USC/MXP Spring 2012 School of Architecture

University of Southern California

Arch 424: Field Studies in Architecture

2 units
Kim Coleman, Program Director
Instructors:
Arch 424: Cigolle, Coleman, Dolinski, Furnari, Lee, Moscatelli, Mundwiler

The purpose of Architecture 424 is to examine existing buildings to understand the

external forces that have influenced and directed the form and shape of the architectural
response. This entails the on-site study of the organizational, spatial, material, and
structural elements of a building in its physical, cultural and historic context.

An important aspect of field research in architecture is the opportunity to gain insight

into the relationships between design language, building proposition and construction
process of specific periods/architects/buildings. It is an occasion to discover not only
the tenets upon which an architect bases his/her work, but also how these intentions
resolve complex relationships between building, site and the cultural/theoretical
contexts in which they were constructed. Through analytical diagrams, and text, the
objective of these exercises will be to demonstrate how external forces influence or
direct the form and shape of the architectural response. The analytical study may be
derived from on-site sketches, measured drawings, photo documentation, depending
on specific assignments from the instructors.

The course will address three main areas:

1 Cultural/Theoretical Context – How is the building situated in a broader context
of architectural theory and debate that characterize the cultural climate of the era? What
critical cultural, political, social and economic circumstances define, influence and
distinguish the era? Inquiries will include parallel discussions about the influence of
philosophy, art, cinema, social media, and other forms of cultural expression.

2 City/Site Context – How do the physical character/quality of spaces, scales and

textures of the city and specific site influence the development of the building? Is the
building an agent for urban change? Are urban rituals and events reconfigured as a
result of the building’s construction? Additionally, what are the relationships between the
landscape and architectural elements – does the landscape reinforce the architecture or
contrast with it?

3 The Architect – What are critical concepts or working methods utilized by the
architect? What issues are most relevant to the understanding of project at hand?
Analysis will focus on the building craft as a vehicle for understanding construction
ideas.
Arch 424 Schedule and Percentage of Final Grade – Separate assignment handouts
will be provided for each part. Participation and attendance are 20% of each field
studies exercise.
1. 20% Rome Field Studies assignment: January 19th – 21st – Furnari, (Coleman)
2. 40% Switzerland, Germany, France, Austria Field Studies assignment – Lee,
Mundwiler
3. 20% Terragni/Milan Field Studies assignments – Dolinski, Moscatelli,
(Coleman)
4. 20% Independent Field Studies assignment – Cigolle, Coleman

PART 1: Field Studies in Architecture – Rome

Michele Furnari

The intention of this initial portion of the course is to develop a procedure for studying
the built fabric of typical Italian cities and towns, based on an accurate graphic analysis
of the existing architecture. The guiding idea is that, until the moment of an advanced
phase of development of the modern city, especially in Italy, the interpretation of the
urban transformations in the pre-modern city must be based, above all, on temporal
correlations. The assumption is that the distinguishing phenomena are strictly
comparable and by nature homogeneous and, therefore, that the raison d’etre of
the historical city is precisely its continuity and, above all, lies in the persistence
of some of its foundational elements, whether they be material or abstract, such
as a relic, the structure of a plan or an alignment. This makes it necessary to read
the substantially homogeneous nature of the urban elements present in a city,
even if they belong to distant historical periods.
As a consequence the pre-modern Italian city does not present a substantial fracture
between one urban fact and another and that, on the contrary, there are particular
elements which are capable of functioning as catalysts for the urban process and which
have, over time, conditioned the development of its parts. The study is structured by
beginning with the study of a building whose exceptional characteristics and history
have led it to play a determinant role in the configuration of a part of the city in order to
concentrate, successively, on those elements which, set off by the reconstruction of the
principal aspects of the architectural project, have contributed over time to the formation
and the stratification of this particular urban space. The objective is also that of
confronting the often-existing margin between design hypotheses, its effective
concretization and the urban transformations that have taken place later.

