Chalmers leads research in applied architecture and collaborates
with a large network of stakeholders in society. The School of
Architecture has a tradition of maintaining an innovative approach to
teaching at the forefront of design education, while at the same time
relying on established experience and the integration of research into
the curriculum. Chalmers Architecture is noted for
- its humanistic view of architecture;
- design projects based on real tasks and problems in society;
- contacts with users in briefing and designing;
- open interaction between teachers and students; and
- an inspiring atmosphere free of prestige.
Programme
We have a project-based approach to learning in which studies are
grounded in real-world situations and problems. This provides a wealth
of opportunity for students to develop increasingly sophisticated
design skills, beginning with basic sketching and progressing until
they can address the full complexity of a real architectural design
project. The curriculum structure is a series of theory courses
interwoven with design studio projects. At the start of the first year
of study, all students share a common introduction to the field. In the
yearsthat follow, they choose to specialize in one of the following
three studio areas:
Matter, space, structure
This specialization studies architecture “from within”, as a field
of knowledge with relative autonomy. Architecture is matter formed into
space, where all three factors - matter, form/structure and space - are
indispensable. The basic elements of architecture are: materials, the
structures they are assembled into, the expressive potential of those
structures as architectural form, and the nature of spaces and the
relations between them.
Future Visions for Healthcare, Housing and Work
The studio explores renewed architectural approaches in situations
of residential healthcare in an ageing society, in housing inventions
corresponding to emerging ways of residing and in rethinking complex
hospital design as healing environments. Projects are unfolding in
collaboration with users and stakeholders and will range from analysis
of specific sites to innovative solutions responding to urgent societal
and cultural demands. It is the only architectural programme in Sweden
with a healthcare profile.
Urban and Architectural Design
The point of departure in the studio is an understanding of
architecture and the city as a dynamic system and the design process as
a field of research. The aim is to develop alternative strategies and
ways to operate and catalyse change within global transformations
affecting cities today. The field of study is the impact of
globalisation on architecture and urbanities.
