Architecture 2023
ARCH 001: Conversations about Architect Arthur Erickson: interviews with clients and collaborators; (Covo)
Professor David Covo
david.covo [at] mcgill.ca |
Research Area
The architecture of Arthur Charles Erickson; Canadian architecture |
Description
The primary goal of this project is a series of video interviews (online and in-person) with clients and collaborators of celebrated Canadian architect and ۲ݮƵ graduate Arthur Charles Erickson (1924-2009). The project completes a SURE 2022 exercise that prepared the foundation for the execution of the interviews this summer. Outcomes of the 2022 work included research ethics training, Tri-Council certification, Research Ethics Board approvals, development of interview protocols and a list of subjects, familiarization with the equipment and a ‘beta test’ interview with one subject. The 2023 project will also advance the research on Erickson’s work begun in 2016 with support from previous SURE programs and other sources. The main outcomes to date include: the Arthur Erickson Bibliography, a database that now includes over 650 references to his buildings and his writings; the Index of Projects, which provides information on more than 800 projects; and Erickson at the Movies, a video archive that explores the use of Erickson’s buildings in commercial film, television, and video productions. Crucial to our understanding of Erickson’s legacy and the stewardship of his built work is the kind of information that can only be compiled from interviews with clients, collaborators, and the ‘Erickson alumni’ - the students, interns and architects who worked in his offices in Canada, the US and abroad - who are listed in a separate database that includes over 300 names. The project is co-supervised by Professors David Theodore and David Covo, and the interviews will be coordinated by doctoral student Katrin Zavgorodny-Freedman. Tasks per student
1. Carry out archival and library research: (Canadian Centre for Architecture, the Canadian Architectural Archive at the University of Calgary, The John Bland Canadian Architecture Collection at ۲ݮƵ University). 2. Update existing databases (Arthur Erickson Bibliography, Index of Projects, Erickson Alumni) and the list of interviewees. 3. Collaborate with doctoral student Katrin Zavgorodny-Freedman in the planning and execution of selected interviews. |
Deliverables per student
The video interviews themselves and a searchable interactive database on the work of one of Canada's most important architects. |
Number of positions
1 Academic Level
No preference Location of project
in-person |
ARCH 002: Urban Design for Sustainability; (Friedman)
Professor Avi Friedman
avi.friedman [at] mcgill.ca |
Research Area
Architecture and urban design |
Description
Current planning and design modes of cities and neighborhoods face challenges of philosophy and form. Past approaches no longer sustain new demands and require innovative thinking. The need for a new outlook is propelled by fundamental changes that touch upon environmental, economic and social aspects. The depletion of non-renewable natural resources, elevated levels of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change are a few of the environmental challenges that force designers to reconsider conceptual approaches in favor of ones that promote better suitability between communities and nature. Consideration of overall planning concepts that minimize the development’s carbon footprint through district heating, passive solar gain, net-zero residences and preservation of the site’s natural assets are some of the contemporary strategies that architects, planners and builders are integrating into their thought processes and residential design practices. Increasing costs of material, labor, land and infrastructure pose economic challenges, with affordability paramount among them. The need to do more with less brings about concepts that include denser places, adaptable and expandable dwellings, and smaller-sized yet quality-designed housing. Also, the need to reduce utility costs has given rise to better insulation, which benefits both the environment and the occupant. Social challenges are also drawing the attention of designers, builders and homeowners. As the “baby-boom” generation is retiring, housing an elderly population will take priority in many nations. Walkable communities, aging in place and multigenerational living are some of the concepts considered. In addition, live-work environments have become part of the economic reality for those who wish to work from home, which has become possible through digital advances. The intention of this research is to offer information on contemporary innovative community design concepts and illustrate them with outstanding international examples. Tasks per student
1. Research, find and describe outstanding international case studies 2. Draw diagrams that illustrate urban design principles 3. Edit and comment on written material |
Deliverables per student
1. Short text descriptions of case studies 2. Line drawing/diagrams |
Number of positions
1 Academic Level
Year 2 Location of project
TBD |
ARCH 003: ReCONstruct: Building Energy Retrofit Solutions for Canada (NSERC Alliance); (Jemtrud)
Professor Michael Jemtrud
michael.jemtrud [at] mcgill.ca |
Research Area
Architectural and engineering design, Building Climate Retrofit strategies, envelope and mechanical system design, energy modelling, socio-ecological design and knowledge frameworks, multi-scalar data visualization. Life Cycle Analysis. |
Description
