This unit of study provides an overview of a human-centred approach to the design of interactive technologies and environments. It introduces students to design thinking and how it can be productively applied to different design situations. The unit covers theoretical concepts, methods and tools used in human-centred design, including user research, ideation, prototyping and user evaluation. It provides students with the principles, processes and tools that are used in commercial design projects. Students learn to build empathy with users, identify the problem space, develop design concepts and persuasively communicate design proposals with an emphasis on the user experience through visual storytelling.

Architectural History/Theory 1 introduces students to the discourse of architectural history and theory. It includes a concise chronological survey of key periods of architectural history from antiquity to the mid-nineteenth century, as well as closer investigation of some particular architectural themes and ideas across history. Students will interrogate these themes through intense study of significant buildings, which they will research, document, and analyse. They will be introduced to fundamental principles and skills of scholarly research in the discipline, including locating and evaluating sources, and constructing arguments.

Architectural Communications 1 introduces students to fundamental modes of communication that are used to comprehend, conceive, explore, articulate and document architecture. It covers the domains of sketching, technical drawing, model making (physical and digital), verbal and written communication, diagramming and photography. The unit both familiarises students with necessary technical skills and encourages their creative deployment through practical experimentation. It explores the roles that analogue and digital communication techniques play in contemporary architectural design and thinking. Throughout the semester, students are asked to develop and explore an architectural idea through representation in various media, and switching media from iteration to iteration.

This unit provides Bachelor of Architecture and Environments students with the knowledge and skills required to use a range of fundamental architectural sketching and drawing skills based on observation of the physical world, in particular the built world. The workshop places an emphasis on keen observation, experimental use of materials and engagement with historical frameworks used in design practice in design and architecture. Exposure in studio to the sensitivities offered by different drawing materials and techniques will give students the competency to more confidently use drawing as a communication device. Skills in perspective drawing are introduced and drawing is used to document the visible world and define structure and detail. On successful completion of this unit of study students will have demonstrated familiarity with a range of drawing media and techniques, including charcoal, graphite, pen, brush and ink, and an introduction to colour. Students will understand the importance of maintaining a sketchbook as a site to record all their visual and conceptual research, and in which to draw on a daily basis as a means to develop ideas and technical proficiency.

This unit of study introduces approaches to thinking and working in the built environment that are based on measurement, analysis and modelling. Students develop a range of quantitative skills, from the ability to measure several important aspects of buildings to the ability to use mathematics to communicate insight into the relationships between the characteristics of building and the perceptions and experiences of occupants. This unit explores subjective and objective data, measurement uncertainty and bias, analysis techniques for different kinds of data, visual representations of data, and mathematical modelling. Topics that enable students to understand empirical research, including experimental design, research methods, and ethics, are also discussed. During lab sessions, students apply the concepts introduced in the lectures to real architectural spaces.

This unit of study will give the student an understanding of the design for a small scale building in an urban context. It teaches the foundations for an interdisciplinary design process between the fields of architecture, architectural science, and urban planning. Architectural aspects including typology, scale, proportion, structure, program and materiality are investigated. Students learn the complexities of architectural design, from concepts, ideas and design models to applied aspects including programmatic, structural, material requirements, limitations of a particular site, or city conditions. The unit equips students with conceptual tools and design skills from analogue modelling and graphic representation to digital drafting, rendering and fabrication, and verbal and written communication. On the successful completion of this unit of study, students will have demonstrated: an understanding of the architectural design process; an understanding for a small scale architecture project; and an ability to express concepts and designs creatively, clearly and cohesively across a range of representation media.

Architectural Technologies 1 introduces students to the roles that environmental considerations, structures and construction play in architecture. The fundamental concepts underpinning each of these key areas are presented and students demonstrate their developing knowledge of them via project-based assignments. These progressively complex tasks initiate students to the knowledge required to successfully analyse and synthesise construction and technical systems in basic buildings.

This unit of study reviews the challenges involved in planning the contemporary urban environment. It covers a range of perspectives, including urban planning, urban design and heritage. Students will examine the evolution of towns and cities from the first settlements to the modern metropolis, and explore the cultural, economic, political and digital drivers that shape the urban environment. It asks, 'why did cities evolve?', 'what purpose do cities serve?', 'who is the city for?', and 'how are decisions made about cities?' The contemporary urban environment is explored as a dynamic and continually evolving 'living city' that is co-created by architects, planners, urban designers and other public and private stakeholders. On the successful completion of this unit of study, students will have demonstrated an understanding of the importance of planning in shaping our towns and cities through time. They will have a basic knowledge of the key ideas that are needed for formulating planning and urban design proposals.

