Arth 101: The Built Environment
spring 2022: T/Th 10-11:15, Art 106 (Gamble)
Prof. Jessica Maier / jmaier@mtholyoke.edu / office hours on zoom, W/Th 2-4 and by appt.
Architecture is everywhere. It shapes your life in ways big and small, every day. The basic goal of this course is to make you more aware of it, by understanding its history. We will take a broad view, focusing mainly but not exclusively on western architecture from the ancient world to the 21st century. Buildings and complex built environments like cities (or campuses, or refugee camps) are all responses to human needs and activities, and they all express cultural values. Whether in the service of domestic life, religious ritual, political agendas, commerce, or leisure, architecture reflects and shapes natural surroundings, changing technology, economics, and aesthetic tastes. This might sound dry, but you will never look at the built world around you in quite the same way!
- Teacher: Jessica Maier