Course syllabus for Building design: Space in buildings

Course syllabus adopted 2023-02-13 by Head of Programme (or corresponding).

Overview

  • Swedish nameByggnadens rum
  • CodeACE255
  • Credits7.5 Credits
  • OwnerTKARK
  • Education cycleFirst-cycle
  • Main field of studyArchitecture
  • ThemeArchitectural design project 6 c
  • DepartmentARCHITECTURE AND CIVIL ENGINEERING
  • GradingUG - Pass, Fail

Course round 1

  • Teaching language Swedish
  • Application code 45135
  • Open for exchange studentsNo
  • Only students with the course round in the programme overview.

Credit distribution

0123 Project 6 c
Grading: UG		0 c6 c0 c0 c0 c0 c
0223 Written and oral assignments 1.5 c
Grading: UG		0 c1.5 c0 c0 c0 c0 c

In programmes

Examiner

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Eligibility

General entry requirements for bachelor's level (first cycle)
Applicants enrolled in a programme at Chalmers where the course is included in the study programme are exempted from fulfilling the requirements above.

Specific entry requirements

The same as for the programme that owns the course.
Applicants enrolled in a programme at Chalmers where the course is included in the study programme are exempted from fulfilling the requirements above.

Course specific prerequisites

  • Architectural design and aesthetics, or equivalent
The course is part of the learning sequence Design and builds on and deepens knowledge of applied aesthetics, morphology and design which were covered in the in the above-mentioned course.

Aim

The course is part of a sequence of design courses that give students the knowledge and skills to initiate, implement and present projects at different scale levels and create sustainable and functional solutions of high quality and with good design. The course Building design: space in buildings concerns the first design project where students develop a relatively simple building project with a given function on a given location. The students work with the project according to the different stages in the design process: analyze and evaluate the site, formulate a concept/main idea, design alternative proposals and evaluate them based on specific qualities (for example through contrasts such as inside/outside, light/dark, open/closed, etc.), communicate proposed projects and reflect on the design process. An important part of the project consists of connecting the design of the building to a specific place and landscape, as well as training the basics of architectural expression. The course builds on and deepens knowledge of design theory, applied aesthetics and morphology. Great importance is given to the sensory experience of place and space as well as space and human movements. Students work iteratively with the overall composition of floor plan, section, facade and model and the relation between parts and the whole. The course also gives students in-depth knowledge and skills about drawing techniques to support both design work and presentation of a finished project. Furthermore, the student will get to try several analogue and digital tools that can support the design process with a focus on the early initiating stages to investigate building volumes and the building's location in the landscape.

Learning outcomes (after completion of the course the student should be able to)

  1. Describe a design project based on the different stages of the design process.
  2. Analyze and investigate the character of a site and describe a building's function, form and spatial qualities.
  3. Formulate a concept/main idea, design alternative proposals and evaluate them based on rational judgment and subjective values.
  4. Present alternative proposals in the form of models linked to building volume and the building's location in the landscape using both analogue and digital tools.
  5. Present alternative proposals in the form of floor plans and sections with both design sketches and technical drawings with exact measurements.
  6. Reflect on your own work and learning and formulate development needs that can be met in future courses.

Content

The course consists of two modules.

Project

The first moudule relates to a design project that gives students the knowledge and skills to initiate, implement and present a relatively simple building project with a given function on a given site. In the course, students go though the different stages of the design process and deepen their understanding and train their skills related to architectural expression and sensuous qualities based on, for example, colour, light, sound and materiality. An important part is also to study and understand the measurements of the human body in relation to place and space. The course introduces the prerequisites of building technology and materials, where the main focus is on wood.


Written and oral assignments

In the second module, students will gain in-depth knowledge and skills of drawing techniques and try analog and digital tools that can support the creative, exploratory and experimental moments of the design process with a focus on the early initiation stages.

Organisation

The course uses project-based teaching where students learn from and with each other in the studio in combination with tutoring by teachers. Besides the design work, the course consists of lectures, several short design laboratories and seminars. The lectures introduce topics such as architectural representation and expression, sensory experience of space in relation to materials, color and light, basics in building technology, building materials with a focus on wood and landscape in relation to architecture. Design labs are exploratory, where the student is allowed to investigate a topic, sketch and analyze different possibilities/combinations in a simple set up to then use the knowledge and skills in the more complex building project. Seminars aim to give students an opportunity to reflect on both the work of others and their own work. The course ends with a moment of reflection on acquired experiences from the course which are collected and recorded in a portfolio.

Literature

Literature is announced at the start of the course.

Examination including compulsory elements

Examination takes place through
  • ­ Continuous examination of the project that corresponds to 6.0 credits and mainly examines learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5
  • ­ Assignment on Design and representation media that corresponds to 1.5 credits and primarily examines learning outcomes 4 and 5
  • ­ Obligatory reflection which mainly examines learning outcome 6
  • ­ Active participation in the course

Continuous examination means that examination takes place through several presentation sessions with clear submission requirements that are announced at the start of the course. Also, compulsory moments are announced at the start of the course.

A student who is not approved in the course after the regular examination must be given the opportunity to be examined through supplementation after the end of the course if the examiner considers it feasible. If, after two attempts at completion, the student still cannot be approved, the student must retake the course. Assessment of completions takes place during Chalmers' re-examination periods. It is the student's responsibility to check reported study results in Ladok after each study period and to contact the course examiner for instructions on supplementation if an approved result is missing.

The course examiner may assess individual students in other ways than what is stated above if there are special reasons for doing so, for example if a student has a decision from Chalmers on educational support due to disability.