ARCH 219 : Contemporary Issues in Architecture

This course is part of the History/Theory set of professional electives. Through a series of readings, debates and open discourse, the course will examine the evolution of contemporary architectural thought and teach students how to take a critical position on professional practice and issues that affect design today including sustainability, phenomenology, ethical responsibility and roles of the architect in the world in the 21st Century. Specifically, the course will focus on four sequential areas of study: 1) Historical Perspectives to address how we arrived to today and to understand your worldview; 2) The Tenets of Good Design from the aesthetics of color exploration to sustainability; 3) Phenomenology to examine Sensory and Emotional Explorations; and 4) Comparative Dialogues to explore where Architecture is going in the Post-Covid-19 era.