Inhabiting the Edge

S v a r t á r k o tWHER E CU L TUR E M E E T S NA TUR E

I n h a b i t i n g t h e E d g e - D ome s t i c a t i n g t h e T e r r a i n

Principal guest lecturer: J UHAN I P A L L A SMAA

AUGUST 1 4 - 2 2 2 0 1 0

Supervisors: Sigrún Birgisdótt ir , Architect , Lecturer and Director of Studies, Architecture, Iceland Academy of the Arts, sigrunbirgis@lhi . isHi ldigunnur Sverr isdótt ir , Architect , Visit ing Lecturer, Iceland Academy of the Arts,hi ldigunnurs@lhi . isCourse coordinator: Axel Krist inssonaxel@akademia. is , www.svartarkot . is

Location: Seyðisf jörður/Skálanes Iceland, www.skalanes.comLevel: Postgraduate/ MA level - 10 ECTS credits Language: Engl ishDisciplines: Architecture, architectural theory, urban studies, spatial design, regional studies, culture studies, social studies, anthropology, phi losophyKeywords: architecture, urban studies, cultural context , bui l t environment, social systems, landscape theory, ontol-ogy, phenomenology

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H I GH L I G H T S

We wil l partake in a dialogue with Juhani Pal lasmaa and study the theories of the architecture of the seven senses, applying these to our local context by exploring the int imacy of nature in trying our hand at vernacular methods of turf construct ion. From the spectacular location of the nature reserve we wil l enjoy the landscapes, f lora and fauna of the coast and the mountains. We hope to do a field tr ip to the vast highlands al lowing part ic ipants to explore the extremity of landscapes in terms of scale of int imacy from the remote seashore of the east f jords to the expansiveness of the highlands together with the macro-scale earthwork transformations around Kárahnjúkar power stat ion, - with the town of Seyðisf jörður as a point of reference.Addit ional ly , part ic ipants wi l l be given the opportunity to enjoy a supplementary four-day excursion through the Icelandic highlands.

Domesticating the Terrain

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PO IES IS OF PLACE

SU P E R V I SO R SS i g r ú n B i r g i s d ó t t i rH i l d i g u n n u r S v e r r i s d ó t t i r

CON F I RM ED L E C TUR E R S J u h a n i P a l l a sm a a B j ö r n Þ o r s t e i n s s o n

S k á l a n e s

S e y ð i s f j ö r ð u r

COURS E D E S C R I P T I ON

The course explores the concept of l iv ing at the intersect ion of human sett lement and nature; the urban and the edge. We wil l explore natural and cultural landscapes in relat ion to social networks and the spatial morphology of habitat ion in rural and semi-urban sett lements.

The course is based in the remote, privately operated nature and heritage centre at Skálanes, on the east coast of Iceland; a region characterised by high moun-tains and deep f jords, agricultural land and small-scale historical f ishing towns.

Along with a study of the local nature reserve, we wil l examine the historical ly aff luent and cosmopolitan 19th-century small town of Seyðisf jörður; its environs and amenit ies, cultural context and material real i ty and explore the morphology of spatial relat ions to al low for experimenting with a new forms for the art iculat ion of space.

Seyðisf jörður, a small sett lement of dist inct older t imber bui ldings, is now a place of renewed cultural interest hosting a l ively art scene attract ing numerous vis itors each summer. Coupled with the fact that it now harbours the only scheduled passenger ferry between Iceland and continental Europe, this makes it a prime location to study the interact ion of resident and visit ing social networks leading to a larger discourse on the social construct ion of space in the larger urban context . We wil l look at the bui l t environment in relat ion to t ime and scale, the interact ion of the human body and nature, the relat ionship of social and cultural networks with the bui lt and urban sett lements and the inf luence of local and global networks on the local social and spatial context . Obl iquely, the global reference of the hydropower stat ion at Kárahnjúkar raises poignant ques-t ions of vulnerabi l i ty , global capital and energy networks to the local context .

By exploring the interrelat ionship of the social , the bui lt environment and nature, the course aims to explore research methods and analysis of spatial relat ions to further the understanding of the continuous and manifold interact ions of culture and nature.

L E A RN I NG OUTCOMES

The course is designed for students who wish to explore the dynamic interrelat ionship of social relat ions and cultural context with the natural and bui lt environment. The approach is interdiscipl inary and invest igat ive, encouraging the conceptual , theoret ical and practical study of the connection between the social and the bui lt environment.

The course wi l l explore ways of reading and analysing the environment. Students wi l l gain a comprehensive insight into social system theories and apply these to their study of the interact ion of man and environment. Students wi l l be able integrate theoret ical studies of landscapes and urbanism with analysis , interpretat ion and communication of the environment to al low for experimenting with new forms for the art iculat ion of space. Students wi l l acquire advanced knowledge of phenomenological approaches to the study of nature, architecture and the bui lt environment.

vernacular/turf (elements of )nature

19th century village

powerplant

t h e f e r r y

PO IES IS OF PLACE

August 14thIntroductionIn cultural contextTravel to Skalanes nature reserve

August 15thIn dialogue with Juhani Pal lasmaa; lectures and seminars,// exploring the extreme local landscape, - the edge

August 16th In dialogue with Juhani Pal lasmaa; lectures and seminars // int imacy of nature + and hands-on introduction to turfbui lding

August 17th Spatial morphologies; f ield tr ip// the highlands/ mountains/ power stat ion/ landscapes/ the bui lt

August 18th Phenomenology and nature; lectures and seminars

August 19thSeyðisf jörður; f ield invest igat ions// local context + social networks // architectures, histories and the bui lt environment

August 20th Cultural landscapes; the local and global // research seminars

August 21th Workshop// presentat ions of research and work in progress+ Entertainment

August 22thSumming upReturn to Reykjavik

P R E L I M I N A R Y R E AD I NG AND S CH EDU L E

Bil l Hi l l ier and Jul iette Hanson, The Social Logic of Space , Cambridge University Press, 1984Gaston Bachelard, The Poetics of Space , Beacon, 1994 Gil les Deleuze & Fel ix Guattar i , "The Smooth and the Str iated", A Thousand Plateaus , University of Minnesota Press, 2007Henry Lefebvre, The Production of Space , Wiley-Blackwel l , 1992James Corner (Ed), Recovering Landscape, Essays in Con-temporary Landscape Architecture , Pr inceton Architec-tural Press, 1999Juhani Pal lasmaa, The Eyes of the Skin ,Wi ley, 2007Mart in Heidegger, Bui lding, dwel l ing, thinking , Harper and Row, New York, 1971Maurcie Merleau-Ponty, Phenomenology of Perception , Routledge, 2002Nei l Leach ed. , Rethinking Architecture - a reader in cultural theory , Routledge, 2008Patr ick Schumacher, "The Autopoiesis of Architecture", Latent Utopias , Pr inceton Architectural , 2003Paul Shepheard, The Cult ivated Wilderness, Or What is Landscape? The MIT Press, 1997Sigfr ied Giedion, Space, Time and Architecture, The Growth of a New Tradit ion , Harvard University Press, 2008Steven Holl , Juhani Pal lasmaa, Alberto Pérez-Gómez: Questions of Perception, Phenomenology of Architecture , Wil l iam Stout Publ ishers, 2006

vernacular/turf

(elements of )

nature

19th century

village

powerplant

PO IES IS OF PLACE

po i e s i s . o f . p l a c e@gma i l . c om