Enlighten your design studio project

We will adopt a a 'design decision support approach' that embeds daylight within the design process. In combination with theoretical inputs, daylight performance evaluation will be mostly driven by 'why' questions, encouraging deeper conversations in the form of discussions and desk critiques. To support the ideas generated by the design decisions, evaluation tools, including simulation-based analyses, heuristics, and scale modeling, may be employed depending both on the previously acquired knowledge of the students and the specific needs of their studio projects. The work will be assessed primarily based on each student's learning journey, rather than the final daylight performance of their projects. The course is structured as follows:

• Theory lectures: The lectures will introduce students to evaluating daylight in buildings both experientially and quantitatively through relevant case studies, metrics, and simulation tools. We will guide students in considering various aspects of daylight, focusing on three dimensions: emotion, comfort, and vitality. The content will be based on past and ongoing research from the Laboratory of Integrated Performance in Design (LIPID). Additionally, hands-on tutorials will be provided on effectively using simulation and metrics to test design ideas and hypotheses related to daylight in architecture.

• Hands-on exercises: At the beginning of the course, students will engage in in-class exercises designed to evaluate daylight in buildings both experientially and quantitatively. These exercises will involve the use of drawing mediums, measurement devices, and simulation tools, providing hands-on experiences to reinforce the concepts covered in the lectures.

• Group discussion and brainstorming: Several class periods will be dedicated to group discussions and brainstorming sessions. During these sessions, students will discuss lecture materials in small groups with guidance from the instructors. The aim is to help students conceptualize and propose ways to integrate the learned concepts into their studio projects.