On Modern Architecture History in ASEAN Schools

 
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Participating Universities of the AUN-ADERA 2020 Inaugural Meeting and Symposium provided these details on their school curriculum in tandem with the theme on Design Education and Research on teaching History of Modern Architecture (Theory, Criticism and Other Histories). Readers can contact the respective schools to obtain further details.


Both Bachelor’s Degree Programmes are providing variation of topics via elective at the fourth year. BUILDING RE-USE AND REHABILITATION is an only conservation related course providing principle and practice of architectural conservation related to adaptation of listed monument, historic building and old building in various context of generating new contemporary use for example, reuse, extension, upgrading and new building in historic context. Also, the HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE FROM NEOCLASSICISM TO MODERNISM offers the development of western neoclassicism in the 18th century until modernism during the 20th century as a major course for Bachelor of Architecture programme.    

In the fifth year studio design of Bachelor of Architecture (Thai Architecture), we are providing a course of  CONTEMPORARY THAI ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN III which is mainly focused on new building design-based renovation and regeneration in historic area.  

- Silpakorn University


The bachelor’s degree program is providing variation of topics via elective at the fourth year. Through the three Specialization courses of Architectural Heritage Conservation:

ARCHER1/SPECZ1- Architectural Heritage Conservation 1: Inventory and Assessment

Principles and Theories on Preservation, Restoration, and Conservation Course aim to teach the students who are passionate about heritage design and are willing to enhance their knowledge and skill set on this specialized course. This course aims to expose students in Heritage Conservation practice in the Philippines.

The course will be about preparing an initial Conservation Management Plan and will focus on understanding the place and assessment of significance of heritage spaces, both listed and traditional which is the tool needed before preservation, restoration, and conservation.

This is a specialized area requiring specific skills which are essential to the success of projects in period and heritage structures. It will focus on traditional techniques and technical knowledge needed in restoration, preservation, and conservation of a heritage structure. The activities include actual assessment of materials and of heritage structures including exterior, interior, and structural components, online research and reflection, and exposure trips.

ARCHER1/SPECZ2- Architectural Heritage Conservation 2: Policies, Laws and Principles

This course aims to expose you in Architectural Heritage Conservation practice in the Philippines. It aims to discuss the guiding principles, laws and policies that govern the practice as well the issues,moral and ethical in different approaches is conserving architectural heritage structures. This course also is the application of the building documentation learned from ARCHER1. The activities include field trip to a heritage structure and research about the site, its significance to the community, people and the country through cultural mapping.

ARCHER1/SPECZ3- Architectural Heritage Conservation 3: Think Lab Pro

Principles and Theories on Preservation, Restoration, and Conservation Course aim to teach the students who are passionate about heritage design and is willing to enhance their knowledge and skill set on this specialized course. This course is the practicum utilizing in-depth documentation methodology and application of the theories and technological factors learned from ARCHER1 and ARCHER2. This course aims to expose students in Heritage Conservation practice in the Philippines.

- De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde


Since the very first program, the curriculum for Bachelor Degree design emphasis on the history of world architecture as a core subject. The course provides an overview of the history of the built environment from the antiquity to about mid-1900 CE. While the scope is broad, several lectures are focused on specific periods in history that are critical in the course of architectural history. The objective is to expose the students to the diverse architectural heritage of the past in social and historical context. In addition to this, Architectural Thoughts and Theory of Design course offers the modern architecture trend and thoughts of well-know architects dealing with the relationships of physical, social, cultural and environmental factors in Architecture. 

In the graduate program, several collaborated projects in a form of embedded studio are conducting for the modern heritage conservation theme. This architecture design studio aims to promote a different narrative, propose a new program for the selected building that functions together with the local community in place, and showcase the potential this building has in creating a whole new kind of public space. Following the idea of ‘complementary contrast’, the new design addition will be designed according to each student’s new program proposal. Rethinking about architectural renovation, instead of mimicking in a clumsy way the past shape of the building, histories repeating itself, students are asked to add a new layer of interpretation and understanding that fits with the new context of the building in Yangon. 

