View of Social Club, Paréa Lesvos, Lesvos Island, Greece, E. Mark Photo, March 6, 2023
Syllabus
ROUGH DRAFT - DATES AND SOME CONTENT SUBJECT TO CHANGE
INTRODUCTION
The studio will explore adaptive light-weight rigid and tension membrane fabric collapsible structures that are rapidly deployable, and that can be customized over time to meet the evolving needs of a community at risk, its culture, and pattern of living. Each student will also explore the healing power of the natural and built environment through the design of the site for a specific group of forcibly displaced people.[1] The studio project hypothetical site will be based on oceanfront national parkland on the Maine Coast that we will visit with a funded overnight stay just before or overlapping with the first part of spring break. A walking tour will be led by an environmental scientist similar to previous instances of the studio taught recently on the Oregon coast by this studio instructor.
STUDIO PROGRAM FOR A UNHCR DEFINED COMMUNITY
The studio program starts with a single household unit. By the mid-term we expand our focus to 16 household units for a total of 80 residents: a particular number of units and size population identified as a “Community” by the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR) and a few common use structures. By the end of the first half of the term students will be encourage to add a second “community” to their interpretation of the program. However, we will limit the building size so as to investigate more thoroughly the details, such as connection joints, materials, and water drainage.
Adrian Parr Zaretsky, Dean and Landscape Architect at the University of Oregon, describes transpecies design as "a non-anthropocentric approach to regenerating, restoring, reinvigorating and replenishing the natural environment." [2] Thus, rather than focusing solely on human forcible displacement experience, her design principles would emphasize the interconnectedness of animals and plants as both the starting point and goal. In keeping with this approach, students may elect to explore how the two-way healing process can address the migration and survival of non-human species facing dislocation or extinction.
Settlements that spring up in urgent conditions may last years longer than expected. The initial footprint may become obsolete with respect to supporting the health, agency, food supply, religious practices, cultural activities, and sense of hope needed. We will consider how structures can be setup to retract and unfurl, change spatial enclosure and clustering by a community to better serve its needs. Similarly, we will consider how the therapeutic healing of a forcibly displaced people can be linked to their agency in the responsible stewardship of the natural environment.
[1] Reuben Rainey, Emeritus Professor of Landscape Architecture, asserts that “There is no such thing as a generic healing garden”. Panel Discussion, UVA, 2013. It is to be designed for a specific group’s needs.
[2]. Parr Zaretsky, A., & Zaretsky, M. (Eds.). (2024). Transpecies Design: Design for a Posthumanist World (1st ed.). This publication is availble as an e-book in the UVA Library: Routledge. https://doi-org.proxy1.library.virginia.edu/10.4324/9781003403494
KEY CONCEPTS
We will emphasize providing maximum agency to residents in customizing their individual residences, provide amenities that reinforce community values and cultural expression, explore the communicating relationships between built structures with each other and the natural environment, and look at ways in which their stewarding the local ecosystem may reinforce the restorative capacity of the environment to help alleviate the physical and psychological trauma of forcible displaced people on a case by case basis.
SCHEDULE
This is an preliminary draft of the schedule. However, our discovery process and periodic recalibration of our process may help to realize objectives more effectively. Depending upon the progress and desired scope of the Mid Review it could shift in the Schedule.
