Spain is both an ancient country and a modern society. The objective of the course is to stimulate students to look at and start to understand the "built environment" or the "patriomonio construido" of this place where we will live, Spain, and to understand what we see in light of the history, geography, and self-perceptions of the people and the place. This class looks at the way that different societies have built on the land that is now Spain over two millennia of Roman, Moorish, and more recently several systems of Spanish governance. Starting with an architectural framework, which is fundamentally human, the class will use first-hand field trips, inquiry of contemporary users and directed reading to inquire about and relate the cultural, economic, social and other roles of the built national heritage today and over the history of the country.

Field trips will include visits to major sites in Madrid and, as we can around Spain. to look at historical and current economic, social and historical centers. We will look at big symbolic buildings, more intimate public spaces like parks, and the home. We will look at the design and use of the built environment from the perspectives of the varied geography of the country, the evolving economy of the country, the Spanish and Moorish cultural heritage of the peoples, and the changing national political governance.

Students will create simple electronic portfolios of their work, including digital photos; their own sketches and diagrams; descriptions of what they find in literature, art, history and personal visits; and discussions of the way architectural design, building use, history and self-perception relate. We will use the portfolio as the basis for discussions; as a place to structure and integrate multidisciplinary perspectives; as a student and faculty-initiated progress assessment, and as a place to integrate the visual, conceptual and emotional views of what we see and experience. We will use the portfolios to create significant thinking, reflection, writing and presentation experiences.

Toda la tarea sera presentado y discutido en espanol.

last updated 21 October 2009