3 ECTS credits
75 h study time
Offer 1 with catalog number 1022043ANR for all students in the 2nd semester at a (A) Bachelor - preliminary level.
This course aims to provide the student insights into the formation of the urban fabric in the Western world, from the Greek polis to the 20th century functional city, within a broader socio-cultural, economic and political context. The lectures focus on the complexity of architectural urban production and explore the relationship between architecture, urban patterns and social evolutions, in a historical comparative perspective.
The course provides the student with a chronological and thematic frame of reference to understand and interpret (recurring) urban forms and patterns of urbanisation. The student's critical reflection is sharpened by means of questions that are also relevant to the current urban planning debate. What is the impact of phenomena such as social polarisation and industrialisation on urban morphology and the relationship between city and countryside? How do urban societies react to increases in scale and new forms of mobility? How were cultural-anthropological models and new scientific insights translated into the urban fabric? Thematic lessons and seminars pay explicit attention to the evolution of the Belgian urban landscape in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The course ties in with the specific approach of the Department of Architectural Engineering, based on the interest in the relationship between building, urbanisation and technological developments. This translates into the reading and interpretation of urban models, plans and concepts, the contribution of different actors (architects and engineers, clients, executors and users), the practical realisation and materialisation of theoretical approaches, and the relationship with the wider social culture.
The course consists of interactive lectures, supplemented by thematic lectures and guest lectures. During the seminars, the assignment of the group work is explained (an analysis of an urban neighbourhood or urban fragment in Belgium), feedback is given (in group), a city walk is organised and a visit is made to an exhibition and/or a library or archive institution. A combination of online and on-campus lectures and/or seminars is possible.
The study material consists of slides for the lectures, a reader with compulsory and recommended literature. The reader includes a selection of chapters from 'Het verleden van steden. 4000 jaar bouwen en verbouwen in Europa' (Honoré Rottier, 2004, Davidsfonds) and 'The history of the city'/'L'histoire de la ville' (Leonardo Benevolo, 1980/1983, MIT Press/Parenthèses). This literature is further supplemented with journal articles and chapters from books by various authors (e.g. Spiro Kostof, Lewis Mumford, Michiel Wagenaar, Marcel Smets, Jo Braeken, Ed Taverne etc.).
The following learning outcomes are envisaged in this course unit:
In addition, this course unit also addresses the following general learning outcomes of the Bachelor of Science in Engineering: Architecture
The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 66% of the final mark.
Written Exam determines 17% of the final mark.
Other Exam determines 17% of the final mark.
Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:
Within the Written Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:
Within the Other Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:
The exam consists of an oral examination with written preparation and a writing assignment containing an urban-historical analysis (in small groups).
Part 1: Oral examination
Oral exam with written preparation, during which each student receives a selection of questions that are spread over the entire course.
Part 2: Urban history analysis (in small groups)
Analysis of a historic neighbourhood / city district in Belgium (focus on 19th-21st century) with attention to historical, architectural and urban development as well as socio-cultural and political factors. This analysis is incorporated into a written paper (with proper attention for scientific references, layout, structure, etc.), supplemented with visual material.
Score weight:
2/3 of the total final score is on the oral exam (part 1).
1/3 of the total final score is on the urban history analysis (part 2).
This offer is part of the following study plans:
Bachelor of Architectural Engineering: Standaard traject (only offered in Dutch)