Berlin Studio

2017

Berlin Studio 2017

Instructor: Ralph Stern

students sliding down a metal slide

2015

Berlin Studio 2015

Winter Semester 2015, Faculty of Architecture (ED4, M1)
Architecture / Interior Design / City Planning / Landscape Architecture (M1) /
Interior Environments / L+U Option (ED4)

Instructors: Ralph Stern and Kim Wiese

graffiti wall with man playing guitar with a horse mask on
graffiti wall
long transparent rectanglular building
graffiti wall with yello DHL truck in front
graffiti wall with window
building beside a river in the dark with a strip illuminated
graffiti wall of cowboy with a gun falling backwards
graffiti wall with entrance door in the left hand corner

Themes and emphasis

The Berlin Studio 2015 will continue with, and expand upon, the design and research agendas of the Berlin Studio 2014. The general theme of the Studio will be “Stadt am Wasser” or, “City at the Waterfront”, in this case the river Spree. There will be a broad range of issues that will be addressed: history of the site, infrastructure (transportation linkages, waterfront access, green networks, etc.), scalar range (urban, landscape, architectural, interior), appropriate structural and material systems, social issues (gentrification versus social diversity), and cultural integration. The sties addressed this year will differ from those of last year; collectively, however, it is intended that these projects will articulate a differentiated approach to riverfront development along the Spree and will set the stage for comparative design approaches with other waterfront cities, including Winnipeg. As such, emphasis will be placed on a comprehensive approach to, and understanding of, built intervention in historically and culturally significant urban areas. A scalar range in design from the urban to detail is expected, as is the ability to develop a “program” appropriate for the site. Much of the information and instruction provided during the Berlin Field Trip will serve as a basis for project analysis and development.

Street performers performing in the archway of the Oberbaum Bridge in Berlin.
An anatomical medical mannequin at the Designpantopikum (surrealist museum of industrial objects) in Berlin.
The Spree River in Berlin showing the Oberbaum Bridge in the background.

Interdisciplinarity

As Berlin has challenged an array of design and planning disciplines over the past century, the studio is intended as a vertical and interdisciplinary, engaging all disciplines in the Faculty of Architecture. The studio is a one-semester, intensive, vertical studio requiring a modicum of advance preparation in the Fall. It will also involve a field trip to Berlin early in the winter semester. The ability to work constructively in groups is a pre-requisite.

The aim of the Interdisciplinary Studio is to give students the opportunity to work within an expanded definition and understanding of design, addressing urban, landscape, architectural, and interior spaces from an interdisciplinary perspective, exploring alternative approaches to design and creative practice, and situating work in a broad urban, social, historical and cultural context. The students will be asked to consider how identity, cultural values, economic and environmental concerns shape and are shaped by the built environment.

The intention of the interdisciplinary studio is to provide a course which supports students in the pursuit and development of their own creative and critical voice, encouraging them to continually refine and criticize their chosen methods of spatial creation, organization, and representation in a considered, critical, and reflective dialogue with their colleagues.

2014

Berlin Studio 2014

Final Reviews Photo Gallery

Instructors: Ralph Stern and Kim Wiese

building overlooking the water
person in black suit and tie in a classroom with a group of students
students presenting in front of class
architectural model leaned up against a wall
A middle-aged woman with light-coloured hair watching a presenter at the 2014 Berlin Studio presentations.
A young female presenter with long, dark hair in a bun takes notes during a presentation.
A classroom full of presenters and panelists watching a 2014 Berlin Studio presentation.
Panelists at the 2014 Berlin Studio Presentations watching a presentation.
A middle-aged man with short hair and dark-framed glasses speaks to a presenter.
A middle-aged woman with light-coloured hair speaks to a presenter at the 2014 Berlin Studio presentations.
A young man with short-cropped hair presents at the 2014 Berlin Studio presentations.
Two young women listen watch a presenter at the 2014 Berlin Studio presentations.
A middle-aged man with short dark hair watching a presentation.
A middle-aged man with short, light-coloured hair and dark-framed glasses speaks to a presenter at the front of the room.
A young, female presenter with long dark hair in a bun, points to her architecture model while the audience checks it out.
A small crowd surrounds a young female presenter with light-coloured hair and glasses as she reaches into her architecture model to show them something (unseen).
A young female presenter with long brown hair in a bun, laughs while presenting with two other young, female presenters.
A middle-aged man in a dark suit with short, light hair and dark-framed glasses stands at the front of a classroom in front of architecture diagrams while presenters and panelists look on.