Image, Text, Theory, Architecture

In this seminar we will examine the emergence and development of core ideas in the experience, practice, and theory of architecture. We will focus first on the reception of Vitruvius in Antiquity and the Renaissance, and then move to a consideration of the key theorists - both moralists and rationalists - of the modern era (including Soane, Ruskin, Viollet le-Duc, Le Corbusier). Emphasis will be placed on the specific historical situations and socio-cultural contexts in which those theories arose, and how they were represented within the field of architecture. By the end of this course students will acquire the literacy required to perceive and articulate the central theories, ideas, and points of view with which architects—and other practitioners of the built environment— operated, and will refine their research and writing skills through research into a particular aspect of architectural history and theory. 3 hrs. Sem