AUD 10A winter 2015

A HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN DESIGN

Prehistory to Mannerism
Tuesday / Thursday
11-12:15 in 1102 Perloff Hall

Prof. Diane Favro dfavro@ucla.edu

Office hours Office 8-9am Thursday 1125h; Perloff Hall; email for a specific appointment.
Teaching Assistants: Sebastiano Fabbrini, Alex Maymind, Iman Ansari, Megan Meulemans
Office hours TBA
Course Description
Architecture and urban design effect and reflect culture. As a result, the study of these fields clarifies
social, technological, and aesthetic developments throughout history. Drawing upon examples from
prehistory to the age of Mannerism, this course constructs a critical position within which the implications
of the terms history, architecture, city, and culture can be explored. Lectures address a broad range of
architectural and urban traditions, examining built "texts" in relation to their theoretical, philosophical, and
socio-political contexts and purposes. The emphasis is on Europe and the Mediterranean Basin, with
periodic exploration of the world context. Readings and discussions seek to understand the workings of
architecture and architectural history as disciplines and to establish a historical framework in which the
role of architecture in larger systems of cultural production can be explored. Assignments are designed to
teach students the methods and tools of digital humanities.
Course Objectives
1. To develop reading and critical thinking skills
2. To develop historical knowledge and problem solving skills
3. To practice and improve writing skills
4. To learn to explain and use a basic set of theoretical and analytical concepts to understand
physical environments
5. To develop thinking and tools skills appropriate for the 21 st century
Course Requirements:
Four Course Projects each worth 15% of grade
Final Essay
Attendance

60%
25%
15%

Course Projects
60%
There are four digitally based research projects. Each is designed to challenge your analytical and
research skills and to make use of different modes of thinking and presenting research utilizing new
digital tools and methods. A successful project will require a well-articulated thesis statement, full
scholarly documentation -- reference citations (notes) and a bibliography including books and
articles in addition to websites -- and especially a well-considered conclusion. All examples must
be drawn from the period of this course: prehistory to 1600, though they can come from any where
in the world.
Note: the grades for late projects will be lowered
If you are interested in digital approaches to research see UCLAs undergraduate minor and
graduate certificate in Digital Humanities (see http://www.cdh.ucla.edu/instruction/dhminor.html).
Course Projects
60%
There are four digitally based research projects. Each is designed to challenge your analytical and
research skills and to make use of different ways of thinking and presenting a project, from tracing
the evolution of a motif to creating a visualization from statistical data. A successful project will
require a well-articulated thesis statement; full scholarly documentation -- reference citations
(notes) and a bibliography including books and articles as well as websites -- and a well-considered
conclusion. Note that all examples must be drawn from the period of this course: prehistory to
1600, though they can come from any where in the world.
Project 1: Building evolution
Spend at least 30 minutes interacting with UCLAs Digital Karnak website, especially using the time
slider on Google Earth to see how the Temple of Amon changed over time (see website,
Experience Karnak). Select two different building phases of the Temple (see Browse archive),
consult primary sources (texts, images from the original time period) as well as secondary sources
(later scholarly work). Write an analysis [500-1000 words] proposing potential reasons for the
identified alterations made to the structure based on your research. Include screen shots of the
model to support your argument, as well as references and bibliography.
http://dlib.etc.ucla.edu/projects/Karnak/
Project 2: Thick Map of environmental impact [may be done in a group with a maximum of 3.
A group project will be exponentially bigger, ie one with 3 people would have 3 times as many
examples and 3 times the length of text].
Select a building or urban design type and compare examples from at least 3 different periods and
at least two different continents. Locate each site on a map using a geo-browser (eg. Google
Earth GoogleMap, WorldMap, or other) and analyze the climate, available building materials,
landscape, and other environmental factors that impacted the chosen architectural form. Create a
Thick Map with text, images, and other supporting materials to present an argument about
climatic determinism. Your presentation should not be simply descriptive [eg stone was available