Three days of studies introduce the urban history of Roman sites and the construction
phases of some important buildings. Each student, without any assistance other than
that provided by the direct observation of architectural characteristics, first develops a
schematic plan of the site, paying particular attention to proportions and spatial
relationships. This plan sketch includes the building being studied as well as the
surrounding built fabric. Once a site plan, even if unmeasured, has been prepared and
which has its own geometry and proportion coherent with the physical consistence of
the buildings, the student identifies a series of characteristic sections – transversal and
longitudinal – to be developed according to a similar methodology. The sections play a
twofold role: they serve either to document a transformation of the space along a
longitudinal axis of travel or they are a tool for the three dimensional reconstruction of a
space (for example the Piazza della Cancelleria) by tying the vertical information to the
plan.

Once a sufficient number of sections have been obtained, each one is used to set up a
perspective view, with one or two vanishing points. In this way the two-dimensional
information, collected in plan and section is synthesized in a three dimensional sketch
that provides the geometric characteristics of the site and the fundamental proportional
relationships. The aim is for the students to analyze the compositional elements of
urban space, completing the sketches with the necessary and most significant
architectural detailing that characterizes the formal quality of the buildings, providing a
description, even in details, of the most characteristic elements of the built fabric and
urban life.

The intention is that drawing exercises are to be completed on site, so be strategic in

drawing the hierarchy of relationships that you see and understand. The intent of this
portion of the course is to enable students to understand and analyze the inherent
geometries and proportions fundamental to many buildings, and developing the to better
see and diagram the underlying formal architectonic structure/language of the built
environment.

Assignments will need to be scanned and put together once you get to Como and
emailed to Kim Coleman as a PDF to kcoleman@usc.edu by Friday, February 24th.  

PART 2: Field Studies in Architecture – Berlin

Cara Lee, Stephan Mundwiler

COMPARISON: The NEW NATIONAL GALLERY by Mies van der Rohe and The
BERLIN PHILHARMONIC HALL by Hans Sharoun

DOCUMENTATION: Construct your comparison based on your observation and

experience as a user (attending concert and exhibition for example) and form your
critical opinion and argumentation. Consider the many issues that are related to
architecture: e.g. spatial quality, light, acoustics, functional aspect, aesthetics, entry,
circulation, approach, environment, contextual relationship to surrounding, sustainability,
historic aspect and its symbolic gesture and nature, materials…etc. You may choose
one particular architectural issue and compare and contrast it with respect to each
building.

METHOD: Written descriptions, notes, field sketches, and photo documentation.

DUE: March 6th by midnight uploaded to Dropbox.

PART 3A: Field Studies in Architecture – Milan
Matteo Moscatelli

Some of the buildings we visit include not only those of Modern and Contemporary
Milan, but also a few historical buildings, including the Duomo and Piazza del Duomo,
Santa Maria delle Grazie, Sant’Ambrogio, San Lorenzo, Santa Maria presso San Satiro,
and a walk along the interior circle of the City where we will discuss the history of the
walls. The first field study focuses on the architecture of Modern Milan, and in
particular Torre Velasca by BBPR, Corso Italia building by Luigi Moretti, Ina building by
Piero Bottoni and Casa Rustici by Giuseppe Terragni. The second field study looks at
the architecture of Contemporary Milan, and in particular the Bocconi Campus, with
the new Aula Magna and the University Departments by Grafton Architects, and the
Garibaldi-Repubblica Area, with the new Regione Lombardia building.

Each day of Field Studies analysis will explore two of the examples that were visited
and describe a comparison between their features, including compositional aspects,
both between the building and the city and the different parts of the building,
construction aspects, thinking about the relationship between the structure and the
shape of the building, and distribution aspects, explaining how the building works, how
one can access it, and what the relationship is between the building and the public
areas.

FIELD TRIP I: MODERN MILAN

th
29 February 2012

Make an analysis, through drawings and a written description, about 2 of the examples
that we saw during this field trip, and try to make a comparison between their features.

The analysis must be based on 3 criteria:

- the description of the composition aspects, both between the building and the city
and the different parts of the building
- the description of the construction aspects, thinking about the relationship between
the structure and the shape of the building;
- the description of the distribution aspects, explaining how the building works, how
we can access to it, and what is the relationship between the building and the public
areas.

FIELD TRIP II: CONTEMPORARY MILAN

7th March 2012

Make an analysis, through drawings and a written description, about 2 of the examples
that we saw during this
field trip, and try to make a comparison between their features.
The analysis must be based on 3 criteria:
- the description of the composition aspects, both between the building and the city
and the different parts of the building
- the description of the construction aspects, thinking about the relationship between
the structure and the shape of the building;
- the description of the distribution aspects, explaining how the building works, how
we can access to it, and what is the relationship between the building and the public
areas.

