ARCH 303 - Principles of Spatial Design I: Lmatchis@usc - Edu

USC School of Architecture
ARCH 303 – Principles of Spatial Design I

Spring 2015
4 Units
Course Information:
Faculty: Lauren Matchison, RA, NCARB, Assistant Professor of Practice

[email protected]
Class Sessions: Fridays, 10:00-1:50 p.m., AFH B57J
Office Hours: Watt 339, by appointment
Prerequisite: ARCH 203 Visualizing and Experiencing the Built Environment
To further facilitate learning, this course utilizes Blackboard. Log in using your USC
username and password at: https://blackboard.usc.edu/
Catalog Course Description
Introduction to design principles and processes; sequence of exercises emphasizing

development of basic skills, ideas, and techniques used in the creation of simplified urban
design projects.
Intent
Following the introduction to various visualization practices used to understand the urban
form and activities as explored in Arch 203, Arch 303, Principles of Spatial Design,
explores a set of fundamental concepts underlying both architectural and urban design.
Within this course exercises ensure each student’s understanding of: figure versus field,
the relationship of part to the whole, the creation of sequence and place, the distinction
between scale versus size, and the way that basic spatial typologies and other
organizational ideas can help organize ideas and programmatic needs in urban form. In
addition, the course is meant to introduce: (1) design methodology (including ideas of
abstraction, concept, reiteration and synthesis); (2) particular digital and model skills; and
(3) to explore precedent study as it relates to design.
Required Texts
Ching F D K (2007) Form, Space and Order (Third Edition). New York, John Wiley
Zumthor Peter (2012) Thinking Architecture (Third Edition). Basel, Birkhauser
Relevant readings will be assigned and discussed in studio throughout the semester. If
not found in the required texts, readings will be posted to USC Blackboard
(https://blackboard.usc.edu/) or handed out in class.
Recommended Texts
Ching F D K (2009) Architectural Graphics (Fifth Edition). New York, John Wiley
Hayden D (1995) The Power of Place: Urban Landscapes as Public History. Cambridge,
MA, MIT Press
Jackson J B (1994) A Sense of Place, A Sense of Time. New Haven, CT, Yale University
Press
Kostof S and Tobias R (1999) The City Assembled: The Elements of Urban Form
Through History. New York, Little, Brown, and Co. (see “Matters of Size”, pp 136-143 in
particular)
Kostof S (1991) The City Shaped. New York, Little, Brown, and Co. (Selected Excerpts)
Potteiger M and Purington J (1998) Landscape Narratives: Design Practices for Telling
Stories. New York, John Wiley and Sons
Rossi A (1982) “The Structure of Urban Artifacts” in Architecture of the City. MIT Press,
Cambridge, MA. Pp 28-61.
Required Software
Adobe Creative Cloud

Please purchase a subscription to the Adobe Creative Cloud. The cost for students is
$19.99/month. Please go to this website and purchase the “Complete Plan.”
https://creative.adobe.com/plans
Required Supplies (partial list, other supplies may be needed as the semester progresses)
12” roll of trace (buff or white)

(2) Pentel Sign pens
Sketchbook, 8.5 x 11
Hard drawing surface
Soft lead pencils (HB and 4B)
Hard lead pencils
Pencil sharpener
Eraser
Access to digital camera (phone camera is ok)
Measuring tape
Course Requirements
Projects (50%)
(4) Studio Projects and (1) Precedent Report (specific instructions for projects will be
distributed and discussed in class)
Project 1: Understanding Organizational Systems and Diagramming

Project 2: Understanding Architectural Language of Plan and Section
Project 3: Understanding Sequence/Place/Event/Narrative
Project 4: Understanding Scale/Size and Urban Typologies
Sketchbook (20%)
This is meant to be a thorough and well-organized record of and instrument for critical
inquiry and design process. The sketchbook is to include (freehand and/or digitally
produced) generative diagrams and design sketches, weekly process drawings,
notes/diagrams/sketches from class work, graphic analysis of relevant precedents,
class/lecture/reading notes, as well as any other material relevant to visual exploration in
this course. Date and label all entries clearly and in a consistent manner.
Digital Portfolio (20%)
Due at the end of the semester, on the day and time of our scheduled final exam (no
exceptions- failure to submit is equivalent to failing a final exam). All assignments must
be represented in the portfolio; students are advised to regularly document all work. Each
of you will create a digital portfolio using Adobe’s Behance ProSite. Access to it is
included in your subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud (details below).
Participation and Contribution 10%)

