This course will utilize lectures, readings and micro construction exercises to look closely at the spatial production of Carlo Scarpa (Italian 1906-1978) and Jože Plečnik (Slovene 1872-1958).
Specifically, the course will focus attention on the small, the slow, and the enigmatic details employed by each architect as testaments to both body and place. We will negotiate and question the roles of instinct, material sensuality, local craft and contemporary manufacturing as witnessed by their efforts and as potential strategies for negotiating the now.
The course will be divided into three stanzas. The first will concentrate on the influences of each architect’s respective culture, starting from the theoretical work of Gottfried Semper (1803-79) and continuing on to the experiences of the early twentieth century. The second section consists of in- depth analysis of the elemental works of each architect and include the study of drawing techniques, exhibition design and social positioning. The last section of the course involves the production of an original detail or joint resolution by each enrolled student.
