ARC3314H S
Instructor: Jason Nguyen
Meeting Section: L0101
Wednesday, 9:00AM - 12:00PM

Today, rapid developments in labour and technology are transforming the ways that one conceives and constructs the built environment. Ensuing these changes is a profound reconsideration of architecture as an artistic, scientific, and social pursuit. This seminar looks at a range of technical practices that have constituted the so-called “art of building” in architectural history and theory (special attention will be paid to the period prior to modern industrialization). The aim of the course is to fold concerns related to labour and technology into the broader discourse on the politics, ethics, and aesthetics of architecture. We begin by considering different philosophies of labour and technology in architecture. From here, we will then examine a number of practices that encompass the art of building, including drawing, the use of instruments and machines, materials studies, cost estimating, and construction. We end by speculating on the relationship between architecture, labour, and technology in the contemporary period, including the influence of global capitalism and the changes introduced by automation and the digital. Readings, discussions, and writing exercises will lead to a final project of each student’s choosing.