form & space

Arch 1302 · Coordinator: Pratana Klieopatinon & Terah Maher

Design Studio 1, posits that form & space are the architect’s primary materials; and that an essential task of the architect is the use of form to delineate and shape space.

The Studio explores architectural representation - the drawing and the model - as the primary vehicles through which architects practice critical perception, critical analysis, transformation of ideas, and the communication of spatial intention. The methodology of abstraction is the foundation of all architectural representation, and therefore the studio will introduce and emphasize a language of architecture, to support the clarity, precision, and quality of architectural ideas.

The studio will utilize a variety of representational methods, both analogue and digital, to develop and describe studio projects that examine the relationship between form and space. Methods of representation employed throughout the semester include hand-drafted drawings, physical models, diagramming, photography, vector drawings, and digital collage.

(Im)material: Museum of Extinction and Culture

Artifacts, Narratives, Memory, Material + Contexts

Arch 3602 · Coordinator: Peter Raab

Instructors: Adrian Anaya · Ali Ghazvinian, Ph.D. · Jaclynn Herbein · Pat Klieopatinon · Lauren Phillips · Ke Sun, Ph.D. · David Turturo, Ph.D.

Over the last half-century, 69% of wild animal species have ceased to exist. What is different from previous mass extinction events is the cause - humans. This studio challenges the boundaries of design, moving beyond simply formal, technical, and economic concerns to confront the cultural forces shaping our world. By focusing on the interplay between landscape, urbanism, geography, climate, and culture, the studio seeks to connect historical layers with future trajectories. Through deep mapping, hidden histories will be unearthed, navigating the complexities of a vacant, post-industrial seam between the Trinity River and downtown Fort Worth. The studio culminates in the design of a Museum of Extinction and Culture, a project that embodies the tangible and intangible dimensions of history, place, and identity. This museum, a repository of ancient artifacts woven with memory and unseen narratives, directly confronts the reality of the ongoing extinction and our own future within the Anthropocene.

an ACADEMIC VILLAGE on TTU’s Playa Lake

Arch 4601 · Instructor: Hendrika Buelinckx, Ph.D

This studio will explore the potential development of a multidisciplinary learning environment for design students in the twenty-first century.

Adaptive Reuse in the Age of Climate Change

Energy Transition and Reimagining Industrial Heritage

Arch 4601 · Instructor: Asma Mehan, Ph.D

In the face of escalating climate change, with global temperatures projected to rise by 4°C by 2100, this studio addresses the urgent need to rethink the architecture of the energy through the adaptive reuse of industrial heritage. Focusing on the oil and wind industries, students will explore sites across diverse contexts, addressing the socio-political, environmental, and cultural challenges that these transformations pose. Through a comparative and transnational approach, projects will develop innovative frameworks and design strategies that aim to revitalize these heritage sites while meeting the demands of climate change, engaging local communities, and potentially exceeding the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

By envisioning future scenarios and crafting context-specific interventions, students will propose solutions that ensure the relevance and functionality of both oil and wind heritage in a rapidly warming world. The studio seeks to equip students with the skills and knowledge necessary to contribute meaningfully to the discourse on urban resilience, shaping sustainable and climate-responsive futures for our cities.

Studio Mexico

Arch 5603 · Instructor: Joe Aranha

The pedagogy of the studio is based on learning from a short immersive experience in a culture and context different from one’s own. Students will travel to Mexico City and Puebla where they will visit selected noteworthy modern and contemporary buildings, have guided walks in a selection of neighborhoods and public spaces. They will spend several days in Cholula, a rapidly growing town classified as Pueblo Magico (Enchanted Town) because of its historical, archeological, cultural, and architectural significance. In Cholula planned interactions with faculty and students of architecture, from Universidad de las Americas, Puebla. (UDLAP) will complement investigations and assist in critical analysis of proposed sites, They will examine local architectural typologies, uses of space and materials. Upon return, students will develop a program, explore ideas, and propose designs for a contemporary community building and adjacent related public spaces in Cholula.

Students were informed about this studio early in the summer and assigned a place based on having a valid passport on the first day of class and the ability to travel for a week in mid-September.

Augmented Adaptive Additive Manufacturing for Resilient Housing

Arch 5603 · Instructor: Sina Mostafavi, Ph.D.

The "Augmented Adaptive Additive Manufacturing for Resilient Housing" studio is dedicated to co-producing resilient housing systems with and for the Navajo Nation community. By integrating advanced additive manufacturing with community-driven design practices, we aim to address socio-environmental challenges and empower the Navajo Nation through accessible and adaptive design-build technologies tailored to their unique context.

As the field of 3D printing architecture rapidly expands, the total market is expected to grow exponentially. However, context-aware and socio-environmentally informed solutions are still in their infancy, and prototyping for resilient integration of these emerging design-build technologies remains largely unexplored. This studio positions itself at the forefront of this critical exploration.

Leveraging the intersection of digital fabrication and resilient, circular design, we explore innovative methods for creating housing solutions that are both adaptable to environmental stresses and deeply connected to the Navajo cultural heritage. Our approach blends cultural knowledge with cutting-edge technologies, ensuring a harmonious integration of past and future in architectural practice.

LAND~SCAPE

operating at the intersection of human construction and the evolving nature of the planet

Arch 5679 · Instructor: Chris Taylor

Land Arts of the American West is a transdisciplinary field program expanding awareness of the intersection of human construction and the evolving nature of our planet. Land art begins with land and extends through complex social and ecological processes that create landscape—including everything from petroglyphs to roads, dwellings, monuments, and traces of actions. We camp for over fifty days and travel nearly 6,000 miles overland throughout the West immersed in the primacy of first-person experience and the realization that human-land relationships are rarely singular. Field taught in conjunction with ARCH 5378 and 5379 Land Arts Seminar and Reflection. Sustained bodies of work are produced from research inquires that are presented on campus for critique and exhibition.

Applications for Fall 2025 are due to the Graduate School in February 2025.