Crafted Space. A Hybrid Structure in Platres Village

The workshop ‘Crafted Space_ A Hybrid Structure in Platres Village’ aimed to provide a platform for an immersive cooperation between young architects and students of architecture in a hands-on, creative workshop. The two weeks long workshop took place in July 2019 as part of a series of annual summer events organised by the Cyprus Architects Association. Six faculty members of the Department of Architecture at the University of Nicosia led the workshop. The workshop was an experience based activity that enhanced the students’ creativity and ability to interweave diverse influences and conditions. The students were involved in a range of academic and non-academic activities that were equal parts of the learning process. At the beginning the students were introduced to the history of the site and its Colonial identity but became truly familiar with the place by walking in the village, staying there for the duration of the workshop and meeting locals. The learning process was driven by the diverse thematics of the workshop and included thinking via making, hand-on testing, groupwork, interaction and creativity, notions of history and place, the study of vernacular construction techniques, the appreciation of the practicalities of joinery and the ability to appropriate and simplify construction methods so that they can be tested within a tight timeframe and by utilising the limited tools available

Reality Check. Multidisciplinary ways of conditioning space

The aim of the paper is to illustrate a series of pedagogical strategies utilized concerning the integration of other disciplines in the design process towards redefining ways of conditioning space. Via the agenda of a specific design studio laboratory the quest for integration is tested and the boundaries of architecture and other disciplines are being challenged. The thematic of the studio poses “technology” as a lens to inspect the future of architecture, therefore it provides a fertile ground for reciprocally investigating the future of other disciplines. A series of specific methodologies and processes are explored in order to encourage a multidisciplinary approach. These processes spread throughout the year as a continuous crossover of themes, exercises, workshops, references, case studies and discussions. The Reality check exercise aims at redefining ways of innovatively conditioning space by integrating personalised insights from the disciplines of mechanical, environmental and structural engineering, construction and building services

City-zen 'Nicosia' Roadshow - Site Specific EVENT

The City-zen Roadshow's are 'site specific performance based' interactive events that bring together experts and city stakeholders 'onsite' to co-creatively design a future sustainable vision for their city. There would be nine European Roadshows over a four year period, the duration of a Roadshow being typically between 3 to 8 days. The City-zen Roadshow travels with a team of internationally recognized experts, in the field of energy planning and design to help develop a sustainable agenda for cities and their neighbourhoods. The overall aim of the Roadshow team was to work closely with people from the hosting city, whether they be city leaders, energy planners, local architect, professionals, academics, students and citizens. In Nicosia, the Roadshow spent 8 days delivering energy and urban design fun-shops to local stakeholders from both sides of the political and geographical divide in order to encourage 'Bicommunal' city and island participation and peace. Outcomes would allow the cities resources, both people and energy, to be directed effectively, by highlighting the energy challenges and potentials to be found in their neighbourhoods, and to finally present a sustainable ‘City Vision’

UNIVERSITY of Universities

La red “UNIVERSITY of Universities” no cesa de amoldarse a los continuos cambios de las circunstancias docentes, económicas, de conflictos internacionales y por supuesto de pandemia. Lo importante es entender cada restricción como una oportunidad de proyecto. Y es así como hemos elaborado un artículo, a modo de Manifiesto, que construye el mito del “coordinador perfecto”, diseñando los distintos ejemplos interculturales de los distintos miembros de la Red. Se trata así de trabajar con lo desconocido proponiendo proyectos innovadores. Ha sido un viaje a los destinos de socios de UOU: Comenzando en la capital de Islandia, Reikiavik, y desde allí visitar un lugar tan distinto como la Isla Reunión en el océano Índico. El tercer destino fue Umeå, al norte de Suecia, seguido de Murcia. Desde allí la ruta fue hacia Lisboa en Portugal, y Capri en Italia. El itinerario se extiende con el viaje a Ankara (Turquía), y de nuevo Umeå. Desde allí se marcha a Budapest en Hungría y finalmente se vuelve a Reikiavik. El motivo de este largo itinerario es demostrar la posibilidad de establecer un discurso proyectual en diferentes contextos. La construcción de un personaje ficticio, el presidente honorífico de un club de remo y cultura veneciano, Soto Aqua, que a su vez existe, nos ha permitido reflejar e incluso avanzar en nuestro planteamiento de red docente, entremezclando lo presencial con lo virtual en una experiencia híbrida llena de imaginación. Sin duda, nuestro proyecto de aprendizaje UOU se basa en ese mismo principio. Nuestro proyecto de aprendizaje internacional nació de un instinto, y cada colaboración se abría como una nueva ventana de oportunidades: El Intercambio de Talleres, los Crits, la Web, Moodle, las Port Talks, más talleres para la Elección de Alumnos, la revista científica UOU, el nuevo Máster en la UA, el Summer Workshop, los convenios Erasmus, nuestras Blended Classes, nuestro querido Jerzy Łątka, Mauricio Morales Beltrán y Agata Jasiolek presentando sus taller mientras se construyen nuevas construcciones para dar la bienvenida a los refugiados de guerra ucranianos... todo EN VIVO en nuestra clase. ¿Ha pasado alguna vez esto en la universidad? Paso a paso, con más y más universidades uniéndose, 33 por ahora, estamos construyendo un futuro para la Universidad de Europa. ¡Lo hemos visto y funciona! Inspirado por el presidente honorífico, sería un verdadero aporte a su búsqueda del futuro de Venecia completar nuestro curso de arquitectura con un nuevo Taller UOU: VENECIA EN EL METAVERSO. Es un ejercicio de inmersión en realidades imaginarias, que permite cuestionar las nuestras. Nada más volver a la Universidad de Alicante, se lo propusimos a nuestros alumnos. Éstos aceptaron el reto y produjeron un videojuego con toda la colección de los trabajos del curso: https://vertice.cpd.ua.es/27167

UNIVERSITY of Universities [UOU]: Redefining the basis of International Teaching of Architecture

When thinking about teaching and knowledge exchange, is it possible to gain in quality by using an international online teaching? That is the aim of a pedagogic project born out from a lockdown affecting students and teachers of Architecture at home. From the combination of confinement and teaching, a brand-new initiative has been designed focusing on higher education - UNIVERSITY of Universities. It is an international teaching project developed by teachers of six European universities, starting the academic year 2020-2021