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here and not there so the building was bigger], but a more thoughtful assessment of the impact of
the environment on design [eg the cold climate necessitated smaller windows in the Christian
basilical church at X, which led to darker interiors and a stronger interest in mystical aspects of the
liturgy and the development of subterranean spaces]. Provide a concluding text of at least 300
words articulating your assessment of how the environment did [or did not] impact the evolution
and meaning of the chosen architectural form. Include references and bibliography.
Project 3: Experiential narrative
Buildings are meant to be experienced kinetically in time and space. Select a building or urban
environment and consider how the design responded to the types of conveyances (carts, feet,
litters), textures, lighting, scale, views, speed of movement, social ideas about who could go where
(eg a slave or woman in the Roman period could not go along the same path as a male senator),
and other relevant factors. Write a short [500-1000 words] narrative (story) that reveals the most
important aspects of the human/spatial interaction of moving through the chosen environment by a
particular person of the period (eg farmer, noblewoman, servant). In the final paragraph critically
evaluate the sensorial experience. For conducting your research and/or the final presentation you
may use an interactive tool for navigating through digital models such as VSim
(https://idre.ucla.edu/gis-visualization/vsim) or a geo-browser such as Google Earth (see
http://inscriptions.etc.ucla.edu/index.php/ritual-experience/ ). Include references, bibliography, and
a map/plan showing your path.
Project 4: Visualizing statistics [may be done in a group with a maximum of 3 people]
Identify a set of statistics about a specific period. For example you might compare the populations
and urban density of Islamic and Christian cities in the 11th century, or analyze life expectancy in
various regions of Imperial China. The Renaissance has notably rich statistical resources such as
the Catastro [property registry] of 1427 Florence ( http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/catasto/ ).
Use the data to create a digital visualization using any of numerous visualization softwares such as
Many Eyes, RAW (http://app.raw.densitydesign.org), Tableau, and Cytoscape (see also the
resources at http://miriamposner.com/blog/?p=909#more-909 ). Articulate your conclusions in a
short text [min 500 words] supported by references and bibliography.
Final Essay Exam
25%
The week before classes end you will be given a short selection of essay topics to consider. In the
final class session you will be given a choice of two topics from which you will pick one to write
about in class. Each question will involve taking a broad historical view encompassing several
periods and places, and applying the analytical skills you have developed during the class. The
essay should be evaluative and present thoughtful, coherent assessment and conclusions.
Attendance
15%
Students are expected to attend class lectures and discussion sections regularly since information
and images presented are not readily available elsewhere and you will be graded on your
participation in sections.
Course Readings
Students are expected to have reviewed assigned materials prior to each section meeting
Class textbook: Spiro Kostof, Richard Ingersoll, World Architecture: A Cross-Cultural History
Primary sources: See Course Schedule on CCLE/Moodle website
For help with scholarly documentation refer to Kate Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers,
Theses and Dissertations (University of Chicago Press 1987) or any other standard resource.

Course Schedule 10A

Note that some links only work from UCLA computers or through VPN links
Week 1
1
6-Jan
Introduction: thinking about history
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. x-xiv, 11-32.
Ballantyne, What is Architecture, Introduction, pages 1-6
Clip from My Architect with I.M.Pei and Louis Kahn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=a4V0nZZa6xU&feature=related
ON PRIMARY SOURCES: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/robinson-sources.html AND
http://academic.bowdoin.edu/WritingGuides/primaries.htm
2

8-Jan Mesopotamia: Environmental Determinism

Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 33-47.
Be prepared to discuss two of the following:
Gilgamish Prologue: http://www.angelfire.com/tx/gatestobabylon/temple1.html
Code of Hammurabi; especially #228-233:
http://eawc.evansville.edu/anthology/hammurabi.htm
Book of Ezekiel, 41: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ezekiel+41
Discussion section:
1. Readings
2. Basics of architectural history considering Salk Institute (plan and sections)
Week 2
3
13 Jan
Demo
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 48-60.
Pyramid Texts, The Dead Pharaoh Ascends:
http://mircea-eliade.com/from-primitives-to-zen/166.html
Book of the Dead, Introduction: http://www.sacred-texts.com/egy/ebod/
4