This unit builds on the content of Living Cities and introduces students to the modern formal domains of planning, urban design and heritage conservation. The focus will be on two main areas of debate, namely, city form and structure, and secondly, the planning and development processes on which the formal planned city is made. The unit will establish the context in which the role of planners, architects and urban designers in the process of building the 'incremental' city is understood, from the site to precinct, neighbourhood and city wide levels. Elements of city form and structure are analysed, as well as mobility, transport, land use, infrastructure and current policy responses at a metropolitan and local level in meeting urban growth needs. The unit will also overview the development process including the framework in which architects, planners and property developers must work. Using a contemporary planning framework, the nature of development assessment, strategic planning and the community's role within this framework are explored. Criticisms and reform agendas around frameworks will be examined. Informal urbanism is also introduced in this unit to address development that occurs outside the domain of formal western regulated planning and design systems.

This unit of study develops a working understanding of light and sound from physical and sensory perspectives, and of the ways that buildings and building elements affect these. These are examined in terms of their sources, transmission, digital representation, and sensation. Theories that allow students to develop practical designs and predictions are introduced. Theoretical learning is reinforced by computational data processing and analysis. Standards, regulations and recommendations concerning light and sound in the built environment are introduced. Consideration is given to their roles in human communication, and how architectural environments can contribute to these.

This unit introduces students to the role of materials as a proponent of architectural form. The objective of this unit is to equip students with an ability to think critically about the transformation, evaluation and creative application of different materials in terms of environmental, structural and aesthetic performance. In-class lectures and assignments provide students with an opportunity to explore fundamental concepts about material propensity, material performance and material scale as a conceptual and practical basis for architectural design. To this end, students will also be introduced to regional and international precedents from antiquity to the present that demonstrate the application of innovative and sustainable practices with the use and reuse of materials in the built environment. To facilitate the dialog between material and form in architecture, students will engage in a progressively complex semester-long design project. Upon successful completion of this unit students will be provided with the necessary skills for thinking with materials as a determinant of architectural form.

This unit introduces a set of principles and skills in algorithmic architecture. Through a series of parametric design exercises, modelling is construed as an explicit formulation of architectural design problem and opportunities. This includes defining design logic and parameter as well as converting data into meaningful information for design analysis and synthesis. The parametric model's performance will be contested by how well it delivers the design intentions and ventures new design opportunities. Students will be exposed to various computational design methods to develop their understanding of the basic principles in architectural computing.

This studio will focus on the ways that buildings respond effectively to people's environmental needs, while minimising net energy use in buildings. Students will learn how to integrate and design the thermal, luminous and acoustic environment of a building. Particular emphasis will be placed on the basics of heat, thermal performance and natural ventilation strategies. In learning how to assess environmental performance, students will be equipped with the required knowledge to design convenient, quick and robust solutions that improve the experience of the building. An introduction to sustainable building practices, including net-zero and green building, will provide a basis for further investigation of the critical needs faced by occupants of the built environment. Particular emphasis will be placed on experiments and case studies in the Sydney area, with questions raised about the Australian context more broadly. The main learning outcomes include an understanding of fundamental principles of integrated strategies and solutions, principles of passive low-energy design techniques (including heat, sound, light and wind), the ability to critically and synthetically analyse environmental design issues, and the ways to efficaciously implement and communicate technical information during the design process.

This unit of study exposes students to fundamentals of building technologies with emphasis on performance evaluation and materials. A strong focus will be given to the principles of designing and evaluating high-performance envelopes. This unit will also encourage students to develop an integrated understanding of the implications that materials and design solutions have on the technological aspects of architecture. Based on lectures and studio, this unit is designed to provide students with the basic knowledge needed to design and evaluate a building envelope performance. In particular, this unit of study will help students to understand and apply principles of building physics, envelope performance indicators, visualisation and effective communication of the project, building systems and technological detailing of building components. This unit will focus on teaching students how to design, specify and evaluate different building materials, including, but not limited to brick, concrete, steel and glass. Finally, students will also be exposed to relevant building code regulation and industry practice in Australia.

