analysis: Identity of the architectonic elements that constitute the urban form. Public Space and forms of buildings. The philosophical principle of continuity, as a conceptual hypothesis for the analysis of the architecture of public space. (Leibniz, Peirce, Rosa). The human body as tool for comprehensive reading of space. (Fonseca, 2008)
2. Domestic and institutional space – towards the identifying of social and urbanistic phenomena that underlie the forms of dwelling and public facilities. Hierarchy of architectonic forms. Existency, Values and Forms. The social issue in Architecture.
3. From Urban History to urban project story. Regeneration, refurbishing and extention as technical and political concepts.
4. Initiation in research methodology on urban and architectural facts. Practical and theoretical instruments for architectural criticism. Critical objectivity in architecture. Theory, strategy and project. Review and concept innovation. New thinking and identity – the author and his case.
5. Evolution and upgrade of the expression “principles” in Architecture. (C. PERRAULT, J. RUSKN, Le CORBUSIER)
6. The relevance of writing in architectural knowledge. Writings and interviews of masters. Writings by architects – objectivity, simplicity and economy of their words. Their mates, the poets.
7. Contemporary urban projects for urban space transformation. Public Space as a category. (KOOLHAAS 1994, SIZA 2008, 2009, Fonseca 2010). Identity, urbanity, citizenship. A regra e o modelo (CHOAY, 1980) Norma e Forma (Gombrich, 1966)
8. Consistency of urban design – imagery, tectonics and maintenance - and their material architectonic expression. Ethics, Aesthetics and Technique.
9. Architectural form as Sign. Integrity, uniqueness and historicity of the architectonic fact. Proportion and Beauty today.
10. Design for public facilities, a review from classic treatises, modern manuals and contemporary norms. Principle, rule and measure. Planning, program and design for institutional spaces.
11. The institutional client – identifying the architect’s interlocutor. Effects of inter-action in public promotion of architecture.
12. Functional brief as progressive argument in the realm of architectural design. Architectural expression of function - narrative and abstraction – the issue of style.
13. Scale and layout – compromises between building and public space. Shape and background concepts applied to urbanism and public building in special.
14. Dependence between the development of a public building and its surrounding space.
15. Form consistency. Economy of expression means. Construction. Reviewing the idea of “resilience”.
16. The state of the art for “monument”: Form and meaning. Architectural values for contemporary changes on monumental sites.

Mandatory literature

Castanheira Carlos 050; As cidades de Álvaro Siza. ISBN: 972-661-168-7
Fonseca, Teresa; A construção do polo 3 da Universidade do Porto / Teresa Fonseca. - Porto : Universidade do Porto, 1996. - 3 vol. : il. ; 30 cm. - Tese de doutoramento ., Universidade do Porto, 1996
Koolhaas Rem; Small, Medium, Large, Extra-Large. ISBN: 3-82228-7743-3
Quetglas Josep; Artículos de ocasión. ISBN: 84-252-1525-0
Siza Viera Álvaro; 01 textos. ISBN: 978-972-26-2923-2
Somoza Manel; Álvaro Siza. ISBN: 978-84-611-8777-

Complementary Bibliography

Choay Françoise; A regra e o modelo
Perrault Claude; Les dix livres d’Architecture de Vitruve - corrigés et traduits en 1684 par Claude Perrault, Pierre Mardaga. Bruxelles 1979
Ruskin John; Las siet lâmparas de la arquitectura. ISBN: 84-86556-17-1

Teaching methods and learning activities

Methods serve the theoretical and practical nature of the contents, through a diversity of the forms of contact between student and teacher that vary from full attendance to individual tutorial work, seminar sessions evolving several teams. Auditorium lectures, by the professor and guests, serve content information, motivation, critical reading of case studies and other exercises. Seminar and tutorial work implies the experimental use of concepts, individual case study choice, team and method structuring, decision and leadership learning, coaching for intermediate results share and presentation.
On the bases of written and graphic materials referred to themes and case studies, students are expected to exercise structuring and clearing discourse through multimedia. Guests are invited by knowledge on a particular subject, interdisciplinary work, or institutional agents of public building

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

Description	Type	Time (hours)	Weight (%)	End date
Attendance (estimated)	Participação presencial	117,00
Case Study of a Public Space, free choice, necessary visited	Trabalho laboratorial	50,00		2011-06-16
1rst Test	Exame	2,00		2011-02-10
2nd Test	Exame	2,00		2011-06-16
	Total:	-	0,00

Eligibility for exams

Evaluation will be composed by the results of the two tests and a minimum of two informs of the study case chosen by the student, one of these offered in class.
The results of study cases must be submitted in CD /DVD and one printed copy inside a single volume maximum size DIN A4, either for individual or team work. In case of distributed submission by individual members of a team work, the value of team work will be excluded from the final result of that member.

Calculation formula of final grade

Components of final Classification - scale 0-20
10% - Presence and participation in classes
40% - Written exams, Classification is the average of results from two tests.
50% - Case Study - Individual case study classification in scale 0 to 16, plus 0 to 4 values whenever work is produced by a team whose data, arguments or results overpass those who respect to individual case. At least one presentation in class, is obligatory by each student, otherwise classification is zero, independently of his or hers eventual integration in final group results submitted.

Examinations or Special Assignments

Evaluation criteria
• Program: Comprehension of Public space as an architectonic fact, that expresses the collective values of society.
• Method: Pertinence of choice and delimitation of case, diversity and accuracy of data and its analysis, objectivity of interpretation, originality of critical arguments, quality of results, economy of media.
• Frequency and active participation: Presence in class, apprehension and development of lectures issues, prosecution of examples given by the professor, critical evaluation of the cases presented by colleagues and himsellf, iniciative and capability in team work.

Classification improvement

Improvement of distributed classification may be required by students with minimum results of 8 in the average of frequency, tests and case study exhibited before the 30th of June. A new and reviewed submission of the case study only (both in CD/DVD and printed version) may be demanded to the professor to be presented no further than three working days previous of the publication of final results regulated by school agenda.

Observations

English, French, Italian and Spanish languages will be accepted in written papers but final results must be submitted in portuguese or bilingual ( portuguese and one of the above).