Building, Place and Precinct Analysis

This subject is not offered in 2013.

240 hours.

Admission to 234AA Master of Design

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

An introduction to analysis of buildings, places, landscapes, precincts and their associated technologies. This subject investigates the processes and significance of historical, social, and cultural investigation from primary sources, the philosophies of heritage and conservation, and the main avenues for researching heritage sites. Development of skills in the documentary and physical investigation of buildings, places, and landscapes including materials, patents, building, landscape, cultural, and urban analysis.

On completion of the subject students should be able to:

• locate and interpret documentary sources on land ownership, cultural and social factors, building, landscape and urban infrastructure construction and property occupation;
• diagnose structural, formal, and fabric changes;
• recognize distinctive aspects of building and landscape technology;
• interpret material evidence;
• synthesise historical and socio-cultural data into a coherent account of the physical development of a building, place, landscape, or precinct;
• relate a building or place to examples of comparable cultural significance.

Exercises and final research report (written and/or drawn) to the equivalent of not more than 10,000 words.

JS Kerr, The Conservation Plan, Sydney, 1990.
Miles Lewis, Physical Investigation of a Building, Melbourne, 1989.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On completion of the subject students should have developed the following skills and capabilities:

• documentation and physical investigation of buildings, landscapes, and places;
• freehand sketching, image recording, and report writing;
• analysis of the history and/or socio-cultural context of a building or place;
• analysis of the fabric of a building or place.