Project_1

"Always design a thing by considering it in its next larger context -- a chair in a room, a room in a house, a house in an environment, an environment in a city plan."
-Eliel Saarinen, "Time", July 2, 1956

Analysis_ A redesign of the urban condition
Architecture does not exist within a vacuum. From the largest buildings to the smallest details, architecture and its elements subsist within context of the natural environment, building urban plan and the framework of the building itself. As an exploration of context, we will explore the idea of context and its relationship to the built and unbuilt environments.

For Project 1, we will visit 4 selected buildings and sites within the heart of Rome. Each site is chosen specifically for its relationship to the city, the surrounding areas and buildings on multiple scales. We will visit the sites and analysis them in terms of these contextual issues. We will explore basic figure / ground diagrams in conjunction with detailed plans and sections.

You are to produce a five sheet exploration of the city of Rome and these specific sites. The first sheet in your presentation will be an introduction to all of the sites in terms of Rome as a whole. The remaining four sheets will be reserved for explorations of four sites. You are to choose three of the first four locations and one of the three optional locations for your exploration and analysis. The analyses’ will be presented as a precedent study for our explorations of northern and southern Italy.

Locations
Piazza della Rotonda [Pantheon]
Piazza del Popolo
Campidoglio
Santa Maria in Trastevere
* Spanish Steps
* St. Peters + Piazza San Pietro
* Piazza Navona
* indicates optional sites for 18 Jan 2006 visit day

Tools
photograph
hand sketches
digital photography and analytical drawing over view given during initial site visit

Schedule
10 Jan 06 Piazza della Rotonda
11 Jan 06 Campidoglio
12 Jan 06 Piazza del Popolo
17 Jan 06 Santa Maria in Trastevere
18 Jan 06 * Optional Site
19 Jan 06 Final Review

Requirements
1 Introductory sheet [final A2 (approximately 11"x 14") sheets provided by program]
3 Individual analyses’ from choice of 4 visit days
1 Individual analysis from optional visit

Due
Presentation is 19 January 2006 at 05:00 pm.