4 ECTS credits
100 h study time

Offer 1 with catalog number 1019795BNR for all students in the 2nd semester at a (B) Bachelor - advanced level.

Semester
2nd semester
Enrollment based on exam contract
Impossible
Grading method
Grading (scale from 0 to 20)
Can retake in second session
Yes
Taught in
English
Faculty
Faculteit Ingenieurswetenschappen
Department
Architectural Engineering
Educational team
Stephanie Van de Voorde (course titular)
Activities and contact hours

24 contact hours Lecture
12 contact hours Seminar, Exercises or Practicals
10 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study
Course Content

This course aims to give the students insight into the diversity and complexity of architectural production from Antiquity until the industrial revolution in Western Europe and North America. This course discusses prominent figures, historically significant buildings and experimental projects, idioms of architectural style, the development and (innovative) use of building materials, and the relation between science and construction technology, situated within the broader Western technological, artistic, cultural, intellectual, economic, social and political context. A broad chronological and thematical frame of reference is developed, tying in with important developments, trends and shifts in the history of architecture and construction. Moreover, specific research methodologies, approaches and practices in architectural and construction history are analysed.

The particular focus on the relation between architecture and construction, between design and building techniques, reflects the specific interest of the Department of Architectural Engineering in the relationship between architecture, building technology and structural engineering.

After attending this course, the student is expected to be able to ‘read’ and to analyse historic buildings and documents, with specific attention to architectural, constructional and historical aspects and terminology, and to contextualize, interpret and compare them (in time and space, but also in the socio-cultural, political and economic context), both verbally and written.

Additional info

The course consists of interactive lectures, supplemented by thematic lectures and guest lectures. During the seminars, the theme of the writing assignment is explained, feedback is given (individually or in groups) and a visit is made to an architecture exhibition and/or a library or archive institution and a building or site (linked to current discussions in the architectural-historical debate or the theme of the assignment). A combination of online and on-campus lectures and/or seminars is possible.

 

The study material consists of slides for each lecture and a reader with compulsory and recommended literature. The reader includes a selection of chapters from ‘Western Architecture. A Survey from Ancient Greece to the Present’ (Ian Sutton, 1999, Thames & Hudson) and ‘Building. 3000 years of Design, Engineering and Constrction (Bill Addis, 2007, Phaidon). This literature is further supplemented with journal articles and chapters from books by various authors. The slides and the compulsory and recommended texts are made available via Canvas after each lesson.

Learning Outcomes

Specific competences

The following learning outcomes are envisaged in this course unit:

  1. The student is able to recognise and identify the main trends, important actors and key projects in the history of Western architecture and construction, from Antiquity to the industrial revolution, and can reason about them using the appropriate vocabulary.
  2. The student has insight into the contribution of different disciplines and actors to the design and construction process (e.g. architects, engineers, contractors, owners, governments, etc.), and the changing relationships between them.
  3. The student can situate and analyse important developments, figures, buildings and key texts in the history of Western architecture and construction, from Antiquity to the industrial revolution, within their technological, artistic, cultural, intellectual, economic, social and political context.
  4. The student can formulate a personal view on the embedded cultural-historical and material-technical value of a building, and the relation between them, within its historical and current context.
  5. The student is able to reflect critically on the creation of the built environment in relation to current societal, ecological and socio-cultural challenges.
  6. The student can search for (inter)national literature, archival material and other sources autonomously, approach them critically, process them and integrate them in a scientific paper that meets the academic requirements (e.g. with regard to structure, formulating research questions, methodology, bibliography and referencing).
  7. The student possesses skills to communicate about architectural and construction history verbally, in writing and visually, paying attention to the correct vocabulary.
  8. The student can work independently and in team, and can reflect constructively and critically on his/her own work and that of others.

General competences

In addition, this course unit also addresses the following general learning outcomes of the Bachelor of Science in Engineering: Architecture:

  1. The Bachelor has a broad fundamental knowledge and understanding of the theory and history of architecture and their relation to the current challenges of the built environment.
  2. The Bachelor has a broad fundamental knowledge and understanding of the ecological and socio-cultural impact of construction and the criteria for designing sustainable architecture.
  3. The Bachelor can independently look up information from (inter)national technical literature and other sources, evaluate it scientifically and report on it.
  4. The Bachelor can analyse a problem statement within socio-cultural and ecological boundary conditions and can, based on that, develop a well-substantiated vision.
  5. The Bachelor can communicate through text, speech, graphics, visuals and scale models by making use of the appropriate vocabulary.
  6. The Bachelor can reflect in a rational, abstract and critical way on the own work and that of others.
  7. The Bachelor can work independently and in team.
  8. The Bachelor has awareness of the ever more rapidly changing needs of users and society.

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 67% of the final mark.
Written Exam determines 33% of the final mark.

Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Oral examination with a relative weight of 67 which comprises 67% of the final mark.

Within the Written Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Written examination with a relative weight of 33 which comprises 33% of the final mark.

Additional info regarding evaluation

The exam consists of an oral examination with written preparation and a writing assignment containing an architectural historical analysis.

 

Part 1: Oral examination

Oral examination with written preparation, in which each student is given a selection of questions that are spread representatively over the entire course.

 

Part 2: Architecture-historical analysis

Analysis of a building, oeuvre, technique or publication (as determined according to the annual theme, e.g. building materials, private dwellings, public space) with attention to historical, architectural and constructive but also socio-cultural and political factors. This analysis is incorporated into a written paper (with proper attention for scientific references, layout, structure, etc.) of approx. 3000 words, supplemented with visual material.

 

Score weight:

2/3 of the total final score is on the oral examination (part 1).

1/3 of the total final score is on the architectural historical analysis (part 2).

 
 
 
Allowed unsatisfactory mark
The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context

This offer is part of the following study plans:
Bachelor of Architectural Engineering: Standaard traject (only offered in Dutch)
Master of Urban Studies: Standard track
Bridging Programme Master of Science in Urban Design and Spatial Planning: Standaard traject (only offered in Dutch)