- How do design practices and the scientific field of architecture respond in relation to the challenges of an era marked by environmental, political and social crises?
- How are lifestyles being reflected in the cities, infrastructure and the built environment and, in turn, how are spatial planning, buildings and cities shaping prevalent societal behaviors?
- How does all this get linked to the values of a society in terms of how it perceives nature and its relations with it?
As a continuation on the explorations of the concepts of the post-graduate course “Contemporary Theories and their applications to Design I: Ecology, Sustainability, Participation” [1] this course takes the form of a design-research lab with goals to conceive of methodologies and investigate strategies for the city, as a composite phenomenon composed of a material form and of its social structures.
Athens serves as a case study, research and design field. The area we are involved with is Victoria Square and the format resembles an intensive “Urban research lab”. It occurs both in the classroom and in the neighborhood itself, using the community “test-bed” as partners of the community project launched by Rick Lowe, an invited artist participating in Documenta 14.