Architectural Technologies 3 develops in students an advanced understanding of moderately complex building systems. It addresses the technical design of buildings in their entirety and in their details, through the three interrelated perspectives of environment, structures and construction. As in Architectural Technologies 1 and 2, primary emphasis is placed on developing an understanding that appropriate formal architectural solutions can be the outcome of technological considerations and that, reciprocally, technical solutions can not only support but inform conceptual ambitions. A major project-based assignment, a case study analysis, individual technical drawings and a final examination are used as the vehicles for students to demonstrate the knowledge that they have gained in analysing and synthesising the various considerations that are to be addressed in the design of a building system that appropriately responds to, and integrates, the three key technical considerations of environment, structures and construction.

This unit of study will focus on Indoor Environmental Quality and how it may affect people's experience and perception of their surrounding built environment. Students will be exposed to key IEQ dimensions, including thermal, visual and acoustic comfort and indoor air quality. Particular emphasis will be given on Post-Occupancy Evaluation (POE) tools, studies and research findings. The evolution of contemporary workspace design and its impact on building occupants' satisfaction, productivity and health will also be explored. Students will also learn how IEQ has been incorporated by certification and rating schemes. Upon completion of this unit, students will have the ability to critically and synthetically analyse IEQ-related issues, and how to efficaciously implement and communicate the technical information during the design process and/or performance assessments.

Design Integration Lab: Urban Environments builds on the content of Living Cities and City Form and Development. It introduces students to the concept of 'place' and the planning and design interventions that impact public places. The unit will focus on one particular location chosen for its complexity in terms of the range of contemporary issues within an urban context. Developing urban analysis and design skills and enhancing strategic planning knowledge, students will investigate a location and seek to design a public space, including different built forms and elements, based on their own strategic plan. There is a strong element of fieldwork embedded in the urban analysis section of the unit. The outputs will be developed while working on individual and group tasks. Students will be challenged as if in a work environment of professionals looking to resolve urban issues.

This unit provides an introduction to the theory and practice of contemporary property development. Students will develop an understanding of the theory of property and the professional's role in the delivery of development projects involving different sectors, project types and stakeholders. Students will work on a case study site, often with an industry partner. The unit introduces basic: construction and tenure types, project costings; an overview of the construction industry and stakeholder management; and timelining a construction project. On completion, students will be able to identify major stakeholders and prepare project feasibilities with accompaning risk mitigation measures. Students will develop an understanding of contemporary property development, its effects on cities, its role in the economy, and the processes and stakeholders involved.

Architectural Professional Practice introduces students in the final semester of their undergraduate degree to the professional practice of architecture, focusing on design development within regulatory and practice management frameworks. Students are introduced to the fundamental principles of key regulatory requirements and critically deploy their understandings by investigating local practice case studies. They further develop a capacity to apply their knowledge in a particular context through an architectural design project that they take to Development Application level using current best practice.

As the culminating design studio for the degree, the capstone project combines knowledge, criteria and methods of the disciplines of Architecture, Urban Planning, and Architectural Science. Students are presented with the opportunity to express and represent their own positioning through the analysis for and design of a sufficiently complex building, city structure, or town centre. The studio consolidates the students' abilities in identifying and solving problems and critical aspects for architecture and the built environment using a range of advanced modelling, simulation and optimisation techniques and methods. The aim for students is to produce an integrated and compelling pre-professional project prompted by the critical reflection of the built environment. With completion of this unit, students demonstrate their understanding of a spectrum of the built environment. By specialising in a select suite of these aspects, students prepare for career pathways as offered by the school's full range of postgraduate courses.

This unit provides an introduction to creative coding. It teaches an understanding of the fundamentals of computational thinking as well as skills in the design and implementation of software for creative expression and prototyping. It introduces students to tools for building interactive design applications through programming assignments, knowledge of programming concepts, and knowledge of the Javascript programming language. Key concepts covered in this unit include: object-oriented programming, control flows, and algorithmic thinking. Students learn how to design through the development of code, allowing them to incorporate programming into their own design projects as well as to collaborate effectively with software developers.

