The Concept of Limits in Architecture as an Instructional Tool for Design Education

Abstract

The paper aims to re-thinking limits in architecture through an educational approach. A study on the concept of limits in architecture provides an understanding of architecture's sensitivity, responsibility, and bindingness. To investigate the effect of limits on design, the paper has conducted a discussion of a design studio experience as a case study. As a method in the study, an architectural design studio where students are asked to produce architectural solutions by giving physical legal, and social limits has been established. In the architectural design studio scenario, Garipce Village, a fisher village located on the border of Istanbul and a first-degree protection area by the Bosphorus zoning laws, was given as a design problem to second-year architecture students. The design solutions that the students brought to the limits of the village both exemplified how architectural design sought an answer to the limits and demonstrated how to approach rural areas. The limits of conservation areas, the social implications of the conservation sites, and the physical limitations of the village compose a limitation set for the design problem of the rural area. The outputs of the design studio are discussed in the context of architectural solutions for limits. The results revealed how questioning the concept of "limit" transformed students' learning experiences in the design studio. It has been observed that the act of designing with limits improves students' awareness, strengthens the relationships established with the context, and incorporates the social dimensions of architectural design into the design.