The building and construction sectors are responsible for at least 39% of global carbon emissions. The majority of global housing stock that will be inhabited in 2050 already exists (70-90% in Canada) and more than 67% of that building stock was constructed with no energy code in place. Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reductions from building energy retrofits are proven to be cost-effective and can be realized more quickly that reductions in other sectors. A harmonized building energy retrofits initiative provides a timely and compelling opportunity to simultaneously tackle urgent climate change mitigation, clean energy transition, affordable housing, natural resource and economic imperatives. Equally important in the upgrading of the building stock is to address inevitable adaptation and resilience ultimatums as climate change marches on at a pace we now know to be more aggressive than anticipated. In the face of immense environmental, social and economic challenges exacerbated by the current global health crisis, international agencies,governments, and institutes are calling for considerable and urgent investment into building retrofit measures. However,even with such a substantial investment, structured building energy retrofit platforms, effective business and legislative mechanisms, and overall capacity does not exist for implementation at scale. ReCONstruct will address key conceptual,knowledge, technology gaps to mount a fully functioning Building Energy Retrofit program and substantially contribute to the development of decarbonization pathways for the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) sectors. The goal of the R&D program is to invent a model 'turn-key' deep energy retrofit process solution capable of meeting large-scale demand. Tasks per student
1) State-of-the-art research in retrofit prefabricated panel design and manufacturing; 2) High-performance building envelope design, engineering, and manufacturing including energy-structural-LCA analysis; 3) Design and engineering of high efficiency HVAC and on-site renewable energy systems. All tasks will be in collaboration with graduate and faculty research teams. |
Deliverables per student
1) Research and data collection in the design of prefabricated envelopes (manufacturing). Framework document; 2) Design, analysis of retrofit prefabricated panel design including BIM models of details; 3) Design and specification of active systems (HVAC and energy) for a retrofit pilot project. A deliverables are in collaboration with graduate student and faculty/industry research teams. |
Number of positions
3 Academic Level
No preference Location of project
in-person |
ARCH 004: Computational Reenactments: Hybrids of Past and New Design Technologies; (Vardouli)
Professor Theodora Vardouli
theodora.vardouli [at] mcgill.ca |
Research Area
computational design, software studies, history of architecture |
Description
Student researchers in this SURE project will revive historic computer programs for architectural design and reimagine their hardware and interaction possibilities inspired by emerging technological tendencies. The computer program reenactments will combine moments of faithful reproduction of algorithms found in the archive with emerging technologies in digital design, such as text-to-image systems. This approach draws from recent work in experimental archaeology of computer-aided design (Cardoso Llach and Donaldson, 2019) and expands it toward new directions of speculative and critical design. The first half of the summer project will focus on a landmark system for design decision making known as HIerarchical DEcomposition System (HIDECS) developed by Christopher Alexander and Marvin L. Manheim in the start of the 1960s. Building on the work of former SURE student Arlene Chen who reconstructed the decomposition algorithm in Java, the SURE 2023 students will design and build the system's interactive elements and will also reimagine its “recomposition” procedure —where a designer pieced together elemental diagrams to generate a full design— through recently popularized machine learning tools that translate text to images. The reenactment will be conceived as an installation, and we will pursue making it available to the public for manipulation. The second part of the project will include sketching out a second reenactment based on the exhaustive survey of historic generative design techniques conducted by former SURE students Lukas Boivin and Yang-Zi Sun. Throughout the summer, students will benefit from the computing and fabrication resources of the CoDEx lab at the School of Architecture. Tasks per student
Student 1: Design interaction protocols for the HIDECS reenactment and code them in Java; Conceptualize and implement the program recomposition procedure based on text-to-image or other generative systems Student 2: Design and build hardware for physical installation of the HIDECS reenactment; Curate the presentation of the project in a public venue. Students will work collaboratively in the second part of the project to brain-storm and begin implementing a new reenactment based on the experience developed in the first part. |
Deliverables per student
Student 1: A computer program that adds interactive events to the HIDECS algorithm and connects its recomposition procedure with a text-to-image platform Student 2: A physical installation of the HIDECS reenactment Both students: A sketch of a new computer system reenactment |
Number of positions
2 Academic Level
No preference Location of project
in-person |