15 Jan
Egypt: Cycles of Eternity
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 86-97.
Be prepared to discuss at least one of the following:
Homer, Odyssey Book 7: http://classics.mit.edu/Homer/odyssey.7.vii.html
Thucydides on the Early History of the Hellenes:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/thuc-hellenes.html
Herodotus on the customs of the Persians:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/herodotus-persians.html

Discussion section:
1. Readings
2. Stylistic purity versus hybridity
3. Historical architecture in a warzone: From the warfront of Iraq, Egypt, Libya
4. Discuss select projects and building as living thing
Project 1 Due

5
Week 3
5
20 Jan
Crete/Mycenae/Persia: Mediterranean Multiculturalism
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 66-85, 104-116.
Be prepared to discuss at least one of the following:
Pausanius on Attica, Book 1: 1.15.1-1.17.6:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/pausanias-bk1.html
Plato,The Republic, The philosopher-king:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/plato-republic-philosopherking.html
6

22 Jan
Greece: Anthrocentrism
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 117-137.
Plato, Critias, on Atlantis: http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/critias.html
Solon on the demos, fragment 4: http://homepage.usask.ca/~jrp638/DeptTransls/Solon.html
Discussion section:
Research and writing practicum
1. Readings
2. Creating a toolbox for architectural historian: libraries, archives, online sources
3. As the well-spring of western culture Greece deserves to be bailed out of economic
problems: pro and con

Week 4
7
27 Jan
The Greek city: Individualism
Athanaeus, Procession of Ptolemy II Philadelphus, 285 BCE:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/285ptolemyII.html
Strabo on Arabia, XVI.iv.1-4: http://www.fordham.edu/Halsall/ancient/arabia1.html
8

29 Jan
Cosmopolitanism: The World at Large
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 137-158, 183-190.
Polybius, Analysis of the Roman Government:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/polybius6.html
Livy, The History of Rome, Book 5, 53-55: http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/classical_livy.html

Discussion section:
1. Readings
2. Individualism versus globalism then and now
3. Discuss select projects
Project 2 Due
Week 5
9
3 Feb
Etruscan/Early Roman: Sculpting the void
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 66-85, 104-116. 158-174
Be prepared to discuss at least two of the following:
Vitruvius, Book 1 chapters 1-4:
http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Vitruvius/1*.html
Augustus, Res Gestae, 19-23:
http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Augustus/Res_Gestae/4*.html
Strabo on grandeur of Rome::
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/strabo5-rome.html
10

5 Feb
Rome: The Urban Image of a Capital
Pliny, Letter to Gallus: http://www.bartleby.com/9/4/1023.html
Discussion Section: the Roman villa

6
Discussion section:
1. Readings
2. Designing the positive or the negative
3. Writing about architecture
Week 6
11
10 Feb Late Roman: Urban Imperial Imperatives
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 192-198.
Be prepared to discuss at least two of the following:
Pliny the Younger on building projects in Bithynia:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/pliny-trajan1.html
Juvenal Sat 3 on Rome: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/juvenal3.asp
12
12 Feb Early Christian/Byzantine: Ritualistic Determinants
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 199-215.
St. Augustine, Book 19, chapter 17: http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/120119.htm
Procopius on Haghia Sophia: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/procop-deaed1.html
Discussion section:
1. Readings
2. Ritual movement and building/urban design
3. Discuss select projects
Project 3 Due
Week 7
13
17 Feb The Early Middle Ages: The Court Versus the Monastery
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 295-313.
Examine St. Gall plan: http://www.stgallplan.org/
Bernard of Clairvaux, Apology: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/bernard1.html
14

