The Design Brief
- Students must select an existing building in their city or country and transform it with a considered architectural addition.
- Students are encouraged to define their own program for the building, the program must act as a compelling catalyst for the existing structure and be clearly justified in the design statement “ A Community Cultural Centre “ can be baseline as starting point, but unexpected typologies are encouraged
- Students may choose existing building from the full spectrum of built environments
- Option 1 : Heritage/Historical Sites: Recognized landmarks or traditional structures to explore embedded climate wisdom and cultural memory.
- Option 2 : Generic/Everyday Structures: Anonymous office blocks, disused warehouses, or utilitarian builds to correct environmental disconnect and radically redefine purpose.
- Criteria for Existing Building:
- It need not be architecturally significant or celebrated (can be a protected landmark or an ordinary, imperfect shell)
- It must be real and occupy a specific place.
- Its history (monumental or mundane, wise or flawed) must reveal something about the place’s culture and climate.