POLITICS OF FABRICATION III: May 2012

Recent demonstrations in public spaces of our cities are confirming a profound crisis of political institutions worldwide. While citizens are claiming a change in national political agendas to ask for more focus on their own everyday life concerns and less on global finances, public squares are emerging as places of political discussion. Moved by this contemporary interest, Intermediate Unit 8 have worked on redefining what constitutes a public space today, which is the role of the architect and the agency of people, and how innovation on fabrication methods might serve as fundamental tools for constructing a city of the commons.

This year the work of the unit has been located in the city of Mexico, a metropolis developed under neoliberal rules for the last two decades. The particular site for the unit work has been the massive modernist housing complex of Tlatelolco, and more specifically, the Plaza de las Tres Culturas. This urban square is well known not only for the mixed presence of Aztec, Spanish Colonial and Modernist constructions, but also for its past political life including the students’ massacre before 1968 Olympic Games. Based on a confrontation with the everyday life in the city, students have researched on the most “mundane” contemporary issues, including insecurity, informal economy, drug cartels, social segregation or cultural repression. These issues are the ones employed as alternative micro-agendas to inform the public space of today. After intense research and reflection on the realities of the city, students have proposed different material and programmatic tactics, reflecting on how traditional construction methods can be used to generate new fabrication techniques in which citizens have a more active role. Therefore, social participation and public action are considered a fundamental part in the definition of new political spaces as an endless process of contestation, negotiation and transformation.

29.5.12

W29- Portfolio Reviews and Second year final check

Friday 1st of June will be the final check for 2nd year portfolios before the tables and tutorials for 3rd years. Please come as follows,

10.30 Elliot
11.15 Andreas
12.00 Carlotta
12.45 Camille

2.00 Frederique
2.45 Hao Wen
3.00 Erez
3.30 Andrew
4.00 Anand
4.30 Fragkiskos
5.00 Eleni

W30 - 2nd year Reviews/tables

Next Wednesday 6th of June all 2nd year students will have their Reviews at the Rear Second Presentation Room

14.00 Miss Frederique Paraskevas
14.30 Mr Andreas Stylianou
15.00 Miss Camille Corthouts
15.30 Mr Hao Wen Lim
16:00 Mr Elliot Rogosin
16:30 Miss Carlotta Conte

Please bring all your models, videos, manuals and portfolios, and be on time!

Photo by Valerie Bennet

25.5.12

W29 - Tutorials & Portfolio Reviews

Tutorials on Tuesday 29th of May will be as follows,

10.30 Elliot
11.00 Camille
11.30 Andreas
12.00 Frederique
12.30 Carlotta

2.00 Hao Wen
2.30 Erez
3.00 Andrew
3.30 Anand
4.00 Fragkiskos
4.30 Eleni

22.5.12

W28 - Tutorials 2

Tutorials at the end of the week will be on Saturday 26th of May as follows,

10.30 Frederique
11.00 Elliot
11.30 Hao wen
12.00 Carlotta
12.30 Andreas

2.00 Camille
2.30 Erez
3.00 Fragkiskos
3.30 Andrew
4.00 Anand
4.30 Eleni

20.5.12

W28-Tutorials

Tutorials next week will be Monday and Tuesday 21st and 22nd of May, we will review changes made after the final jury and the first steps of the final work related to the proposal for the tables.

Monday tutorials will be for 2nd years as follows,

2.00 Frederique
2.30 Elliot
3.00 Hao wen
3.30 Carlotta
4.00 Andreas
4.30 Camille

Tuesday tutorials wil be for 3rd years as follows,

2.00 Erez
2.30 Fragkiskos
3.00 Andrew
3.30 Anand
4.00 Eleni

19.5.12

Visiting School Politics of Fabrication Lab

AA Visiting School Student Scholarship

This scholarship is offered to encourage and support AA School students to take part in Visiting School programmes being held in diverse locations internationally and scheduled for the summer period between the end of this academic year and the beginning of the next one.

Awarded to five currently enrolled AA students, the scholarship will cover the Visiting School fee together with a £500 stipend towards other travel and accommodation costs. Interested applicants are required to send in a statement of intent, detailing the reasons why they have chosen the specific Visiting School in no more than 250 words.

