In Situ

The colloquium at ENSAG Grenoble treated forms of ”hors les murs” architectural education in which students get immersed in a variety of real situations and experiences that act as a learning accelerator.

The focus and reference is the School of Commons three-year Erasmus+ program which began in Saint Laurent en Royans France last August. Next year ASoC will continue in Belmonte, Calabria and the year after in Thesprotia. Students from the NTUA, Politécnico di Torino, and ENSAG Grenoble schools of architecture immerse themselves in the realities of rural communities, interact with each other, local people, and architect collectives and learn by doing.

My “In Situ & Genius Loci, pleasures and controversies” keynote speech treated the connection between the two terms, and it introduced analogies, a genealogy and a personal history, as well as the approach in the undergraduate and post graduate courses taught. The presentation sparked many positive reactions and a very lively discussion.

The presentation may be found here