Terri Meyer Boake B.E.S. B.Arch. M.Arch. LEED AP
Professor School of Architecture University of Waterloo

last updated January 5, 2018
 


Haley Zhou and Diana Lopez

Arch 686: Competitions Elective

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT!!

1. The Competition must be registered for and entered (on time) and proof submitted to indicate this. This course is not a "test run" but the "real thing". The competitions must allow student entries. If you fail to enter, it will not "count".

2. This is not your thesis. No double counting permitted. It is great if the subject matter will benefit your thesis research but you must be very transparent in your work.

3. The elective must be completed in a timely fashion. Please select a competition/deadline that is manageable within either your work term or school term. Lack of time will not be acceptable as an excuse for failure to complete. You need to figure out how to manage your time and create space to complete the course. This is why it is an "independent" course. If you cannot manage your time, do not take this course. You will never be "gifted" with 2 to 3 weeks with nothing else to do, so you cannot count on this.

4. Students may undertake the competition entry in pairs as a function of the amount of work required, but each student must submit their own, unique, essay.

5. THE COMPETITION ENTRY MUST BE COMPLETE PRIOR TO BEING ALLOWED TO REGISTER FOR THE COURSE. PLEASE EMAIL ME TO OBTAIN PRE APPROVAL FOR THE COMPETITON TO COUNT AS AN ELECTIVE CREDIT.

6. NEW!! This course is subject to approval by the Graduate Officer. An outline for the research paper must be submitted to the Graduate Officer when requesting permission to count the competition for credit. It should be minimum 1 page long, cite the precedents and ideas as per the quotation below, and include a bibliography of references.

7. Once approved the Graduate Services Coordinator will be able to supply you with a permission number to register on Quest.

8. Referencing is to use Chicago Style. http://guides.lib.monash.edu/citing-referencing/chicago

 

PROBLEM STATEMENT:

The competitions elective was designed to give students the opportunity to support the creation of entries for the many, interesting competition opportunities provided by organizations such as the American Collegiate Schools of Architecture, the Steel Structures Education Foundation, The Precast Concrete Institute, etc. The students must comply with the rules, regulations, requirements and submission deadlines for the competition. They must also create a research paper that highlights the various precedents and initiatives that were part of the required typological or technological research portion of the design parti. This is an important aspect of the course and is designed to assist you to develop research and writing skills that support design related inquiries.

Graduate Course Requirements:

The grading basis for the elective will be as follows:

50% will be based on the competition entry
40% for the conceptual response to the design brief
40% for design development and detailing
20% will be for an overall evaluation based on the nature of the presentation, graphics, boards, etc.

If the project is more conceptual, the categories will be adjusted to weigh the base concept as well as its development.

50% for an illustrated 4,000 word essay based upon the quotation:

“The works of the past always influence us, whether or not we care to admit it, or to structure an understanding of how that influence occurs. The past is not just that which we know, it is that which we use, in a variety of ways, in the making of new work…. The typology argument today asserts that despite the diversity of our culture there are still roots of this kind which allow us to speak of the idea of a library, a museum, a city hall or a house. The continuity of these ideas of type, such as they are, and the esteemed examples which have established their identity and assured their continued cultural resonance, constitute an established line of inquiry in which new work may be effectively grounded.”
The Harvard Architectural Review. Volume 5. Precedent and Invention. Between History and Tradition: Notes Toward a Theory of Precedent. John E. Hancock.

Breakdown of the essay grade:
40% for research
20% for clarity of text
20% for integrated images/graphic presentation of essay - no images, no marks
20% for bibliography and footnotes/endnotes and image referencing - please use Chicago style.

The essay will be a discussion of precedents and initiatives for the research that is to be conducted on both the building type as well as the specific "product" that is featured in the competition. Illustrations are mandatory. Include illustrations of both the precedents studied as well as specific images of your project, showing the relationship between it and the precedents.

You MUST submit your competition on time. This is a "real life" experience. There are no extensions for competition entries that arrive late.

 
Payment of any registration fees associated with some competitions is the responsibility of the student. Any project costs, printing, shipping, etc. are also borne by the student.
Sample Mark Breakdown Sheet:
Mark breakdowns for both the competition submission and essay will be emailed following grading.
IF I DO NOT REMEMBER TO SEND YOU A COPY OF THIS AFTER THE GRADE IS SUBMITTED, PLEASE EMAIL ME AND REQUEST ONE. I COMPLETE THESE FOR ALL COMPETITION GRADES.
Deadlines:

You MUST enter the competition on time! Actual course deadlines for Arch 686 will vary by competition and by term. The boards/jpegs will be due to ME, after the competition deadline. Generally the final deadline for submission is the last day of exams of the term in which the course has been registered.

Submission of Boards/Images:
I do not need copies of the actual printed boards, just good quality jpegs or pdf files. These may be emailed to tboake@uwaterloo.ca

 

This course requires an override form.
Students interested in registering for these opportunities should contact me at tboake@uwaterloo.ca.

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last updated January 5, 2018