Objects only become visible when light reflects off of them. This unit explores the ways in which light interacts with surfaces, objects, and the human visual system. Architectural design decisions regarding the lighting, as well as exterior and interior surfaces of a building, alter the perceptual experience of users and should be done thoughtfully.
This unit introduces students to the way humans perceive and experience the built environment. It covers some of the fundamental properties of light, mechanisms of human perception, and the ways that light interacts with surfaces. The application of these topics to design decisions is also discussed. Students demonstrate their understanding of the presented material and apply their knowledge to critically analyze their own environments.
Due to the high volume of interest in this course, all questions and enquiries will be answered in online discussion forums on Canvas, instead of in face-to-face consultation.
No early results are available for this unit. No extensions will be granted because of failed internet access.

This unit teaches students basic understanding of digital modelling and architectural prototyping. Students will develop skills in creating and using 3D modelling software for various design tasks. The unit further introduces students to rapid prototyping fabrication techniques, such as 3D printing and laser cutting with the aim to understand how to prepare a digital model for physical fabrication. Students will learn how physical objects are represented in 3D digital models by modelling various 3D geometric entities. Key concepts covered in this unit include: joinery, composite material and solid modelling.

This unit of study introduces students to the principles of visual design, including graphic design, colour theory and typography. Students will develop an understanding of how to successfully combine visual elements to effectively communicate an idea or concept, to describe a product, and to represent visual user interface elements in an interactive product. Using digital image manipulation tools, such as Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign, students will learn how to develop design concepts and how to turn concepts into visual communication materials in the form of digital images.

This unit of study introduces students to the principles and practices of visual communication design for non-designers. Visual communication is an essential skill in today's complex world, for effectively communicating ideas, information, perspectives and proposals to diverse audiences in a variety of contexts. Students will learn about the theories of visual perception and psychology underlying visual design principles, and strategies for the composition of visual elements to produce effective and compelling visual presentations. On the successful completion of this unit of study, students will have demonstrated knowledge and skills in the understanding and application of visual design to produce and evaluate effective visual communication materials for a range of audiences.

How can we understand the ways that cities and regions change over time, and how these processes shape people's lives? This Unit of Study provides conceptual and practical material for exploring these questions. A program of lectures and tutorials in complemented by close study of Sydney, using GIS (census and satellite imagery) and a series of walking tours to different parts of the city. Assessment is tailored to projects in which students are required to integrate conceptual ideas about cities and regions with GIS mapping and field observations.

All design decisions involve decisions about colour within the fields of architecture, applied design and art. This unit presents knowledge about colour theory as well as research-based information about colour and associated topics that can be used in design. Information and knowledge about colour can vary in quality and reliability, which is demonstrated. Students apply their skills and knowledge about colour theory and colour design in the assignments of this unit. This unit covers the processes of colour vision and other aspects of visual perception. It also explores colour application from the Pre-history period, as well as selected colour theories of the Renaissance period through to the 21st Century. Common colour-related constructs and the application of these in art, architecture and design are discussed. In completing the assessment tasks, students must demonstrate understanding of the knowledge presented in learning modules of the unit and critically analyse and apply knowledge related to colour design and application.
Due to the high volume of interest in this course, all questions and enquiries will be answered in online discussion forums on Canvas, instead of in face-to-face consultation.
No early results are available for this unit. No extensions will be granted because of failed internet access.

Global change and population growth present significant challenges to the resilience of urban landscapes. Planning and design of urban development is the most powerful tool to meet these challenges. This unit of study provides students with an understanding of the principles and practices of sustainable urban development and the legacy of design at multiple spatial and temporal scales. Students will develop a toolbox for embedding ecological and physical principles in urban design to maximise the functionality of green infrastructure for a range of purposes. This unit will provide an understanding of the interacting physical processes between urbanisation and the local environment as well as issues in global sustainability such as certification of materials and utility of urban land use types. At the completion of this unit, students will be able to articulate the principles of sustainable design within the context of social, political and economic constraints at a range of spatial/temporal scales. Students will develop conscientious approaches to improve the sustainability and resilience of domestic and international urban landscapes.

