Freek Persyn: Catalogue data in Spring Semester 2021

Name Prof. Freek Persyn
FieldArchitecture and Urban Transformation
Address
Architektur u. Urbane Transformat.
ETH Zürich, ONA J 25
Neunbrunnenstr. 50
8093 Zürich
SWITZERLAND
E-mailpersyn@arch.ethz.ch
DepartmentArchitecture
RelationshipFull Professor

NumberTitleECTSHoursLecturers
051-1234-21LIntegrated Discipline Architecture and Urban Design (F. Persyn)3 credits2UF. Persyn
AbstractThe integrated study performance has to accompany the design, though it has to be a clearly recognizable independent performance within the discipline of urban planning.The formal framework needs to be discussed with the assistants.
ObjectiveAn urban design case study with a clear topic and a clear formulation of a question. The findings and the discoveries shall be part of the base of the design.
ContentThe integrated study performance has to accompany the design, though it has to be a clearly recognizable independent performance within the discipline of urban planning.The formal framework needs to be discussed with the assistants.
052-1122-21LArchitectural Design V-IX: Offenbach - We Need to Talk About Infrastructure (F. Persyn) Information Restricted registration - show details
Please register (Link) only after the internal enrolment for the design classes (see Link).

Project grading at semester end is based on the list of enrolments on 2.4.21, 24:00 h (valuation date) only.
Ultimate deadline to unsubscribe or enroll for the studio is 2.4.21, 24:00 h.
14 credits16UF. Persyn
AbstractAt first sight, Offenbach might seem like a rather small and unimportant city. Yet Offenbach is a city of extremes: Highest debt per capita in Germany, highest unemployment rate in the state of Hessen, most international and culturally diverse city in the country, a poor city. We are interested in these edge conditions where things collide, energy is unleashed, and radical change can happen.
ObjectiveUnderstanding a place in all its complexity and its potentials for change; Developing an understanding and own interpretation of Adaptive Infrastructure; Developing an own position and design proposal; Being open to experiment; Design in dialogue
ContentDo you know Offenbach? At first sight it might seem like a rather small and unimportant city. Yet Offenbach is a city of extremes: It is the city with the highest debt per capita in Germany, it has the highest unemployment rate in the state of Hessen, and according to official statistics it is the most international and culturally diverse city in the country – about 63% of the inhabitants have a so-called migration background (which in itself is a rather ambiguous definition). Offenbach is a poor city in a rich region. Situated in the middle of the metropolitan region Frankfurt-Rhein-Main it is inevitably part of bigger global dynamics and forces that shape our cities. With NEWROPE we are interested in these edge conditions where things collide, energy is unleashed, and radical change can happen.

Maybe you know the famous rapper “Haftbefehl”. When he rhymes “Offenbach bleibt hart [...] forever Nordend [...] Bruder, dieser Ort brennt” he draws an image of his home town as a rough place, a place “on fire”. This is for sure only one perspective on the city’s reality, and it has not always been like that. Until the 1970’s Offenbach was a rather wealthy place. Yet many of the city’s promises were built on its infrastructures: It grew with its industry and the decay began with the industry’s departure: Around the 1970’s a large part of the vital leather industry moved either to Italy or was replaced by imports from Asia. Around the same time the dogma of the car-friendly city drastically re-shaped Offenbach. The remnants of these infrastructural visions are up to this day defining the everyday experience of the city. The same goes for the harbor, which during the last few years has largely been transformed into a residential area benefiting from the proximity to Frankfurt.

We see Offenbach as a prime example of a medium sized city which has been shaped and re-shaped by infrastructure in an extractive way: The infrastructure which was built after the industry’s decay does not primarily serve the city, but rather its surroundings. Infrastructure here is thought mainly from an engineering perspective and rather from an idea of physical connectivity than a sense of collectivity and community. We would like to search for entry points to turn this perspective around, and to adapt the existing infrastructure as a living environment where new infrastructure investments adapt to changing conditions.

For this endeavor we team up with a group of planners from both Offenbach and Zurich who will be the co-hosts of our studio. We will situate our work within existing transformations, by trying to design in dialogue and being strategic with the output. This studio challenges you to think – and move – beyond traditional conventions about the role of architecture and urban planning and will allow you to try out things and develop new ideas.

We will transform our Lab into a film and TV studio in order to work on a collective short film, using the short film as our touchstone we will develop new ideas, design interventions and integrative visions to re-connect Offenbach to its decaying infrastructures. These interventions can take many different forms: from an architectural proposal to a public campaign, and from a site inventory to a stakeholder roundtable.
Prerequisites / NoticeGroup work only.
Mid-term crits: 16.3. / 31.3. / 5.5. / 19.5.
Costs: CHF 250.---.
064-0018-21LResearch Methods in Landscape and Urban Studies Information Restricted registration - show details 3 credits2KG. Vogt, T. Avermaete, T. Galí-Izard, C. Girot, H. Klumpner, F. Persyn, C. Schmid
AbstractAs part of the ‘Doctoral Programme in Landscape and Urban Studies’, the ‘Research Methods in Landscape and Urban Studies' seminar offers PhD students at the D-Arch an application-oriented introduction into the variety of methodologies and tools available to conduct research on the (built) environment at the urban and territorial scale.
ObjectiveThe seminar's objective is to introduce PhD students to the multitude of research methodologies, tools, and techniques within the fields of urban studies, urban design, territorial planning and landscape architecture. Based on the conveyed knowledge, the seminar ultimately aims at enabling PhD candidates to critically assess existing methods and tools, and to refine and develop an academically sound research framework for their own studies.
ContentThe seminar is organised along four modules that are arranged according to the PhD classes' particular needs:

A: Methodology Module >>> Introduction of a research methodology/approach by an expert + exercise and discussion / moderated by doctoral programme coordinator. (3 per semester)

B: Framework Module >>> Sessions organised and conducted by doctoral programme coordinator and invited experts to develop a first overview of different theories on landscape and urban studies (with this semester a specific focus on the Anthropocene and living systems). (3 per semester).

C: Techniques Module >>> Introduction into research techniques and tools / organised by doctoral programme coordinator and respective experts. These modules will make students familiar with technical aspects such as academic writing, or the the use of GIS software and visual analysis (3 per semester)

D. Doctoral Reviews >>> Presentation and discussion of individual PhD projects organised by the doctoral program coordinator with external guests (2 per semester).
Prerequisites / NoticeThe online seminar is jointly organized by the coordinator of the Doctoral Programme in Landscape and Urban Studies, and the I-LUS faculty. Although located at the D-Arch, the seminar is open to all doctoral students (at ETH) who are involved or interested in research at the urban and territorial scale.

This seminar is complementing the gta doctoral colloquiums on Thursday afternoons.