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| ARCH0068-4 | Urban design and site analysis
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| Duration : | 15h Th, 15h Pr |
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| Credits/ECTS : |
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| Holder(s) : | Jacques Teller |
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| Language : | French language |
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| Course contents : | Town planning is a relatively young discipline. It only really became distinct from architecture and the "Act of State" doctrine during the 19th century and it wasn't until the start of the 20th century that town plans were to take a truly scientific dimension.
Town planning no longer meant simply proposing diagrams of towns based on the ideals of the time (mediaeval, renaissance, baroque etc.) but meant validating hypotheses relating to how towns operated and their qualities based on empirical evidence. Rationalism, sometimes tinged with progressivism, thus influenced all town planning thinking and the question of the role of the town far beyond the small inner circle of architects and artists: geographers, doctors, historians and engineers took over the subject and brought their disciplinary tools to bear.
The current image of rationalism and urbanism today remains linked to the functional movement which developed at the beginning of the 20th century in the heart of the hygienist movement. Rationalism and functionalism should not, however, be confused. The renewal of thinking about the town in effect gave way in the 19th century to different trains of thought which more or less all had recourse to modernity. From the 1960s, new actors played an increasingly significant role in town planning thought: sociologists, political scientists and psychologists. These emerging disciplines did not question the rationalism and empiricism of the town but wanted to integrate new points of view into it, points of view which until then had been marginal. Methods of observing and interpreting the town have become considerably more developed in recent years. |
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| Course objective : | In-depth analysis of the urban environment in which all buildings exist is more crucial that ever for project leaders, whether they be architects or engineers.
Town planning raises an idea which is analytical, strategic, operational and regulatory. The existing course notes focus on the analytical approach. The objective that will be followed in this course is to provide the tools for interpreting the constructed urban fabric in its complexity and richness. Teaching is designed as backup for reflection in relation to existing and more particularly in relation to recent changes to towns. Each town is in fact the product of the accumulation of different development strata and different theoretical strains which have punctuated the development of urban thought, as well as the sequence of activities which marked the individual history of each town. Learning to "read" the environment is not only learning to recognise the footprints of the past but also to interpret their recent changes and the way in which these are appropriated in order to make space for its inhabitants.
From this point of view, the urban environment will be treated as a system bringing together a series of elements. |
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| Prerequisites : | Ability to read maps and plans. Graphic expression. |
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| Workshops : | The methods and concepts seen in class will applied to part of the town of Liège. This work is conducted through the following three themes, using three analytical scales:
1. Evolution of the urban fabric.
This analysis is carried out on the basis of maps and historical plans, from the point of view of studying the chronological evolution of the urban structure (first structural elements, densification of building, creation of pavements, ...). The theme will be approached from the angle of urban growth: reasons for growth and regulatory elements (line, hub, fence, ...).
2. The block, the land parcel system and the road network.
The points addressed include the morphology of the block (regular, irregular or leaning in one direction); the use of areas constituting a block; the dimensions and proportions of built and non-built areas; continuity, discontinuity and rhythm of the built façade; organisation of the road network surrounding the block: typology (streets, avenues, alleys, boulevards, configuration, junctions) and relevant networks (pedestrians, cyclists, cars, ...).
3- Typo-morphology of the built system and analysis of urban functions. This involves separating out a typology of built shapes and to relate this typology to an inventory of the functions and activities occurring in the part of the town being studied.
The written work will be submitted in both PDF and paper format. The work carried out in previous years and assessment tables are available from the course leader. |
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| Organization : | The course is organised around seven main chapters:
1- urban growth
2- structures
3- site
4- typology
5- activities
6- use
7- mobility
These different aspects are addressed from a systematic point of view and relationships between them will be demonstrated during the course as well as through the practical work. |
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| Written notes : | Overheads used during the course will be given to students. Students are asked to read a reference book in the field of town planning. |
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| Assessment : | Half of the assessment will relate to the practical work and half will relate to a written exam.
A mock assessment is organised halfway through the course. It will enable students to familiarise themselves with the assessment method and their degree of knowledge and understanding of the course.
Corrected texts from previous years (both of the mock and final exams) are available from the course leader. |
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| Contacts : | Jacques Teller, teacher,
room 0/444, phone 04 366 94 99, Jacques.Teller@ulg.ac.be |
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