19 Feb Islamic: Religious imperialism

Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 226-239, 280-294.
al-Wasiti's account of building the Dome of the Rock: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1523173

Discussion section:
1. Readings
2. Interrogate St. Gall plan for content and use by architectural historians
3. Architecture as cultural identifier [mosque near Ground Zero]
Week 8
15
24 Feb Gothic: Technological Determinism
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 339-363.
Suger XXXII. Concerning the Golden Cross: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/sugar.html
Conference of Milan 1392 proceedings in Ackerman, The Art Bulletin (1949), pp. 91-92
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3047224
16

26 Feb
Medieval Cities: Commercial Idealism / The World at Large
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 322-338, 360-363.
Marco Polo pages 95-99: http://books.google.com/books?
id=SypYS7GO6UEC&printsec=titlepage&vq=marco+polo#PPA95,M1

Discussion Section:
Cairo (city of Thousand Minarets) and Florence (city of Renaissance)
1. Readings
2. Factors leading to technological hubris
3. Discuss select projects

7
Project 4 Due
Week 9
17
3 Mar
Early Renaissance: Individualism
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 369-388.
Be prepared to discuss two of the following:
Vasaris life of Brunelleschi: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/vasari/vasari5.htm
Alberti, Ten Books on Architecture, pages 686-705: http://archimedes.mpiwgberlin.mpg.de/docuserver/images/archimedes/alber_archi_003_en_1785/downloads/alber_archi_
003_en_1785.text.pdf
Francesco di Giorgio in Emergence of Modern Architecture, A Documentary History, pages
82-88: http://books.google.com/books?id=4xB9k7Neb8C&pg=PT101&lpg=PT101&dq=Francesco+di+Giorgio+in+Emergence+of+Modern+Architect
ure,+A+Documentary+History&source=bl&ots=f1G_wvoapt&sig=XBZ8c5P-85Pg0rUwnU1dsQs6k0&hl=en&sa=X&ei=NoEDT9nxD8GyiQLdhtDzDQ&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepag
e&q&f=false
Leonardo, original sketchbook in the British Museum [turning the pages]:
http://www.bl.uk/turning-the-pages/?id=cb4c06b9-02f4-49af-80ce-540836464a46&type=book
18

5 Mar
Renaissance: The Ideal City
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 388-391, 450-459.
Filarete in Emergence of Modern Architecture, A Documentary History, pages 67-76: see
CCLE
Alberti, , pages 269-73: http://archimedes.mpiwgberlin.mpg.de/docuserver/images/archimedes/alber_archi_003_en_1785/downloads/alber_archi_
003_en_1785.text.pdf

Discussion section:
1. Readings
2. Defining the architect
3. Discuss select projects and essay
Essay topics distributed
Week 10
** in lieu of a section this week there will be a tutorial on how to take an essay exam TBA
19
10 Mar Mannerism: Reactionism
Ingersoll/Kostof: pp. 440-449, 459-474.
Palladio Four Books, Book I, chapters i-ix: https://archive.org/details/architecturePal00Pall
Sinan in Risle-i Mimriyye : an early-seventeenth-century Ottoman treatise, pages 33-34:
http://books.google.com/books?id=dJk3AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA34&lpg=PA34&dq=Sinan+in+Ris
%C4%81le-i+Mi%CA%BBm
%C4%81riyye&source=bl&ots=D75klPvYK3&sig=NTAAaxUPMylGj8gBANv_eRfcK_Q&hl=en&sa
=X&ei=ECTMUr2VAof6oASyroEQ&ved=0CC4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Sinan%20in%20Ris
%C4%81le-i%20Mi%CA%BBm%C4%81riyye&f=false
G. Necipoglu, "Challenging the Past" [skim]
http://www.jstor.org/stable/1523183
20

12 Mar In class essay exam

[there is no exam in finals week]