| Part 1 | JAN 13– 19 | Improvisational Shelter & Site Visit, Part A |
| Research on Fabric Structures, Sails, Wood Boat Fabrication Methods, Experimentation with Improvisational Fabric Structures |
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| JAN 20– 26 | Perspectives and Standards | |
| Experimentation with Improvisational Fabric Structures Continued. UNHCR Standards Displaced People Narratives |
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| JAN 27 – FEB 2 | Improvisational Shelters & Site Continued , Part B | |
| Experimentation with Improvisational Fabric Structures Continued. Pre-Vist Site, Sketches, Field Research Analysis of Landforms, Geology and Ecology, Schoodic Point, Maine. Sewing and Extracurricular Fabrication Methods |
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| FEB 3 – 9 | Tensioning Methods And Green Space Concepts | |
| Tensioning Methods and Shapes Restorative Green Space Concepts |
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| Part 2 | FEB 10 – 16 | Architecture Machines (Intentional Short Sketch Diversion), Shelters & Site |
| Architecture Machine Test: Fabric as Skin Joints and Folding Methods |
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| FEB 17 – 23 | Soft Architecture Machines (Intentional Short Sketch Diversion), Shelters, Circulation & Site, | |
| Soft Architecture Machine Test: Fabric as Structure Schematic Site Layout Including Walkways ,Dining and Health Structures |
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| FEB 24 – MAR 2 | Hybrid Architecture Machines, Shelters & Site Continued, Preliminary Service Structures, & Site | |
Hybrid Architecture Machine Test: Fabric As Skin and/or Structure |
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| MAR 3 - 9 | Maine Coast Site Study Preparation and Field Trip March 7 - 10 (+/- TBA) | |
| Pre-Site Visit Analysis (March 5th) & Field Trip (TBA) | ||
| MAR 8 - 16 | SPRING BREAK RECESS | |
| Part 3 | MAR 17 - 23 | Hybrid Shelters, Service Structures, & Site |
| Hybrid Architecture Machine: Continued Emphasis on Joints and their Degrees of Freedom Site Section and Analytical Drawings |
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| MAR 24 - 30 | Mid-Review | |
| Date TBA | ||
| Part 4 | MAR 31 - APR 6 | Site Plan and Systems, Shelter and Settlements, Part I |
| Detailed Site Plan and Systems, Including Preliminary Gardens, Plantings, and Drainage Systems Introduce Passive Solar Design and Shading Features |
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| APR 7 – 13 | Shelter and Settlements | |
| Building Materials, Joints, and Hardware, Foundation systems Detailed Models, Drawings, and Simulation, with Adaptive Joint Studies |
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| Part 5 | APRIL 14 – 20 | Site Plan and Systems, Shelter and Settlements, Part II |
| Passive Solar Design, Minimal Enviromental Footprint and Energy Use Evaluation Detail Site Plan for Water use, Drainage, Sanitation,and Gardens and Plantings |
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| APRIL 21 - 27 | Final Charette Detailed Design for Settlement With Optional Advanced Visualization | |
| Final Drawings, Models, and mockups at Building Component at optionally 1/4 to 1/2 scale. Abtract Diagramatic Implications for Larger Settlements |
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| APRIL 28 - MAY 4 | Final Charette Cotinued / Final Review TBA | |
| Last Revisions Reflections On Lessons Learned (MAY SHIFT TO A WEEK EARLIER) |
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| MAY 5 – 9 | Charette Continued / Final Review TBA | |
| Charette continued if and as determined by Final Review Schedule |
ATTENDANCE AND STUDIO ENGAGEMENT
Design studio thrives on active participation through dialogue, critique, and peer learning. Philosopher Nelson Goodman, in Languages of Art, emphasizes that meaningful work emerges from active cognitive engagement. Similarly, the focus of the ACSA Design Competition "Communicating Humanitarian Shelter" is not on delivering a single solution but on designing adaptive processes to meet real-world needs in crisis situations.
Experts like Irantzu Serra Lasa and Joseph Ashmore from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), UN, who you may meet this spring, initiated this competition to challenge rigid, pre-set solutions. Their approach highlights the value of flexible, responsive thinking in life-saving scenarios.
In studio, participation mirrors this mindset. Engaging in discussions, offering feedback, and reflecting on your own work builds a shared learning environment. Like humanitarian response efforts, studio work isn’t about perfect answers. It’s about being present, observant, and resourceful. Ideas evolve through spontaneous insights, collaboration, and critique, modeling the kinds of professional interactions essential to successful design practice.
Attendance is central to sustaining this dynamic. UVA Attendance Policy and the School of Architecture Associate Dean of Academic's statement on Standards we be the basis for attendance policies. Note that absences for illness, family emergencies, or significant extracurricular commitments are typically excused with notice. However, job interviews, though important, are not excusable absences. Please plan accordingly and communicate any conflicts in advance.
Attendance counts for about 10% of your grade. Beyond grades, frequent absences often indicate underlying challenges. If you’re experiencing difficulties, reach out early. I’m here to help.
Above all, this studio values process over perfection. Our work this semester will explore shelters and healing landscapes for displaced communities. Your projects will involve independent interpretations of the brief, while at the same time require that you leverage critical thinking and collaboration skills that are imporant to the topic I think and that will serve you well beyond this course.