laba manifest - ENAC | School of Architecture, Civil and ...
laba manifest - ENAC | School of Architecture, Civil and ...
laba manifest - ENAC | School of Architecture, Civil and ...
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Theme Urban nature<br />
epfl campus - 2005/06<br />
Havanna - 2006/07<br />
London - 2007/08<br />
Geneva - 2008/09<br />
Bahrain - 2009/10<br />
Athens - 2010/11<br />
<strong>laba</strong>’s focal theme is Urban Nature. The objective is to research the nature <strong>of</strong><br />
the contemporary urban environment <strong>and</strong> to equip architects for the task <strong>of</strong><br />
constructing sustainable solutions for these environments.<br />
What has been the case for the ‘developed’ world since the beginning <strong>of</strong> the<br />
20th century is currently becoming a reality for the developing world - the<br />
majority <strong>of</strong> people will be living in an urban environment. In addition, as<br />
agglomerations exp<strong>and</strong>, so do their supporting local <strong>and</strong> global territories.<br />
Urban agglomerations are thus leaving their mark on the majority <strong>of</strong> the<br />
earth’s surface. Due to the scale <strong>and</strong> character <strong>of</strong> this territorial expansion,<br />
the definition <strong>of</strong> the urban becomes more diffuse <strong>and</strong> complex.<br />
Urban systems are per se intricate, dynamic <strong>and</strong> determined by many diverse<br />
phenomena outside the architectural sphere. <strong>Architecture</strong> <strong>and</strong> urban design<br />
are hence inherently interdisciplinary, touching upon for example social,<br />
technical, aesthetic, cultural, economic, political, ecological <strong>and</strong> ethical<br />
issues. Our discipline cannot be understood in an isolated manner, but only<br />
within the wider context <strong>of</strong> these adjacent fields.<br />
Architects must therefore have a good underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>of</strong> the impact <strong>of</strong> these<br />
forces on the built environment in order to be able to respond adequately. This<br />
usually happens through collaboration with consultants in specialized areas.<br />
Architects are in this sense both assimilators <strong>and</strong> specialists; assimilating<br />
the knowledge embedded in parallel disciplines <strong>and</strong> specialists in the spatial<br />
articulation <strong>of</strong> this knowledge in architecture <strong>and</strong> urban design.<br />
Our studio <strong>and</strong> research aims at exploring the complex context <strong>of</strong> the<br />
architectural <strong>and</strong> urban design process through a number <strong>of</strong> national <strong>and</strong><br />
international study objects <strong>and</strong> subsequently, at exploring appropriate<br />
physical expressions.<br />
Within the larger theme <strong>of</strong> Urban Nature, we are particularly interested in<br />
an urban morphology which makes cities more attractive <strong>and</strong> liveable. While<br />
over 50% <strong>of</strong> the population live in urban areas, these areas are further<br />
differentiated into specific <strong>and</strong> emerging typologies, some <strong>of</strong> which combine<br />
both characteristically ”rural” <strong>and</strong> “urban” components. <strong>laba</strong> investigates the<br />
contribution <strong>of</strong> urban design to underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>and</strong> improving these contexts.<br />
Through our teaching <strong>and</strong> research, we aim to position ourselves <strong>and</strong><br />
participate in both the current academic <strong>and</strong> non-academic discourse on<br />
urban design <strong>and</strong> planning.<br />
Teaching <strong>and</strong> research on urban design is currently limited in the <strong>School</strong> <strong>of</strong><br />
<strong>Architecture</strong>, <strong>Civil</strong> <strong>and</strong> Environmental Engineering <strong>ENAC</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>laba</strong> sees it’s<br />
studio <strong>and</strong> research unit as a pivotal element in exp<strong>and</strong>ing the academic field<br />
<strong>of</strong> urban design within our school. The intention is to develop a larger network<br />
<strong>of</strong> urban design <strong>and</strong> planning studios, classes <strong>and</strong> research units both within<br />
the existing EPFL structure <strong>and</strong> in collaboration with other Universities<br />
specifically the ETHZ <strong>and</strong> it’s Contemporary City Institute Studio Basel.<br />
With Studio Basel <strong>laba</strong>, forms a platform to research today’s city called<br />
“Cerberus”.<br />
<strong>laba</strong> <strong>manifest</strong> - june 2012 2