The aim of this unit is to engage students in detailed studies of innovative building structures, covering the three aspects of innovation in architectural and structural design (modeling, materials and technology). The main topics covered are: architectural form and structural function; interpretation of basic (arch, beam, column, space and spatial portal) and advanced (truss, vault, dome, shell) structural principles with an intuitive graphical method (Load Path Method - LPM). Examples of significant case studies will be shown and interpreted (works by A. Gaudi, B. Fuller, F. Otto, N. Grimshaw, S. Calatrava, N. Foster, R. Piano and others); biomimetics; bioinspired structures as a way to increase structural efficiency. Innovative structural materials: the use of glass as structural material, innovative reinforcements for composite structures, smart and nanostructured materials; kinetic architecture: structural movement as the 4th architectural dimension. A case study assignment will be used to assess student's competence in investigating and presenting case studies and being able to identify and evaluate issues and factors contributing to innovative structural solutions.

This unit of study introduces students to design strategies and techniques for developing alternative points of view and exploring multiple solutions iteratively. Through the analysis of real-world case studies students will develop an understanding for how to use design-thinking methods to tackle complex problems. The unit will discuss how design can be used as a method and as a way of thinking to drive innovation for products, services and processes. In the tutorial component, students will apply design strategies and techniques through small group exercises and develop a deeper understanding of them through the assessment items, which capture theory, analytical reflection and the practical application of methods.

This unit will introduce students to the history of Australian architecture in its various contexts. Lectures and seminars will cover key architects, projects and building types and their relation to Australian history. Students will become familiar with a range of architectural styles and movements and their characteristics. They will undertake individual self-directed research and learn how to record and present the results of this research. Students will also acquire an appreciation of the factors that shape architectural design and thought in Australia and how these relate to wider social and cultural circumstances. Tutorials will introduce students to key books, essays and journals concerned with Australian architecture. On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to: demonstrate a familiarity with a range of Australian architects, buildings and types; research, record and present a specific project in Sydney; connect specific works to other works of a similar style, period or cultural context. This will be assessed in the submitted essay.

This unit will introduce students to the benefits and limitations of prefabricated architecture through case study analysis and design exercises. Architects have long used prefabricated housing to explore industrialised building solutions, often with disappointing results. Yet, recent developments show the conditions for a more industrialised approach to housing ¿ especially its promise of low-cost, more socially inclusive, and well-designed housing ¿ have rarely been better. Australia¿s housing affordability crisis, changing design needs, sustainability concerns, and the rise of digital and automated fabrication technologies, have conspired to challenge a housing industry deeply resistant to change. Using design research tools, students will assess case study projects before developing their own prefab building 'offering'. Through a series of workshops running parallel to 'live' research projects within the Innovation in Applied Design Lab, students will have contact with professionals and researchers active in the industry. Learning outcomes will include the ability to analyze complex case studies using graphic, physical, and textual media for the case study report. Design, communication and presentation skills will be examined in the form of a PowerPoint presentation 'Pitch' and report.

This unit is designed for third year students to undertake a project that allows them to work with one of the University's industry and community partners. Students will work in teams on a real-world problem provided by the partner. This experience will allow students to apply their academic skills and disciplinary knowledge to a real-world issue in an authentic and meaningful way. Participation in this unit will require students to submit an application.

This unit of study provides a format for deep engagement with design and innovation methods. Students will develop responses to a real-world design problem that requires the application of students' existing disciplinary skills combined with knowledge in an interdisciplinary context. Projects are student-led, allowing students to identify projects that are linked to their interests and discipline-specific career paths. Through interactive group work, facilitated by experienced design mentors, students will learn how to negotiate interdisciplinary requirements and boundaries. All projects developed in this unit of study are expected to address some element of innovation in an existing product, service or process. Students will be able to apply methods acquired in other units of study, and will learn about new methods through weekly project work and reviews.

The process of detailing in the office and during construction is a fundamental part of architectural practice. Experience of the process can provide and invaluable learning experience for students of architecture. However, many students have no available path to builders or architects and access to operative building sites is generally limited by OH and S concerns. The studio-based elective will allow a small group of students access to current building projects to explore the role of detail in design and building and in guiding not only a small component of a building's construction but its fundamental overall character. This elective will link students to a particular architect, builder and domestic scaled project to study and document a series of details in the context of the whole building and provide access to the site under supervision to study construction methods and detailing in context.