All the drawings must be freehand, black ink, vertical orientation. The file to prepare
must be a JPG of 300 dpi at A4 or a PDF.A short written synthesis of 4 lines,
describing the most relevant features of the examples chosen, is welcome. The
description can be either handwritten or, if typed with the computer, separating the text
from the drawing.

PART 3B: Field Studies in Architecture – Terragni in

Como
Mike Dolinski

February 22nd 2012

The full day class will study the work of Giuseppe Terragni
Monumento Al Caduti, designed by Sant’Elia & built by Terragni
Novocomum, 1928-29
Casa Del Fascio, 1933-36
Asilo Infantile “Sant’Elia”, 1936-37
Casa Giuliani Frigerio, 1939-40

Assignment: A hand drawn analysis, on at least one A4 sheet, of what you consider the
significant aspect from either the Terragni or Ticino full day field studies. The analysis
can be an assembly from your sketch books. Any text should be separate so the idea is
to present a beautifully composed "picture" of your thoughts. So whether it's a
circulation system (architectural) as in "Giuliani Frigerio" or a structural system (tectonic)
as in the "Casa del Fascio" it's your call. If you choose to use an example from Terragni
for Arch 426, Tectonics, the subject of your analysis for Arch 424 should be taken from
the Ticino field studies. Include a brief description of your intentions.

1. The PDF of the exercise in high resolution... if A4 format... from a 300 dpi original file,
for example.
2. Each image of the PDF saved as an individual JPG at 800 or 1000 Pixels wide by no
more than 1200 pixels in height w/ text that will be legible online given this format.

Due March 25th.

PART 4: Field Studies in Architecture – Independent
Explorations
Identify an aspect of architectural interest that you have observed and explore/explain it
using three different building/place examples that you have visited, either through field
studies or your own trips. This should be done through a series of critical statements,
diagrams, sketches, annotated and/or collaged photographs. Compare three time
frames as they relate to your topic of interest & chosen examples:

Initiation: the time the work was first designed/built: Consider what the original
intention, role or objective was for the building/place in relation to your topic of interest.
What was the catalyst for the initial work?

Present: How has the original intention, purpose or objective evolved? Is it the same or
different? How? Why? What has been the focus of transformation over time to date? –
material (masonry to curtain wall skin), program (industrial wharf building to tourist hotel,
bull ring theater to pop concert arena) historical transformation (build new behind an
existing facade, new roof over existing space).

Future: What new opportunity may be drawn from the present situation of the
building/place? What intervention could create new possibilities to expand on the
original objectives or project new possibilities to energize or transform a place? How
has the architect intervened in the situation & what was it as a ‘modern’ intervention,
what makes it ‘modern’ relative to previous contexts and what is the future for the new
NEW?

Prepare your assessment in the form of a reduced size PDF document, due by email to
Kim Coleman by the time of final portfolios, Weds, May 23rd.

Extra Credit: Field Studies in Architecture –

Observations on Rationalist Architecture in Como
Using your experiences of the hearing the lectures at Milan Politecnico, studying
Rationalist architecture in the Como workshop, observing the works of Terragni, and
readings from the MXP library, identify an aspect that you find interesting about the era
and its buildings and demonstrate it through a series of captioned photographs,
sketches (yours or the or those of the original architects), diagrams, and a brief
explanation. This should NOT be an encyclopedic collection of images, but a group
that communicates your point of view.

Please submit as a PDF & a set of JPGs, up to 800 pixels wide x 1200 pixels high…
recommend a landscape proportion of 800 px wide x 600 px high. In any case, all jpg’s
must be the same pixel size (use white to fill if necessary, justify image to top left corner
of canvas). You may chose to use the type of format that was used for your 425
Readings on Urbanism where text & image are organized on a page by page format, or,
captions for each image or composition of images, may be submitted as a list in the
same order as the jpg images as word file with a separate text with title and one
paragraph or a series of short description is to be submitted as well.

due by email to Kim Coleman by the date of final portfolios, Weds, May 23rd.

