Light and shade: the architecture of 19th, 20th and 21st century Glasgow ADED11967E

  • Academic Session: 2024-25
  • School: Short Courses
  • Credits: 10
  • Level: Level 1 (SCQF level 7)
  • Typically Offered: Summer
  • Available to Visiting Students: Yes
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No

Short Description

Glasgow is a city of contrasts, and this is expressed clearly in the architecture from the 19th through to the 21st century. Fluctuating fortunes, and changing tastes, have shaped the buildings and streetscapes of the city, and left us with a patchwork of styles and materials. This course examines the architects who created the buildings, and the social and cultural forces that influenced their individual approaches to design and construction. Architects such as Alexander Thomson and Charles Rennie Mackintosh, as well as David Hamilton, John James Burnett, Edith Burnet Hughes, the firm of Gillespie, Kidd & Coia, and Zaha Hadid will be covered.

Timetable

Block 3

2 hours per week for 10 weeks

Thursday, 13.00-15.00

Requirements of Entry

None

Excluded Courses

None

Co-requisites

No

Assessment

Essay (approximately 1500 words) from a choice of titles (75%); visual test: identification, comparison and discussion of 2 sets of 2 buildings, 25 minutes for each set, approximately 350 words each (25%). An alternative assessment can be arranged for students whose disabilities would prevent them performing satisfactorily in the visual test.

Course Aims

This course aims to:

 

■ Extend and develop students' basic knowledge of Glasgow architecture through the focussed analysis of 10 buildings from the 19th to the 21st century.

 

■ Develop students' critical awareness of the architects and architecture in Glasgow during the period by identifying the wide variety of stylistic and cultural components, placing them within the broader context. 

 

■ Introduce students to some of the issues of methodology, historiography and context which are associated with this area of study.

 

■ Foster further transferable skills such as visual skills, independent learning and written presentation skill.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course students will be able to:

 

■ Identify the key architects and architectural movements and evaluate the historical, stylistic and cultural components of buildings discussed and the key debates surrounding them

■ Critically analyse and interpret the buildings covered in the course in terms of their function, methods of construction and stylistic and cultural components

■ Demonstrate personal study skills in art-historical research and the ability to pursue investigation of a work of architecture using library and museum resources

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.