History of Architecture : from the origins to the Middle Ages

lbarc1140  2017-2018  Bruxelles

History of Architecture : from the origins to the Middle Ages
3 credits
30.0 h
Q2
Teacher(s)
de Coster Xavier;
Language
French
Main themes
Introduction to the theological, ideological and theoretical stances which inform works from Antiquity and the Middle Ages
  • The beginnings of architecture
  • Pharaonic Egypt: petrified eternity
  • Hellenic Antiquity: divine perfection of proportion
  • The Roman world: a universal and imperial construction
  • Paleochristian conversion: the renewal of meaning
  • Byzantine synthesis: Hellenism, Roman culture, Orientalism, Christianity
  • Isla : abstract expression of the divine
  • Romanesque experiments: Christianity made manifest
  • Gothic exaltation: structured use of light
Aims

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

1

The History of Architecture teaching unit is designed to provide a set of references. It will however avoid considering history as merely a reservoir of examples, but attempt to analyse ¿historically¿, i.e. to put these examples in their context to gain better understanding of their complex meaning.  

The main objective of the unit is to ask questions and attempt to understand architecture, as a complex phenomenon, of an intellectual, physical and social kind, and its meaning. This will be done by taking a strictly historical approach.

Specific learning outcomes:

By the end of this course, students are able to

  • understand and use the vocabulary of art, architecture and urbanism
  • identify and name the main (typical) stylistic characteristics of an artistic, architectural or urbanistic work in the period being studied
  • logically place, in time and space, architecture and town developments representative of the period being studied
  • explain the meaning of a work by putting it back in context, namely by understanding the whys and wherefores which shaped it
  • place unfamiliar examples by referring them to familiar models
  • convey the link between art history and the political, economic and social organisation of society.

Contribution to the learning outcome reference framework:

Build knowledge of architecture

  • Be familiar with and analyse the basic references
  • Be able to use given references which, by analogy, can lead to other interpretations of the context

Place the action

  • Analyse the environments and contexts according to various given methods and starting from various identified points of view

Make use of other subjects

  • Make use of other subjects to ask questions about the design and implementation of an architectural project


Use the technical dimension

  • Observe and assess the main construction principles of a building
 

The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.
Bibliography
L'enseignement s'appuie sur
- le syllabus : Histoire de l'Architecture, I : Des origines au Moyen Âge, 3e éd., 2014 (le syllabus contient une bibliographie),
- ainsi que sur un livre : Peter Delius (éd.) : Histoire de l'architecture, trad. de l'all. [Berlin : Peter Delius Verlag, 2008], Gennevilliers (France) : National Geographic France (coll. "Les Nouveaux Essentiels de National Geographic"), 2e éd. m. à j., 2013 (1re éd., 2008).
Mais il ne se limite pas à leurs contenus.  Des compléments peuvent être donnés, le cas échéant, durant les séances de cours, tandis que certaines parties du syllabus, plus aisées à comprendre par soi-même, ne seront pas vues pendant les séances de cours, et seront laissées à la diligence des étudiant·e·s.  Les exposés ne recouvrent pas exactement le syllabus, mais le complètent.  (Le cas échéant, certaines parties du syllabus pourront aussi être supprimées de la matière.)
En outre, pour le Moyen Âge, il est recommandé de se référer au livre suivant :
- Michel Henry-Claude, Laurence Stéfanon & Yannick Zaballos : Principes et éléments de l'architecture religieuse médiévale, guide aide-mémoire, Gavaudun (France) : éd. Fragile (coll. "À livre ouvert"), nouv. éd., 2001 (1re éd., 1997).
Faculty or entity
LOCI


Programmes / formations proposant cette unité d'enseignement (UE)

Title of the programme
Sigle
Credits
Prerequisites
Aims
Bachelor in architecture (Bruxelles)