NAAB Accreditation
The USC School of Architecture’s five year BARCH degree and the two year M.ARCH degree
are accredited professional architectural degree programs. All students can access and review
the NAAB Conditions of Accreditation (including the Student Performance Criteria) on the NAAB
Website, http://www.naab.org/accreditation/2004_Conditions.aspx.

Course Policies
10.1 Statement on Academic Integrity:
USC seeks to maintain an optimal learning environment. General principles of academic
honesty include the concept of respect for the intellectual property of others, the expectation
that individual work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an instructor, and the
obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by others as well as to avoid
using another’s work as one’s own. All students are expected to understand and abide by these
principles. Scampus, the Student Guidebook, contains the Student Conduct Code in Section
11.00, while the recommended sanctions are located in Appendix A:
http://www.usc.edu/dept/publications/SCAMPUS/gov/. Students will be referred to the Office of
Student Judicial Affairs and Community Standards for further review, should there be any
suspicion of academic dishonesty. The Review process can be found at:
http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/SJACS/.

10.2 Turnitin Review

Plagiarism, the copying of any work in whole or in part without citation, will not be tolerated. If
plagiarism is committed by any student and is confirmed by the instructor, the student will
receive an F grade for the assignment, and possibly the course. The severity of the violation
will also determine whether the student is reported to the appropriate University offices for
further sanctions. Students will be required to submit Final Degree Project Papers to Turnitin
review on the USC Blackboard system.

10. 3 Attendance:
Attending classes is a basic responsibility of every USC student who is enrolled in courses at
the School of Architecture. The School of Architecture’s general absence policy is to allow a
student to miss the equivalent of one week of class sessions, for Arch 501 this means one class,
without directly affecting the student’s grade and ability to complete the course (this is for
excused absences for any confirmed personal illness/family emergency/religious observance or
for any unexcused absences). For each absence over that allowed number, the student’s letter
grade can be lowered up to one full letter grade.

If additional absences are required for a personal illness/family emergency/religious observance,

the situation should be discussed and evaluated with the faculty member and appropriate Chair
on a case-by-case basis.
All students should understand that any false representation of their attendance is grounds to be
considered for a violation of ethics before the University.

Any student not in class within the first 10 minutes is considered tardy, and any student absent
(in any form including sleep, technological distraction, or by leaving mid class for a long
bathroom/water break) for more than 1/3 of the class time can be considered fully absent. Each
tardy class counts as half an absence. If arriving late, a student must be respectful of a class in
session and do everything possible to minimize the disruption caused by a late arrival. It is
always the student’s responsibility to seek means (if possible) to make up work missed due to
absences, not the instructor’s, although such recourse is not always an option due to the nature
of the material covered.

Being absent on the day a presentation, quiz or paper is due can lead to an “F” for that
presentation, quiz, or paper (unless the faculty concedes the reason is due to an excusable
absence for personal illness/family emergency/religious observance.

10.4 Rehabilitation Act (Section 504) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA):
The University of Southern California is committed to full compliance with the Rehabilitation Act
(Section 504) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). As part of the implementation of
this law, the University will continue to provide reasonable accommodation of academically
qualified students with disabilities so those student can participate fully in the University’s
educational programs and activities. Although USC is not required by law to change the
“fundamental nature of essential curricular components of its programs in order to
accommodate the needs of disabled students,” the University will provide reasonable academic
accommodations. The specific responsibility of the University administration and all faculty
serving in a teaching capacity is to ensure the University’s compliance with this policy.

The general definition of a student with a disability is any person who has “a physical or mental
impairment which substantially limits one or more of such person’s major life activities,” and any
person who has “a history of, or is regarded as having, such an impairment.” Reasonable
academic and physical accommodations include but are not limited to: extended time on
examinations; substitution of similar or related work for a non-fundamental program
requirement; time extensions on papers and projects; special testing procedures; advance
notice regarding book list for visually impaired and some learning disabled students; use of
academic aides in the classroom such as note takers and sign language interpreters; early
advisement and assistance with registration; accessibility for students who use wheelchairs and
those with mobility impairments; and need for special classroom furniture or special equipment
in the classroom.

10.5 Obtaining Accommodations:

Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a disability is required to register
with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved
accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is delivered to your
instructor as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open 8:30 AM.
– 5:00 PM., Monday through Friday. Disability Services & Programs contact: 213.740.0776.