The unit of study begins by exploring the concept of ecologically sustainable design as it applies to architectural practice and defines those key attributes of buildings which make them sustainable. It discusses the implication of applying sustainable design principles upon contemporary architectural practice. This unit will cover the fundamentals of passive solar design, the environmental impact of building materials, water sensitive design and the environmental certification of buildings. Through the use of case studies and project work students will learn about how to design environmentally sustainable buildings by understanding contemporary trends in sustainable architectural practice, methods to critically evaluate environmental claims about buildings and will develop a personal position on applying sustainable design principles to architecture. This unit is an Architecture Elective in the Bachelor of Design in Architecture and elective in other courses.

Architecture and Diagrams is an elective that aims to provide students with an overview of various techniques of production and theories that relate to architectural diagrams. Its objectives are: to learn how to analyse buildings from a diagrammatic point of view; to acquire a basic knowledge of the history and theory of diagrams in architecture; and to develop basic skills to generate urban and architectural diagrams directly related to the students' respective design work in other units of study.

This design elective bridges the domains of design theory and advanced fabrication practices. In this unit students will make complex and polished objects using the fabrication tools in the DMaF lab, that demonstrate and/or embody design ideas intrinsic to their formulation. The unit includes lectures/tutorials on the technical knowledge related to sandstone fabrication, and lectures on the theoretical premises and associations generated by the internal logic, and expressive languages. Tutorials will also be divided between technical developing machine control, and design tutorials in which students will develop control of the design trajectory and expressive languages.

More than half the world's population now live in cities. The contemporary growth of cities, however, is attached to profound political and environmental questions about what it means to be urban, what 'being urban' means for the planet, and how we might produce more just and sustainable urban spaces and experiences. This Unit provides grounding to these crucial questions by examining urban environments from the dual perspectives of citizenship and sustainability. The Unit has three modules. Module 1 examines the intersection of urban environmental change with questions of citizenship and justice. Module 2 considers key urban environmental issues such as energy, transport and food, and how cities and citizens might address stresses and shocks in these systems. Module 3 studies new models for governing emergent urban environmental challenges. Throughout the semester, a Practical Project will involve a research project with real-world partners to introduce key skills related to working in collaboration with external organisations.

This unit of study asks students to consider 'what is a physical model in architecture?' and 'what are the different materials, methods and uses of physical models in the design and presentation of architecture?' Participants in this unit will critically investigate and creatively apply a non-conventional modeling technique of their choice in the conception, study or presentation of architecture. These inquiries are supplemented by lectures and in-class discussion, which seek to uncover a historical and contemporary use of physical models as a tool for architects, including their mention in architectural treatises and in the formation of Modernism. In recent years, the development and use of parametric driven architectural models has received significant attention. Naturally, the unit will also explore the interface between the physical and virtual model to understand how architectural modeling programs belong to a historical tradition and are playing a role in not only representing conditions of building in the world but also in the development of new architectural ideas.

This unit introduces students to the fundamental principles of animation and its role in interaction design. Students will develop an understanding of the process involved in developing character, text and motion graphics based animation, the integration between 2D artwork and 3D composition, and techniques and tools for audio recording and production to support animation. Assessments in this unit focus on the application of animation in user interface design as well as for the production of short animated films. Students will acquire basic animation skills, develop the skills to create an animated sequence, and learn the critical vocabulary to describe animation. Basic knowledge will be related to foundational technical skills in industry standard software for animation.

Code to Production is an elective that explores the potential of an iterative design process from parametric variations; to analysis and simulation; to digital prototyping and manufacturing. The course has a two-fold agenda: to examine the performance of complex geometries available through computational design processes, and to translate the optimised design by digital manufacturing into construction and prototype (CNC/robotic fabrication). Based upon the development of a series of controlled variations derived through parametric and scripting methods, the elective aims to further expand an understanding of structural and acoustic performance of these geometries. It reviews an open system of design research in which design process, structural analysis and acoustic analysis are deployed to improve the acoustic and structural performance of complex spatial geometries, and derive fabrication knowledge for architectural practice. The unit of study extends students' knowledge of advanced computational design, interdisciplinary processes and fabrication methodologies by application of commercial and specialist 3D-modelling, scripting, analysis and manufacturing packages (including various software such as McNeel Rhino and Grasshopper, Karamba, RhinoNest and KUKA/prc).