Studio 36

Departure Point

Marnie Morieson

Studio Description

Taking as its departure point Lars Von Trier’s film The Five Obstructions, this studio invites the student to steal the parti pris of a seminal work of architecture. The stolen parti will be subjected to a series of new constraints, and ultimately will be transformed by the student into a wholly new work.

The studio requires a deep and rigorous analysis of precedent and the creative and sensitive re-application of architectural concepts and devices to new landscapes, built and cultural environments.

Studio Outcome

This is an iterative studio that encourages a design process that is responsive to the physical and cultural particularities of site.

The initial 6 weeks of semester will comprise a set of short esquisses that interrogate a precedent, and subject it to a series of new constraints. The esquisses will be presented at mid semester and students will be encouraged to adopt a uniform presentation style to facilitate comparison. During the second half of the semester students will have the opportunity to focus on a singular site and set of constraints, and will required to produce a comprehensive set of drawings and models to represent the transformation of their stolen parti.

Studio Leader

Marnie Morieson is a Senior Project Architect at Kennedy Nolan and a freelance writer for Architecture Media.

Readings & References

• Von Trier, Lars "The Five Obstructions" [Film] *Leth, Jorgen "The Perfect Human" [Film]
• Curtis, William J. R "Chapter 21: International, National, Regional: the Diversity of a New Tradition." In 'Modern Architecture Since 1900' 3rd Ed 371-379 London: Phaidon, 1996
• Canizaro, Vincent, "Introduction" in 'Architectural Regionalism: Collected Writings on Place, Identity, Modernity and Tradition. 16-33 New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2007
• Agrest, Diana "Design versus Non-Design" in 'Architecture Theory Since 1968' ed Michael K Hays, 200-213, MIT Press, 2000
• Tschumi, Bernard, “Bernard Tschumi : Architecture : Concept & Notation, Paris Éditions du Centre Pompidou, 2014

Schedule Mondays 18:15-21:15 in Room 238; Thursdays 18:15-21:15 in Room 238

Contact Handbook Key Dates