Though architecture is one of the most technically and artistically demanding disciplines, it merits little attention from students at Dartmouth. Consisting of just three courses, the architecture "program" is nestled into the Studio Arts Department course list along with printmaking, photography and sculpture.
Professor Jack Wilson, who will teach Studio Art 65 (Basic Architecture) this term, offered a new perspective on the program. In an interview with The Dartmouth, he explained the rationale for allocating just three courses for architecture and how the undergraduate liberal arts education is among the best preparations for an architect.
The fundamental goal of the program is to stress basic design skills, familiarity with scale, proportion, and the manipulation of light. The "point is" Wilson commented, "to express yourself through architecture, to communicate architectural ideas effectively."
Since Wilson is also a practicing architect, he strives to portray architecture as both a fine art and a practical art to his students. Along with the freedom that accompanies design and construction on the drawing board, an effort is made to make the students aware of realistic restrictions like fire, energy and health codes.
Wilson feels that the architecture courses should serve as foundations of basic, classical design principles. Studying traditional planning provides a basis for imaginative, creative architectural thought.
Architecture's inclusion in the studio arts department also sheds light on the content of the courses. They follow a decidedly artistic approach to design, integrating the prerequisites of basic drawing, intermediate drawing and sculpture as much as possible. His personal goals as an architect include using visual art, like painting and sculpture, in designing buildings. This does not necessarily add extraneous detail to the design, but rather enhances its artistic appearance. He added that the diverse mix of students in architecture classes contributes to the variety and composition of the designs; the classes typically consist of everyone from English and Classics to Art History and Engineering majors.
The most interesting of Wilson's views, however, were on how architecture is one of the only arts "that is totally integrated into society."
It is an art that is simultaneously shaped by cultural trends as well as one that plays an integral role in influencing culture.
The universality of the discipline adds to the architect's unique sense of social responsibility and commitment.
He discussed the architect as a "complete artist," one who is constantly blending history, mathematics, physics, drawing and sculpture during the design process.
The liberal arts education, in this context, seems particularly appropriate preparation for architects because it stresses knowledge in several disciplines rather than just one.
Wilson hopes to implement a computerized studio equipped with CAD (Computer Aided Design) workstations for the architecture prorgam. This will allow students to familiarize themselves with the latest architectural techniques and design methods.
The program will most likely retain its size due to its relatively low key profile.
It will, however, continue to offer some of the most interesting and challenging courses in the studio art department, ones that blend an interdisciplinary study of architecture with an artistic perspective that stresses imagination over technical fluency.