Starting from this year, a new course name ‘Heritage Management and Conservation’ offers both in master and doctorate program. Generally, this course consists of three main parts; firstly, the overview of heritage management and its process will be introduced and then the lecture will be continued to highlight the adaptive reuse of heritage assets. Finally, the conservation management plan practices have to exercise with their chosen site. 

- Yangon Technological University 


There are three subjects or courses especially in Bachelor’s Degree Program related to the History of Modern Architecture. First, it is called “THE HISTORY OF WESTERN AND EAST ARCHITECTURE” that contains a sequence of historical from classical architecture, modern movement, post-modern, deconstruction, and ended by introducing some of architecture in Asia and South East Asia. Second, the course on “THE HISTORY OF NUSANTARA ARCHITECTURE” is aimed to share how “Nusantara”—Indonesian Archipelago—as a setting of cultural diversity that formed the variety of unique, local and traditional architecture, and also as a place for western concept and forces including the implementation of “western” modern movement in the colonial era of Indonesian Architecture History. Third, the course on “Architecture Criticism” is based on various cases of architecture which should be reviewed using normative knowledge, interpretative, and descriptive methods. The laboratory of “History, Theory and Conservation of Architecture and Urban Design” (HTC-AUD) offers four elective courses: “THE ADAPTIVE REUSE OF ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE”, “CONSERVATION OF HERITAGE CITIES”, “CONSERVATION OF CULTURAL LANDSCAPE”, and “MUSEUM DESIGN”, which give a comprehensive knowledge and example to preserve and adapt for contemporary use of the heritage. 

At the Graduate level, we have two elective courses offered by the Laboratory of HTC-AUD as prerequisite courses to students who will develop research topics in the “COMPREHENSIVE RESEARCH STUDIO” (compulsory studio) related to Theory, History and Conservation including topics on Modernism Movement, its implementation, and transformation in Indonesia especially during the Dutch Colonial Era. The elective courses are “THE ARCHITECTURE, CITY, AND CULTURAL LANDSCAPE OF NUSANTARA” and “CONSERVATION OF ARCHITECTURE, CITY, AND CULTURAL LANDSCAPE”. 

- Universitas Gadjah Mada 


The undergraduate programs offered by the Faculty of Architecture and Planning at the National University of Civil Engineering equip students with several modules in History of Architecture focusing on modern architecture. There are two courses namely History of Architecture Part One and History of Architecture Part Two. Most of the content of History of Architecture Part Two (two credits) provides students with knowledge of the development of modern architecture in the world as well as in Vietnam. In addition, students have the opportunities to study historical buildings, including modern heritage buildings as the core content of Building Documentation. Final-year students may choose an optional specialized theme in History of Modern Architecture.

- National University of Civil Engineering


4-year Bachelor of Science in Architecture Programme at Thammasat Design School offers variation of courses and lectures related to the History of Modern Architecture.  All design studios typically are taught in paralleled with lectures so that the lectured topics can be implemented in products of the design studio. For principles and foundations, there are courses such as the 1st and the 2nd Architecture Design Studios, History of the World Architecture, and Theory and Concept providing principle and practice of architectural conservation related to adaptation of listed monument, historic building and old building in various context of generating new contemporary use for example, reuse, extension, upgrading and new building in historic context. The senior years offers advanced topic related to the History of Modern Architecture includes the 3rd Architecture Design Studio, which is mainly focused on new building design-based renovation and regeneration in historic area. Lectures in the senior years are such as a course of Contemporary Thai Architecture. The advanced issues associated with the History of Modern Architecture are further explored in 2 years Master of Architecture Programme. Related disciplines included Interior Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Urban Design and Development International programs also offers courses related to the History of Modern Architecture in similar regime.   

