ARCH UN2103

Fair for a studio course- 2 projects with many mini-projects and assignments throughout, constant progress is expected. We learned Rhino and Photoshop during the course, so previous knowledge of software isn't expected. I will say though, if you want a professor who is very organized and clear in their expectations and deadlines, Madeline isn't for you. She is quite go-with-the flow, and may switch what she wants/likes frequently. Though I think if you can let yourself go and truly listen to her, you'll be okay. She's quite supportive, so don't feel afraid to reach out!

Pretty standard for a studio. 4 projects and a few (short) readings throughout the semester. Very clear on her expectations.

Lots of late nights and tight deadlines. Somewhat normal for a studio course, but far more than I have encountered before or after, including in the advanced studios. Additionally, time spent in the studio overnight almost always felt menial, unproductive, and unnecessary.

Madeline was quirky, artsy, kind of odd, and honestly really fun! She is certainly a creative at heart, and although her teaching style and class structure felt a bit whimsical and non-traditional, once you let yourself go and allow yourself to follow her lead and just create, I feel you truly can reach your full potential. I found Madeline to be both a great cheerleader while also an honest critic, which is crucial in any studio class. She was very understanding when students felt sick or unwell, or if students felt like they were in a slump. I never felt looked down upon by her, and I feel like the semester was one grand journey towards amazing work. I feel like she really tried to encourage all of us to be creative, let loose, and just flow, and for that I'm really grateful!

I took Lindsay’s class as my first studio experience and would definitely say that it was a positive one! I was intimidated coming into the class since most of the others had already taken studio classes before, but Lindsay was accommodating in helping me navigate the first few projects. She takes you through the design process pretty smoothly and there is a nice transition between all of the projects, with all of them building on each other. She also brought in a lot of guest speakers, which I appreciated. While she does have her own niche interests (based on her practice, which actually won an award by the AIA NY last year) which sometimes frame the projects, I think that it deepened the class content and made the class more interesting. Although she can sometimes come off as intimidating, she always helps you think through your ideas when having a creative block and is clear in what she wants for all of the project deliverables. She really emphasizes the importance of being able to get your ideas across, especially in a visual language and diagrammatically. Throughout the course of the semester, I developed my own visual language that I still use in my later classes. Overall, her class is great in teaching you how to think about space and how the built environment influences social interaction while also giving you the necessary tools for later studios.

I took Jason Kim's studio course during the Spring 22 semester. While Jason clearly invested admirable amounts of his own time and energy into this class, I am extremely hesitant to recommend it for the following reasons: 1) He has a tendency to prescribe his feedback as instructions. At the initial stage of class projects, he asked for a conceptual brainstorm of ideas. Based on presentation of these ideas to him, he designed my projects in his sketchbook, on the spot, in specific detail, and then held me to them. These were specifications of quantity, color, configuration, style, size, materials, presentation, etc. Any proposed deviation from his design was treated with skepticism. As a practicing architect with experience, I don’t doubt that Jason’s ideas are well-taken, and better than what students in a first-year undergraduate studio show him. But they are simply so extensive and immediate that, beyond the initial brainstorm, they preempted my own. 2) Time is not apportioned usefully. Class assignments consisted of 1-4 weeks of conceptual work. The conceptual stage was demanding, and often he expected pin-ups at this stage to contain a substantial body of writing, plans, and sections. These were valuable, rigorous exercises, and I learned a great deal from them. Yet Jason would keep projects in this conceptual stage for several weeks. These often came with tedious and unh…

Architecture studios are an extensive time commitment, and this course required that students perform/learn hand modeling skill development, use of laser cutters and/or 3D printers, hand sketching development, architectural history here and there, Rhino 3D software, Adobe Illustrator, and Adobe Premiere Pro. Sometimes it seemed as if Professor Schwartzmann did not fully comprehend how much time/effort she was asking of students with little or no prior experience, but she graded with attention to students’ effort and improvement over time.

4 Projects, nothing really relating to the actual craft of architecture just laborious visual art projects focused on perception. You will have to spend money out of your own pocket at some point to keep up with expectation in the class. Your hard work will go unrecognized. I don't think I've seen a class work so hard just to be treated with such apathy.

This professor was erratic and disorganized but very likable, creative, and passionate. However, she didn’t set expectations that I could understand or adapt to, which made me extremely stressed. The content of the course was wide-ranging and extremely interesting, ranging from standard architectural history “greats” (Corbusier, etc.) to funkier and more contemporary design concepts (including ecocriticism, technology and the body, urban sensorial experience, cartography, alternative and original graphing/data imaging systems). Clearly I am divided about Prof. Schwartzmann— I think she’s a stimulating creative guide but is not straightforward/cohesive enough to effectively serve all students, especially those just beginning a design course. Only less neurotic and self-doubting should apply: know thyself.

Pros: Class helps you think about how our perception of space around us changes the way in which we experience space Cons: Universally disliked. Poor at giving instruction. Will tell you to change/keep something and then will completely change her mind and criticize you during pin-ups. Pretty obviously chooses favorites. If you don't align with her creative aesthetics good luck. Will spend half the (three hour long) class rambling and will reprimand you and dock your grade for checking your laptop. Can't seem to understand that students are coming from different levels of experience and expects them to understand the ins and outs of outdated software after a 20 minute incoherent tutorial. Gets in fights and yells at students for being honest or speaking up. Unkind. And grading is extremely arbitrary.