Architecture of Resilience
J-Term Course at the Harvard Graduate School of Design
J-Term Course at the Harvard Graduate School of Design
Future Architects of the Middle East (FAME) is an organization dedicated to celebrating historical and modern contributions by MENA and SWANA artists, activists, and architects to the global community, with a focus on the Middle East. Our goal is to shed light on non-European modes of architectural thought and expression and celebrate historical and modern contributions by Middle Eastern artists, activists, and architects to the global community. One way we do so is through our publication Mashrabiya which you can check out on Instagram. Run in correlation with the Future Architects of the Middle East, this course will center around Mashrabiya and this year’s theme- Architecture of Resilience. Each student will use the class time to create a submission to the publication as well as learn the basics of publication curation.
Deliverables
Each student is expected to submit an entry to the publication as well as draft a sample publication aesthetic.
Prerequisites: N/A
This course is open to anyone and everyone. Not limited to MENA/SWANA students or those with an architecture background.
Tangible skill
This course will help students explore publication curation, graphics styles, image composition, copy editing, and various other skills. The design discipline is very graphic-heavy, yet we rarely learn how to curate how we speak about our work as well. Producing a publication has a heavy visual component as well as reliance on the text description. Students will also learn how to print a publication and the standards associated with the process.
What is the ‘Middle East’
J-Term Course at the Harvard Graduate School of Design
J-Term Course at the Harvard Graduate School of Design
This course aims to discuss the term ‘Middle East,’ its origins, whom it stands to benefit, and who is harmed by its consistent usage. In doing so, we can remove the lens of the western gaze on how these artifacts, histories, and teachings are portrayed and displayed. The course will follow the format of my book What is the ‘Middle East’ covering topics of history, language, origins of the museum, and more. Museums have evolved into non-productive modes of exhibition and more of an expensive method of archival of the physical. In tandem with this book, I have designed a workshop space to unmake the notion of the Middle East portrayed in western media and academia.
The general premise of the project is that Museums have evolved into non-productive modes of exhibition and more of an expensive method of archival of the physical. I aim to design a space to present these findings through text and accompanying visuals to foster curiosity, spark conversation, teach, and exhibit the work as a whole rather than in a vacuum. In tandem with this book, I have designed a workshop space to unmake the notion of the Middle East portrayed in western media and academia. By re-writing the narrative and viewing the Middle East differently, we can start to reference that architecture as valid design case studies.
Deliverables
Each student is expected to contribute to the conversation and leave their thoughts during the workshop sessions.
Prerequisites: N/A
This course is open to anyone and everyone. Not limited to MENA/SWANA students or those with an architecture background.
Tangible skill
This course will teach students how to recognize the nuances behind the term “Middle East” in the context of architecture and history and how it applies to the lens architecture is viewed today. By re-writing the narrative and viewing the Middle East differently, we can start to reference that architecture as valid design case studies.
Each student is expected to contribute to the conversation and leave their thoughts during the workshop sessions.
Prerequisites: N/A
This course is open to anyone and everyone. Not limited to MENA/SWANA students or those with an architecture background.
Tangible skill
This course will teach students how to recognize the nuances behind the term “Middle East” in the context of architecture and history and how it applies to the lens architecture is viewed today. By re-writing the narrative and viewing the Middle East differently, we can start to reference that architecture as valid design case studies.