The aim of the course is the acquisition of knowledge, skills and tools to understand the challenges and transformations of the city with attention to the mechanisms and processes that determine its forms and their relationship with the architectural scale and its components.
The course is aimed at learning and experimenting methods of morphological-environmental analysis and urban design techniques in a multi-scalar approach, to elaborate interventions of urban space transformation through the replicability of design solutions and urban furniture components. The course is organised in a six-month design studio modality on the topics of urban regeneration, by targeting underused urban open spaces and abandoned public infrastructures. Places of reactivation to support local communities, urban greening and active mobility actions, as strategic objectives of the Ligurian Ecosystem of Innovation for RAISE project 'Robotics and AI for Socio-economic Empowerment'.
The learning outcomes to be achieved during the design studio are:
The semester-long course is organised according to an in-presence teaching format, by means of ex-cathedra lectures and groups desk reviews in which students are called upon to actively participate. In-depth seminars held by external experts may also be held online on Teams. Attendance at mid-term reviews and hand-in of deliverables is considered mandatory.
The projects will be developed by the students in groups of 2/3 people. In parallel, students will have to carry out independently a collection of 3 design readings on the basis of different scales of intervention (local/urban/territorial) as indicated in the course Syllabus. The teaching will be carried out with lectures by the mentors, and presentations of significant case studies (readings) by students, seminars by guests and visiting-experts, desk reviews on a weekly basis, organised according to 2 steps of design elaboration (2 Panels DIN A1 Vertical - 84.1 x 59.4 cm).
The relationship between urban well-being and social welfare represents an emerging field of action and a recurring topic on the policy agendas of many European countries. It refers to a multidisciplinary convergence on built heritage valorisation in regards to its environmental qualities (comfort) and for its capacity to combine sense of belonging (identity) and community service provisions. Such considerations become significant when we refer to the most fragile individuals living in "marginal urban areas" for whom the quality of daily life becomes a structural issue: of presidium, independence and social inclusion (ageing in place). Public policies aimed at the recovery and enhancement of the built heritage, the Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) and the accessibility to services, become once again rewarding and unavoidable intervention categories.
In this sense, ICTs provide the opportunity to rethink the existing heritage towards inclusive co-housing models, capable of leveraging the regeneration of territories affected by processes of physical and structural marginalisation as well as characterised by increasingly diversified users (user-centred design). In the light of these considerations, the design studio activity proposed is based on the integration of new technologies in the design of responsive public spaces capable of enhancing the environmental performances of sites (micro-climate, ecosystem services, bio-diversity reservoirs, accessibility and fruition) and the interaction between individuals and with the urban context.
Urban planning
Infrastructures / Landscape
Urban Metabolism
New technologies
Ricevimento: Friday morning and / or Thursday afternoon
CHIARA CENTANARO (President)
MANUEL GAUSA NAVARRO
CHIARA OLIVASTRI (President Substitute)
SILVIA PERICU (President Substitute)
Summer Semester course
II semester _ February 19, 2024 - May 24, 2024
During the course, a project proposal will be developed according to two design development steps (graphic panels, layout DIN A1 portrait), and a research of best-practices (3 design readings), that will constitute the final delivery materials (DIN A5 vertical booklet layout).
The final mark will be established during a final presentation at the end of the summer term and will take into account the active participation of the students, the hand-in of all the required materials and the quality of the work produced as a whole. The evaluation of the projects will take into account the clarity of the proposal and its presentation, the spatial quality of the design and the graphic accuracy, the sustainability of the interventions, including their economic feasibility, as well as the student's learning process. The grade will be averaged with the module “Component Design” (cod. 106530).
The final delivery of the course, in order to access the exam, is a project presented through the following materials:
The development of the design process is based on a research-by-design methodology articulated in laboratory activities among the groups and moments of individual research by each student. The progress of the work and the assessment of students' knowledge is verified weekly. The elaboration of the graphic panels is defined as an open process that can be continuously implemented throughout the semester. The ability to effectively communicate the design proposal, to synthetically elaborate graphics, mappings and project diagrams will be tested through oral presentations and open questions in group reviews up to the exam session.
