Introductory Studio: Building, Living, Thinking (Winter Semester 2013–14)

is the title of a lecture by philosopher Martin Heidegger that has garnered significant attention among architects. For those who wish to make architecture their profession, this is an important phrase to which we add the central concept for our developmental work—“design.” In the introductory studio during the first semester, we delve into the fundamentals of architectural thinking and provide students with their first experience in developing a good design.

The studio is the central course each semester—it is where the acquisition of theoretical knowledge, the development of ideas, and their translation into spatial configurations converge, and where methods of elaboration and presentation through models, sketches, and plan drawings are practiced: thinking with both mind and hand. Prerequisites include a strong commitment to learning, curiosity, and a joy in experimentation.

The goal of the studio is to lay the initial foundation for building an architectural vocabulary. To this end, we first examine the principles of outstanding built examples through text, plan drawings, and models. The mandatory field trip to Belgium serves to illustrate and discuss these outstanding examples.

Finally, in a design assignment, several classic architectural themes—spatial form and sequence, light within space and views, confinement and expansiveness, horizontal and vertical movement—are explored using various tools and approaches. We take materiality as our starting point: materials in the form of stone, rods, and slabs, with the goal of discovering their specific properties and potentials so that we can then use them structurally to form and shape space. The focus of the design project is on exhibition spaces dedicated to the history of the campus grounds.

The group’s diversity and commitment ensure the variety and quality of the discoveries. Therefore, continuous collaborative work, discussion, and mutual inspiration in the studio are indispensable prerequisites for successful study. Work is conducted individually and in pairs.

Instructors:

Maya Reiner (Prof., Dipl.-Ing., M.Arch.)
Marc Matzken (M.A.)
Christopher Unger (Dipl.-Ing.)

Tutors:

Johannes Wehner (B.Sc.)
Niklas Rahmlow