Notes on an Adaptive Reuse Experience in Design Studio

 

ABSTRACT Conservation and adaptive reuse of historical buildings is one of the most important pursuits of architectural practice and architectural education alike. Architectural education programs are responsible for training qualified graduates in design and practicing of conservation projects. There are several courses to teach students in the theory of conservation methods in architectural education; however, application in the design process is often lacking. On the other hand, studying adaptive reuse projects in education offer a chance to transfer knowledge of conservation as well as probe into an important design problem. In this context, the aim of this study is to share an adaptive reuse experience of design studio students, investigation of the problems, solution-seeking and decision-making process in the studio. Within this framework, the study first examines the concept of conservation and its significance in architectural education, discusses the concept of adaptive reuse as a method of conservation, and analyzes the decision making process of an adaptive reuse experience in design studio, under the headings of ‘use selection decisions’, ‘planimetric decisions’, ‘volumetric decisions’ and ‘structural and material selection related decisions.