Students must be prepared to discuss and critique the readings aloud in class.
Evaluation and Grading
Final grade evaluations will be based on the following breakdown:
Assignments & Precedent Project 50%

Sketchbook w/ Process and Reading Notes 20%
Digital Portfolio 20%
Class Contribution/Participation 10%
Work will be evaluated periodically so that you have an indication of your progress.
Unsatisfactory performance warnings will be issued to students whose work does not
meet minimum requirements. A minimum grade of ‘C’ is required to continue on to ARCH
403. Consult University polices for IN (incomplete) grades and deadlines for withdrawal
(‘W’ grade).
Course Policies
School of Architecture Attendance Policy

A student may miss the equivalent of one week of class sessions (in this case, one
excused absence is permitted) without directly affecting the student’s grade and ability to
complete the course. An excused absence is a confirmed personal illness, family
emergency, or religious holiday. For each absence over the allowed number, your grade
can be lowered by 1/3-letter grade. If additional absences are required for a personal
illness, family emergency, pre-approved academic reason/religious observance, you
must discuss the situation with your faculty member immediately.
Any student not in class within the first 10 minutes is considered tardy, and any student
absent (in any form including sleep, technological distraction, or by leaving mid class for
a long bathroom/water break) for more than 1/3 of the class time can be considered fully
absent. If arriving late, a student must be respectful of a class in session and do
everything possible to minimize the disruption caused by a late arrival. It is always the
student’s responsibility to seek means (if possible) to make up work missed due to
absences, not the instructor’s, although such recourse is not always an option due to the
nature of the material covered.
Statement for Students with Disabilities

Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a disability is required to
register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of
verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the
letter is delivered to your faculty member as early in the semester as possible. DSP is
located in STU 301 and is open 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The phone
number for DSP is (213) 740-0776.
Statement on Academic Integrity

PLAGIARISM IS GROUNDS FOR FAILING THIS COURSE
USC seeks to maintain an optimal learning environment. General principles of academic
honesty include the concept of respect for the intellectual property of others, the
expectation that individual work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an
instructor, and the obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by
others as well as to avoid using another’s work as one’s own. All students are expected
to understand and abide by these principles. Scampus, the Student Guidebook, contains
the Student Conduct Code in Section 11.00, while the recommended sanctions are
located in Appendix A: http://www.usc.edu/dept/publications/SCAMPUS/gov/. Students
will be referred to the Office of Student Judicial Affairs and Community Standards for
further review, should there be any suspicion of academic dishonesty. The Review
process can be found at: http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/SJACS/.
Religious Holidays
The University of Southern California recognizes the diversity of our community and the
potential for conflicts involving academic activities and personal religious observation.
The University provides a guide to such observances for reference and suggests that any
concerns about lack of attendance or inability to participate fully in the course activity be
fully aired at the start of the term. As a general principle, students should be excused
from class for these events if properly documented and if provisions can be made to
accommodate the absence and make up the lost work. Constraints on participation that
conflict with adequate participation in the course and cannot be resolved to the
satisfaction of the faculty and the student need to be identified prior to the add/drop date
for registration. After the add/drop date the University and the School of Architecture shall
be the sole arbiter of what constitutes appropriate attendance and participation in a given
course.
Sustainability Initiative
The School of Architecture has adopted the 2010 Initiative for Sustainability. Solutions to
design problems must engage the environment in a way that dramatically reduces or
eliminates the need for fossil fuel.

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USC School of Architecture

ARCH 303 – Principles of Spatial Design I

Faculty: Lauren Matchison, RA, NCARB, Assistant Professor of Practice

Class Sessions: Fridays, 10:00-1:50 p.m., AFH B57J

Office Hours: Watt 339, by appointment

Prerequisite: ARCH 203 Visualizing and Experiencing the Built Environment

Catalog Course Description

Introduction to design principles and processes; sequence of exercises emphasizing

Adobe Creative Cloud

12” roll of trace (buff or white)

Project 1: Understanding Organizational Systems and Diagramming

Participation and Contribution 10%)

Evaluation and Grading

Final grade evaluations will be based on the following breakdown:

Assignments & Precedent Project 50%

School of Architecture Attendance Policy

Statement for Students with Disabilities

Statement on Academic Integrity

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