Études for Architects

Organized around a series of pedagogical exercises, this book provides a visual journey through a series of games architects can play as a means to design. Aimed specifically at beginner design students, learning objectives include: computational thinking and making, introduction to design as an iterative, reflective, and rigorous process, ideas of continuity and discontinuity, and understanding the bias and constraints of analog and digital tooling. The text is simple and straightforward to understand and in addition the author draws explanatory diagrams to elaborate on each exercise's description. He also includes visually compelling student work to provide insight into the possibilities of each exercise. Finally, the book includes eighteen case studies from Europe, the USA, Mexico, and Asia to inspire and inform.

1. Noun and Verb 2. Making with Rules 3. Shapes Carving Shapes 4. Plane Surface Volume 5. Curves with Lines 6. Scale and Material 7. Case Studies Bibliography

Joseph Choma is the founder of theDesign Topology Lab, an interdisciplinary design research practice. He completed his graduate studies in design and computation at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. Currently, Joseph teaches within the School of Architecture at Clemson University, USA.