DEADLINE: TUESDAY 29 MAY 2012

http://www.aaschool.ac.uk/PUBLIC/NEWSNOTICES/schoolNotices.php?item=460

HTS Writing Award

Congratulations to Federique Paraskevas, Second Year student in Intermediate Unit 8 for her paper awarded Tahrir Square and Haussmann’s Paris: Physical Manifestations of Political Doctrines (pdf).

18.5.12

Images End of the year Jury

15.5.12

W32 - External Examiners

External Examiners will review 3rd years work next Tuesday 19th of June.

13.5.12

W27 - Final Jury

The end of the year Jury will be on Friday 18th of May from 10am to 7pm in 32 First Floor Back. Visiting cricts are Monia de Marchi (AA Undergraduate), Edgar Gonzalez (brisacgonzalez), Vladimir Jovanovic (Foster and Partners), Erik Behrens (Aecom), Tania Lopez Winkler (AA PhD), Pedro Font (Bartlett, KPF), Max Kahle (AA Undergraduate), Paco Casa and Beatriz Villanueva (Brijuni Arquitectos).

11.5.12

W27-Tutorials

Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th of May tutorials will be as follows,

Monday 14th

2.00 Elliot
2.30 Erez
3.00 Hao Wen
3.30 Anand
4.00 Andrew

Tuesday 15th
2.30 Camille
3.00 Andreas
3.30 Frederique
4.00 Carlotta
4.30 Fragkiskos
5.00 Eleni

10.5.12

W27 - Change and growth

The degree of flexibility of the schematic proposal to change over time and its capacity of growth or decrease through different scales will be explored. Different site plans in relation to the Mexico DF context will be drawn to express those possibilities through time. Some proposals might need a networking scheme over the city.

7.5.12

W26_Tutorials_2

Friday and Saturday, 11th and 12th of May, tutorials will be divided as follows,

Friday - 2rd years
2.00 Frederique
2.30 Erez
3.00 Elliot
3.30 Anand
4.00 Hao Wen
4.30 Carlotta

Saturday - 3rd years
10.30 Eleni
11.00 Fragkiskos
11.30 Andrew
12.00 Andreas
12.30 Camille

6.5.12

Possible useful data and Images from Taltelolco

Population of Taltelolco

Earthquake

Archeological Site of Tlatelolco

Massacre and demonstration 1968

Day of the Dead in the Square of the Three Cultures

Markets in Tlatlelolco

Aztec Rituals in Tlatelolco

Tlatelolco in Ancient Times

Transport around Tlatelolco

4.5.12

W26-Tutorials_1

Next week Monday and Wednesday, 7th and 8th of May, tutorials will be as follows,

Monday - 2nd years (In My Hotel close to AA)
2.00 Elliot
2.30 Erez
3.00 Anand
3.30 Frederique
4.00 Carlotta
4.30 Hao Wen

Tuesday - 3rd years
2.00 Eleni
2.30 Andrew
3.00 Fragkiskos
3.30 Camille
4.00 Andreas
4.30 Elliot

W26- Role of the architect

This week we will reflect on the role of the architect in your proposals: as a dealer between different parts, a top-down agent, a bottom up organizer, etc. A diagram should show the process of how to construct your proposal and what's the role of the architect in that process.

Yonatan Buchhandler (2nd year)

1.5.12

W25 - Tutorials_2

On Friday 4th of May tutorials we will give a final check to your scenarios. Those who have to review the first part of the portfolio should finish it for this tutorial, that will be as follows,

10.30 Anand
11.00 Hao Wen
11.30 Fragkiskos
12.00 Andrew
12.30 Carlotta

2.00 Elliot
2.30 Camille
3.00 Andreas
3.30 Frederique
4.00 Eleni
4.30 Erez

Dennis Sharp Award for Excellence in Architectural Writing Nomination

Frederique Paraskevas, stuent in our unit, has got a nomination for the Dennis Sharp Award for Excellence in Architectural Writing. She will present her paper tomorrow Wednesday 2nd of May from 2.00pm in the Rear Second Presentation Space. If you have some time it will be nice to be there to support her.

Congratulations Fred!