Elements of Urban Design- Delayering Public Places

The studio is structured as an introduction to urban design representation and how it is used as a means of design thinking. The premise is that- urban design is best understood and expressed through the study and representation of the built urban environment. Hence, the studio will focus on studying and representing the key urban elements in cities and will be structured in multiple modules running through the semester, each culminating with an exhibition of the outcome. These modules will significantly focus on effectively capturing and communicating the spatial qualities of the urban built environment. 
Module 1 will involve perceiving and representing the key elements of urban design. The premise is that building types, urban blocks, streets and public open spaces form the key elements that collectively make any functional urban space. The exercises in this module will enable a student to study each element and how they contribute to the scale, form, character, and relationship with the larger urban context. Module 2 will be the final exercise which will involve the design of public places. 
The learning outcomes of the studio are: to prepare design drawings to graphically communicate the key spatial characteristics of an existing urban built environment with a focus on its elements and prepare a design for a given urban area in the form of a framework plan, design analysis and 3-dimensional illustration to represent the design.