The course is connected to the following study programs
- Master of Architecture
Course description
Housing Studio Oslo will explore the housing project as the architectural basis for urban development. Throughout the semester, students will be encouraged to engage with the following questions:
- How can we articulate our ambitions for the city through its most fundamental component — the housing project?
- How can we build sustainable ways of living? What types of urban structures and typologies are best suited for such a life?
- How can housing projects contribute to resilient, inclusive, and vibrant urban environments?
The issue of housing has become one of the most urgent concerns in urban planning. Like many European capitals, Oslo suffers from a housing shortage, leading to rising prices and the growing exclusion of large segments of the population from the housing market. Alongside this, a critical discourse on the quality of housing and its impact on the overall urban environment has emerged. As housing constitutes 60–70 percent of the built environment, it stands as one of the most fundamental questions in urbanism.
The studio believes that to engage in a critical discussion on the relationship between housing and urbanism, it is essential to examine their shared architectural components. Therefore, the course will focus on the transition between the city and the home, investigating edge zones, shared programs, and spatial transitions. We will delve into the facade as the division between private and civic space in the city.
Through working with one or more sites that represent the city's urban character, students will explore realistic solutions to the densification of the inner city. The studio will have a Nordic perspective, beginning with a study trip to Stockholm.
Students will be encouraged to develop their own position on the contemporary housing project, drawing on their readings of the city, architectural examples, and selected course readings on housing. Throughout the semester, students will design a large-scale housing project, working both on an urban and architectural level. Apart from introductory assignments, students will work individually.
The studio will consist of several phases, each with distinct scopes and techniques:
- Phase 1: Urban Survey
- Phase 2: Study Trip / Reference Study
- Phase 3: Urban Form
- Phase 4: Facade
- Phase 5: Plan
- Phase 6: Image
(Changes may occur)
Learning Outcome
Knowledge:
- Increased knowledge of large-scale housing projects.
- Insight into the economy and production of metropolitan housing.
- Greater awareness of a housing project’s impact upon its local context.
- Increased knowledge of construction and detailing.
- Ability to reflect critically upon the extent of an architectural proposal as an intervention on an urban scale.
- Ability to design and draw in various architectural scales, and express and clarify concepts and ambitions
Skills:
- Urban analysis
- Urban design strategies for sustainable cities
- Architectural detailing of facades
- Architectural design of a large-scale housing project
General competence:
-Ability to develop an individual architectural project.
-Ability to communicate and discuss architectural projects and urban design proposals.
-Ability to develop architectural drawings and printed material on a high level.
Teaching
Working and learning activities:
There will be desk crits every week, studio discussions and pin-ups, and a final presentation at the end of each phase.
Students are expected to attend all course meetings and be active contributors and participants, while keeping up with a comprehensive level of production. Attendance to studio activities and presentations are required.
Excursion:
Stockholm
Compulsory attendance requirements:
Compulsory supervision 1-2 times a week throughout the semester, and for pin-ups and presentations.
Examination
Compulsory work requirements:
Digital presentation with printed material
Form of assessment:
Assessment folder and presentation
Grading scale: Pass/fail
Assessment criteria’s:
-Architectural quality and a thorough process during the semester
-Creativity and originality
-Presentation