- Thammasat University 


In 2013 Curriculum, History of Modern Architecture is enrolled in the fourth semester as History and Theory of Architecture subject, to teach the history of modern Architecture in the global context, and Indonesian Architecture to teach the history of modern Architecture in Indonesian context. Some Architectural Design Studio also offers cases especially regarding the transformation of Indonesian Architecture (STUPA 5) in semester 5, and STUPA 4 related to the adaptive re-use or building adaptation of historic buildings in semester 4. In semester 6 there is an elective course on Heritage Conservation to introduce the conservation movement and techniques. In Master of Architecture program, there is an elective course on Heritage Management focused management knowledge and principles, and case studies on management of historic district. 

- Universitas Islam Indonesia 


History and Conservation of Architecture is delivered as compulsory and elective courses in the Bachelor Program 

Compulsory course in the second year:  

  • Architectural History and Tradition of the World

Architectural History and Tradition of Indonesia 

Compulsory course in the fourth year 

  • Architectural Conservation 

  • Historical area as design context in studiowork semester 7  

Elective course in third year:  

  • Colonial Architecture 

  • Post-independence Architecture of Indonesia (modern architecture in Indonesia) 

  • Documentation of Historic Buildings 

    - Institut Teknologi Bandung 


For the undergraduate courses, the study of modern ASEAN architecture could be incorporated into the subjects History of Architecture 3 (Asian Architecture) and History of Architecture 4 (Philippine Architecture), which are taught to 2nd year students. Examples of ASEAN modern built heritage could also be incorporated / taught as examples in Theory of Architecture 1 and 2, which are taught to 1st year students.  

For conservation, this is one of the special subjects taught to 3rd year students, although a short introduction was provided at the end of History of Architecture 4. Part of the subject requires the students to document and analyze a pre-identified heritage structure. 

For our graduate degrees courses, conservation of modern architecture is taught in seminar courses for the Cultural Heritage Studies track, in which architecture students may also enroll in. 

- University of Santo Tomas


Both Bachelor’s Degree and Master Programmes in Architecture are providing variation of topics (compulsory and elective) at the fourth year for undergraduate and first year of for post graduate: 

  • History of Western Architecture 

  • History of Eastern and Vietnamese Architecture 

  • (Foreign) Contemporary Architecture (elective)  

  • Architecture and Oriental Culture (elective)  

  • Reading a building and architecture criticism  

Modern Architecture in Western, Eastern and Vietnamese contexts, therefore, have been reviewed and analysed through out along with other architectural transformations/ movements via lectures and workshops 

The sites chosen for 17 design studios also reflect the aim to provide knowledge, skills and attitudes of students toward existing buildings, how the new designs fit to the context and how architectural values of different building typologies and morphologies should be respected. The city morphology is well presented with many Modernist buildings though.  

- University of Architecture HCMC


A cornerstone of the ASD curriculum, HTC presents itself throughout the core sequence of the undergraduate degree programme as a three-part sequence: in second year, Traditions: World History Connections to Vernacular Architecture; in third year, Modernisms: Technology and Society in Architecture; and in fourth year, Artificial & Architectural Intelligences in Design.  

Particularly, in Modernisms, students study the essential interrelationships of architectural theory, history, and practice through examining theoretical investigations not as specialised discourse relating exclusively to architectural production, but as essential and deeply relevance to diverse human social and economic activities, whether they be cultural, aesthetic, philosophical, or professional. Topics and examples are chosen from a wide range of materials and from classical antiquity to contemporary practice. Special topics relating to 21st century urbanisation, emerging economies and ecological and environmental debates will be addressed. 

HTC also manifests in elective choices through modules: Conservation Theories and Approaches of Built Heritage; and Contemporary Architecture: Between Technology, Science and Culture. These modules are available to students in the undergraduate, M.Arch and PhD programmes. 

- Singapore University of Technology and Design