Summer Studio in Classical Architecture | Week 2

The 2015 Summer Studio students were hard at work as they entered into Week 2. In addition to the start of the Summer Studio design project, the week was jam-packed with lectures on Proportion, The Classical Language, Design, The Esquisse, Drawing and Traditional Urbanism and with visits to architectural firms and field trips.  Rachel Fletcher, an author and expert on proportion and geometric harmony, introduced the students to architectural proportion before they delved into their Esquisse and Review for their Summer Studio design project. The students are working on designs for A Market and Civic Hall adjacent to Madison Square. The program includes an interior civic space, vendor area and outdoor seating with focus on application of the classical language at different scales and the position of the building in its context  adjacent to landmark buildings and Madison Square Park. The schedule is rigorous, but the students continue to impress with extensive sketching and drawing, meticulous note-taking and thought-provoking dialogue during lectures and studio critiques.

Lectures this week ranged from drafting perspectives and constructing architectural elements to the incorporation of proportion and geometry. Martin Brandwein continued leading students through drawing of the Classical elements with the Ionic and Corinthian Orders.The students familiarized themselves with light and shade, drawing and rendering techniques and perspective construction from Leanna Chipana and Joey Zvejnieks. Steve Bass synthesized the introduction to Proportion with two lectures.  Interspersed with instruction in core subject areas were talks by Samuel White on The Architecture of McKim, Mead and White and the Classical Ideal; field study of Grand Central Station led by Francis Morrone; Clay Hayles and David Rinehart’s presentation on Classical Building Types in Midtown, a tour of the University Club; and a professional office visit to Peter Pennoyer Architects lead by Elizabeth Graziolo and Jim Taylor.  Mike Watkins, town planner and architect, followed an evening talk on Traditional Urbanism with an all day field trip to Forest Hills Gardens and lower Manhattan, to study and compare two different examples of urban space and form that both achieve the objective of creating a legible and healthy community and environment.

We’re excited to see the skills and knowledge they’ve acquired the past few weeks applied to their design projects.

Kristen Gates, Education and Library Intern