Draft An Essay Highlighting" Design, Culture and Environment "

ESSAY QUESTIONS

REFLECTING ON THE CONCEPTS THAT UNDERPIN WESTERN ARCHITECTURE

All the questions must make good, relatively detailed, use of sources that are outlined in the course readings that have been discussed in-class and in the detailed list of sources for each essay question outlined at the end of this document. Each student is to use as a case study from the historical period to discuss and demonstrated an understanding of the period’s core concepts in their essay. It is strongly recommended that you only use examples presented in the lectures and quizzes.

A broader range of buildings and writing should be referred to in order to support your argument, but must be specific to the period that you are discussing in your essay. In general, about half the length of the essay should be about the historical/cultural context in which the building/interior operates; i.e., primary influencing cultural events and ideas/thoughts of the period that act to frame how designing and building was approached in the period you are exploring. Reference to other buildings and/or interiors should be by way of comparison, and not be so comprehensive. About half of the essay should be a detailed analysis of a building/interior or text. If it is a text, example buildings and/or interiors must be given. If it is a building/interior, important thinkers and writers relevant to the argument should also be mentioned.

Select 1 (one) choice from the 4 (four) essay questions:

Essay questions are also listed in detail in the Assignment 2 Detailed Outline. Select the essay question you are most interested in. Each essay question will have an even number of students for each essay question. If you want to select a particular essay question, then it’s your responsibility to select it as soon as possible. No exceptions will be made if you contact me after the essay selection process closes with your essay question preference. The Course Coordinator will allocate students who have not selected and essay question one to complete. You can change your choice at any time until the essay selection closes.

Choose your essay question:

via the Assignment 2 Essay Question Selection link on the course learn online web site: Assignments & Quizzes > Assignment 02 — Essay > Assignment 2 Essay - Question Selection Choice Essay selection opens on Wednesday the 5th April 2023 (in Week 6) and closes on Wednesday the 12th of April 2023 (first week of the mid-semester break) – no exceptions. This gives all students a week to read through the essay questions and make an informed decision. Choose your essay questions carefully as you cannot change question. If you really want one of the questions, then ensure you select it as soon as it opens. The Course Coordinator will publish the results of the essay selection on Friday 14th of April 2023 on the course learn online web site.

1. REPRESENTING THE DIVINE IN GOTHIC CATHEDRALS

Gothic, Neo-Gothic, Architecture, Interior Architecture

What is the meaning of the Divine? What are the ways in which the Divine was used in the design of Gothic cathedrals and churches in the Middle Ages? How did the resulting design goals generate new structural technologies to support a Gothic cathedral, and how were they expressed in the building’s interior?

Primary Readings:

Watkin, Gelernter, Panofsky; and readings from the ‘Ancient & Medieval’ reading list.

2. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STRUCTURE AND ORNAMENT

Ancient Greek, Ancient Roman, Renaissance, Architecture

The compositional relationship between a building’s structure and its ornament is a critical theme of Western Renaissance architecture. What were the characteristics of Greek temple-front architecture and Roman-wall architecture? What are the challenges faced when combining Greek temple-front architecture with Roman-wall architecture?

Primary Readings:

Watkin, Gelernter, Wittkower, Alberti, Hersey; and readings from the 'Renaissance' reading list.

3. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE HUMAN BODY AND THE ORDERS

Renaissance, Neo–Classicism, Architecture, Interior Architecture

What is the meaning of the human body and the Orders? What is the relationship between the human body and the Orders in the Renaissance? What are the characteristics of the Orders and how were the Orders conceived of as a system to design and compose buildings?

Primary Readings:

Brunelleschi, Alberti, Bramante, Michaelangelo. In Neo-Classical refer to Perrault; Soufflot; Wren; Adam; Palladio; and readings from the 'Renaissance' and ‘Neo-Classicism’ reading list.

4. THE PICTURESQUE AND NEO-CLASSICAL APPROPRIATION

18th C, Neo–Classicism, Neo-Gothic, Picturesque, Interior

How were interior spaces composed as ‘unified volumes’ in the eighteenth century? Consider how Robert Adam’s ‘developed surface’ drawings were employed in order to promote certain kinds of spatial effects?

How did these interiors relate to the building in which they were conceived, and what relationship did they share with the picturesque landscape beyond?

A GUIDE TO PROCEDURE IN WORKING ON THE ESSAY

1. Read the set reading for the question and try to understand the argument. Some of these are difficult and will need re–reading and discussion to get a useful understanding;
2. Use the course textbook and weekly tutorial reading, and your lecture notes to try to develop a broader historical context of the question. Decide on some buildings from the period/s which will be useful examples to explain the argument;
3. Pick 1 (one), or at the most 2 (two), buildings/interiors which you can analyze in some level of detail. Work out which period will be your main area and, if appropriate, another period which you will use for contrast. Select an appropriate case study from the appropriate period to support your argument;
4. Primary Case Study must be from the list provided on the course learn online web site: “Case studies to use in your presentations and Essays”.
5. Do further reading on (A) the issue or argument (B the focus example building/interior;
6. Make sure that you are well prepared for the tutorials that relate to your question so that you can clarify any problems of understanding that you might have;
7. Keep good notes of your reading and photocopy the articles that might be important to you. Always remember to record the bibliographical information correctly. In your notes clearly distinguish quotes from your own notes so you are not confused later on when you come to write the essay;
8. Plan the essay in point form. Check that it will cover all the criteria;
9. Write a draft of the essay. Advice on essay writing and the form of the essay will be discussed in lecture presentations in Week 6. Further advice is available through the UniSA Library web site;
10. Preferably leave it a day or so before reading the draft. Try to be self–critical and identify parts which could be improved;
11. Go back to your readings and notes and see if further points strike you now that you have drafted the essay;
12. Re-write the essay in a final draft. Get a friend or family member not involved in the course to read the final draft to see it makes sense and to edit out your typing and grammatical mistakes;
13. Produce the essay in letter quality print-out with any necessary illustrations. Check that it meets the form required (refer to lecture);

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