You are asked to formulate your essay as a proposal for an exhibition of models of architecture from the past on our campus! This will make you think about why it maybe important to think about past civilizations and their expressions in architecture and what kind of message and approach you are offering here to your fellow CSI students, faculty and staff who would come see your exhibition! In other words, you will need to think about every choice you make here as well as the overall choice of your angle on this broadly defined topic and you will need to explain it.
1. Explanation of the topic:
This is a very broadly defined topic so you can ‘fit’ your particular interests here. Expression: of belief systems, values, traditions, religions, a lot can be addressed here. Architecture: you can choose form tombs, religious structures or non-religious structures, all up to you. The time span really is the time span covered during our class this semester including the material from our last class on Gothic Cathedrals as well. Now, I am not saying strictly structures, but architecture meaning, any decoration, any idea expressed in it, any sculptural decoration inherent to the architecture is a part of it. In this topic belongs even symbolism as a sub-theme, as it is again an inherent part of anything we have studied. If you decide to address architecture in relation to the sun, earth and sky, the elements, it is all possible here, you just need to articulate in your thesis what you are going to do. Finally, if technologies is your major interest, yes, also the use of particular technologies can ‘communicate’ about the particular civilizations! All fits in here and it will depend on what you choose to discuss and how you articulate this in your thesis!
2. Explanation of the format:
You are still going to maintain the format of an essay, but think of it as a text that will be read by someone in charge who is going to fund your exhibition! Therefore you need to convince them that your exhibition, ideas and choices of works of architecture are definitely worth it. Think about it: Why would anyone want to come to such an exhibition right now? How can you make these past times and the experience of the visitor of the exhibition relevant to our experience today? In your discussion you need to explain why your exhibition is relevant to us today and include 4-6 examples of expression in architecture. You need to give the framework of the civilizations that produced them as well as analyses of these works of architecture. Among your chosen examples of 4-6, you can include ONE example of architecture that we have not covered in class that belongs to the time period assigned.
3. Grading: 100 points. These 100 points are clearly not the same as 100 points for a singular response you wrote. The evaluation of your final essay here will count for 40% of your final grade as per our syllabus!
What is going to be graded:
1. The level of engagement with the topic in a way where you show that your are thinking through a new sets of relationships within which you view these past expressions in architecture. This is, put simply, you thinking through the material newly and out loud !
2. You will need to discuss the chosen examples of architecture in-depth with some analyses and historical context. This is about showing that you have learned to look at, analyze, and think about architecture.
This is NOT a research paper, but you can work with sources if you would like to. You have to cite your sources however if you decide to use these. It is expected that you work with the material we have encountered throughout the semester, but that you do not copy and paste from your responses, but that you use the information and ideas you had in a new way where they are tied to your greater overarching theme.
3. The correct format which means: thesis — discussion — conclusion.
4. Following the guidelines below
What to be careful about:
Include a title.
State your thesis clearly in the first paragraph. (Generally stated thesis such as “I am choosing to exhibit this and that because they are different or similar does not state anything! You need to tell what specifically you are going to follow/discuss and why.) A thesis gives you (and your reader!) clarity and a direction to follow throughout your essay.
ID every work of art and architecture you will be talking about. (Saying…The Maya Temple…is unacceptable. Every time you mention it for the first time in text, you need to ID as closely as you can with its name, location and a year when built. After that, you can clearly refer to it in more general terms.)
As a convention, every title of a work, building etc. needs to be either italicized or underlined. This is so you emphasize it in text for the reader.
Use paragraphs to organize your text.
Avoid statements such as: “the so and so is NOT such and such.” In other words, don’t say what it is not, say what it is!
