ARCH 509, Section 23

Architecture and Society
Instructors: Irene Hwang
Section: 23
Class Number: 31828
Credits: 3
Required: No
Elective: Yes
Meets: Fri 1:00-4:00pm  2222 A&AB
Course Brief:

This seminar investigates the role of architecture in shaping human society. It considers the emergence of architecture and building alongside the rise of shared ideas, practices, and customs that shaped—and continue to shape—social structures (to include physical constructs, as well as behaviors and ideologies). For example, how does the US Supreme Court building (1935) rise to prominence in the same way that the Supreme Court itself increases its power in the US system of government? In what unseen ways is the American public affected and altered by the architecture of the white marble building? Or, how does a single, custom-built luxury home (1908) shape the values and ideals of planners, economists, builders, and homeowners during the 20th century, post-war housing boom in America?