This workshop is organized within Lab-O, part of the academic bachelor’s program in Architecture and Interior Architecture at KU Leuven, Faculty of Architecture. LAB-O is an experimental learning environment in which working at full scale, evaluating critically, and acting reflectively are central. It focuses on fundamental aspects of the design process, encouraging students to communicate visually, materially, and conceptually, and to develop their ability to envision, implement, and reflect. More specifically, the workshop is set within Positioning, the program of study in which students reflect on their role as designers within a broader societal and disciplinary context.
The workshop itself explores several aspects and qualities that support the field of interior architecture. Throughout the week we visit design offices and cultural institutions in Ghent to get a better sense of productive making spaces, and how they operate. On the other hand we collectively design and build structures in a way that is both methodical and intuitive.
Taking the campus as our starting point, we invite you to think about a flexible, built infrastructure that can serve multiple purposes in our classrooms. This could take the form of a modular system of legs and carriers, to be arranged into tables, displays, shelving, seating, ornaments, and more. An extensive stock of recycled material is available to work with.
We start by designing connection principles that are strong, reversible, and repeatable. From there, we can move towards larger forms, structures, and typologies that respond to different needs. But first, we put them to use by organizing a celebration together on Friday.