Download PDF:
IAT391-1-2010.pdf
Credit Hours: 3
Instructors:
Russell Taylor
Location: Off Campus
Semester: Spring 2010
Course Description:
Part of the 9-12 Credit ItaliaDesign Field School curriculum. Classes allow focus on the four primary base destinations and their assets (Rome, Florence and Milan). Students are assigned, individually and or in teams, to major and minor works of relevance and scope in these bases. Preparation is made for the in-field projects which focus on ethnographic and pattern-language studies of Roman neighborhoods, Tuscan towns, Florentine streets and piazzas. As well, the visits and interview to studios and factories primarily in Milan are prepared. The annual research paper topics are defined and explored. Data collection methodologies and equipment needs are organized. All projects are required to be submitted to upload to the ItaliaDesign Field School research and public website. Projects manifest as reports, papers, information models and presentations. The projects in Milan focus on the contemporary design firms the Field School will meet with that year for the research. Students are given an overview of the historical and contemporary design scene in Milan in preparation for their work at Milan Politecnico, as well as lectures on the historic origins of post-Risorgimento Italian industry and society. Emphasis is on contemporary Italy and its innovative strategies. All historical study in IAT 391 and in-field is contextual to these studies. Subjects range into the impact of plastic materials on Italian designs, fabrication in materials, prototyping and design process. Issues of Quality are always in the forefront, as are valuing Italian attributes that contribute to design success, such as “slowness” – an issue which has become a global phenomenon in sustainability. Industrial innovation, the origins of Italian rhetorical and critical practice prepare students for the wide range of producers they will meet in Italy: from large scale organizations such as FIAT and Olivetti, to theoretical and practice-based designers and small-scale family-owned industry, which is the Italian norm. All studies are brought back to the key subject under study to look at Italy for its successes as a world leader in terms of their innovation practices and relationship to design.
Topics:
- Rome: History to Contemporary Rebirth (5 weeks)
- Design and Urban History of Tuscany and the Agrarian Town (2 weeks)
- Art and Architectural History of Florence: Middle Ages to Renaissance (3 weeks)
- Contemporary History of Milanese Design: 1945 - present (3 weeks)
- Preparation of Research Topics and Methodology (2 weeks)
Course Objectives:
Learning outcomes expected for students include:
- Understanding the roots of Italian innovation
- Introduction to Italian Art, Design and Architectural History
- Introduction to Italian History: Pre-Roman to present
- Contemporary Italian Design Awareness
Delivery Method:
Lecture (LEC)
Learning Activities + Evaluation:
Evaluation:
Weekly Assignment: 20 %
Weekly Quizzes: 20%
Major Assignment: 40%
Participation: 20%
Texts, Resources + Materials:
Course pack provided.
Prerequisites:
Completion of 48 credits. Corequisite: IAT 392/IAT 393 (ItaliaDesign Field School)
Last Updated: October 19, 2009
These course outlines are drafts and are subject to change.
