Research Seminars
History and Theory of Housing | History of Housing for the Masses | Housing as Revolutionary Architecture | Housing and the City
I developed a series of graduate housing seminars which integrate the classroom and research conducted by my HousingLab via changing research projects. My Housing Field seminars, supported by the Council for Higher Education in Israel, involve students in field research conducted by my research group, providing them hands on training in research methods, posing and examining research questions, and writing academic seminar papers.
Housing as Revolutionary Architecture involved students in the study of DIY geodesic dome construction by the Tel Aviv homeless, conducting participant observation of dome construction on site, interviews with members of the community, activists and policy makers, and collaborative design of a dome cover for summer conditions per community request (Link). History and Theory of Housing Field Seminar investigated a brutalist housing estate in Tel Aviv, maintaining a vibrant community in a co-op of 192 units despite high real estate pressures. This seminar involves archival research, architectural study, interviews with dwellers and onsite observations, producing a collaborative dataset shared by the students and writing research papers. Housing and the City studied the consequences of conversion of dwelling units to Airbnb vacation rentals in Tel Aviv. Research involved interviews with owners, renters and city planners, statistical and financial study, and the study of architectural amendments. History of Housing for the Masses involved developing analytical tools for housing as a specific design problem in architecture across the 20th century, revolving typology, scale and design methods (replication and seriality, needs-based design, assembly and disassembly) and key design themes: ‘living with others’, ‘living with less’, ‘smart living’ etc.
My research seminars produced research papers (JAE, 2017; Urban Planning, 2019), a documentary film (Halachmi, 2018), and conference papers (SAH, 2016; AIS, 2019; AESOP 2019; and Impact! From Bauhaus to Ikea, 2019).
Survey Classes
Introduction to Urban Design
Required undergraduate class for Architecture and Landscape Architecture students. The course ties a history of urban theory with methods of urban design, revolving key cities over which significant urban theory, research methods and design schemes were developed. Covering cities from London through Paris, Chicago and Lagos, this course asks students to apply the theoretical lenses and methods learned in class upon their city of Haifa in their weekly sections.
90-100 students yearly, three TAs
History and Theory of Architecture since WWII
Upper-level undergraduate required course for Architecture majors. This course covers key themes in the history of the post-war discipline, requiring students to conduct research of secondary sources of select buildings, urban plans, exhibitions and texts of the period, presented as short papers in a conference-like setting, as well the writing short papers revolving class themes. The pedagogy of this course is designed to develop students’ capacity to conduct research of secondary sources and gain an overview of a field, and to train them in academic writing.
80-90 students yearly, three TAs.