Project I: Atelier Sergison

This semester, for the first time, we will be working on housing projects in Athens, Greece. Students will work in pairs. The focus of our work will be to address housing programmes and to find solutions to the needs of contemporary Athenian society. Specifically, we have selected a number of sites in somewhat ubiquitous neighbourhoods that we will study in detail in the hope that realistic proposals will emerge from an extensive process of survey. The sites chosen are currently empty and lie near the centre of the city. Particular attention will be placed on the exploration of experimental housing solutions and environmentally responsible forms of construction. There is a real need for the city to offer low-cost housing for the population. 
While in Athens, we will visit exemplars of Greek architecture, and our work will be supported by experts who will offer their insight into the issues we will be addressing. 

Working in pairs students are invited to develop comprehensive design proposals for one of a number sites in Athens, creating a coherent urban strategy which will then be tested and refined at a larger scale. A study trip to Athens is planned in the first weeks of the semester and students are asked to survey a seminal building in Athens. They will then photograph the site and draw it precisely at an appropriate scale. Most of the semester will be devoted to developing proposals for a housing and other uses for a project on the allotted site. 

In presence

Survey will be one of the key tools for developing projects as well as using references as a conceptual basis for proposals. This should be seen as a working method that places emphasis on learning from existing buildings and relies on interpretation and adjustment to produce a convincing project. 
Throughout the semester, lectures will be offered on relevant topics and themes to inform the work. 

Final reviews