Architecture Major
Goals for the Architecture Major
The goals of the Architecture major are threefold:
- To develop skills in design and spatial thinking through the practices of drawing, design, modeling, and digital media production
- To understand architecture and urban form in their historical contexts
- To have an appreciation of the roles of client, program, and economic conditions on the practice of architecture and the shaping of the built environment
Requirements for the Architecture Major
Students considering an Architecture major should choose an advisor in their area of concentration and work out a program of study.
The Architecture major consists of 11 units, which may be weighted toward architectural history or studio investigation.
The following courses are required:
- ARTH 100 or WRIT 107. There is no exemption from this requirement by Advanced Placement, or by International Baccalaureate, or by an exemption examination.
- ARTS 105 and ARTS 113
- ARTH 200 or ARTH 231 or ARTH 228 or ARTS 216
- Two additional intermediate courses in architectural history, studio art, or design (200 level)
- Two advanced courses in architectural history, studio art, or architectural design (300 level). At least one of these units must be taken in the Department of Art at Wellesley.
- Two additional courses related to architecture
Learning Outcomes
Architecture majors will:
- acquire knowledge of the historical, political, economic, and cultural contexts that have shaped architecture and urban form across time and in diverse cultures and geographies.
- demonstrate an understanding of historically and geographically specific design and construction methods and building typologies.
- apply interdisciplinary methodologies, critical theories, and professional ethical codes to interpreting architecture and urban form.
- acquire first-hand experience of studio practice in architecture whether or not they intend to specialize in this aspect of the profession.
- develop the skills of visual, formal, material, and spatial analysis.
- conduct research in primary and secondary sources and be able to distinguish between reliable and unreliable sources.
- demonstrate mastery of this knowledge and these skills in persuasively argued and clearly written essays and presentations and in studio investigations.
Notes:
Courses in Sociology, Anthropology, Philosophy, and Women’s and Gender Studies may also apply. Consult your advisor. MIT and Olin College courses may also be applicable to the major. See Department of Art website for recommended courses at Wellesley, MIT, and Olin.
Honors in Architecture
Departmental honors in Architecture is earned by the demonstration of excellence in both coursework and in a self-directed thesis. Students have a choice of pursuing a thesis project in history/theory or pursuing a studio-based project. In either case, the student will complete two units of independent study/thesis (ARCH 360/370) in the Fall and Spring of their senior year. Students interested in pursuing a senior thesis should refer to the requirements and guidelines posted on the Architecture major page of the Art Department website under "Thesis & Independent Study."
Transfer Credit in Architecture
Although courses at MIT are not required for the major, the MIT-Wellesley exchange provides a unique opportunity for students to elect advanced courses in design and construction. Students are also encouraged to consider travel or international study as important aspects of their education in architecture. Normally, no more than three units of transfer credit—two units at the 200 level and one unit taken at MIT at the 300 level—may be applied toward the minimum requirements for the major.
Courses for Credit Toward the Architecture Major
The following courses are recommended to students designing a program of study in architecture. Additional courses may be applicable and some courses are not offered yearly, so each student should develop her program of study in active consultation with her advisor.
History of Art
| ARTH 200 | Architecture and Urban Form |
1.0 |
| ARTH 203 | Iraq's Antiquities, Then and Now |
1.0 |
| ARTH 206 | American Art, Architecture, and Design: 1600-1950 |
1.0 |
| ARTH 209 | Art and Architecture of Ancient Nubia |
1.0 |
| ARTH 217 | Historic Preservation: Theory and Practice |
1.0 |
| ARTH 228 | Modern Architecture | 1.0 |
| ARTH 231 | Architecture and Urbanism in North America |
1.0 |
| ARTH 238 | Chinese Art and Architecture |
1.0 |
| ARTH 239 / SAS 239 | Art and Architecture of South Asia |
1.0 |
| ARTH 240 | Asian Art and Architecture |
1.0 |
| ARTH 241 | Egyptian Art and Archaeology |
1.0 |
| ARTH 242 | Home by Design: Houses, Villas, and Palaces in the Roman Empire |
1.0 |
| ARTH 245 | House and Home: Domestic Architecture, Interiors, and Material Life in North America, 1600-1900 |
1.0 |
| ARTH 247 | Introduction to Islamic Art and Architecture |
1.0 |
| ARTH 249 | Japanese Art and Architecture |
1.0 |
| The Art and Architecture of the European Enlightenment |
1.0 |
|
| ARTH 266 | New Perspectives on the Global City |
1.0 |
| ARTH 267 / ES 267 | Art and the Environmental Imagination |
1.0 |
| ARTH 289 | Nineteenth-Century European Art |
1.0 |
| ARTH 304 | Seminar: Villas and Country Houses from Antiquity to Present |
1.0 |
| ARTH 309 | Seminar: Spiritual Space: Modern Houses of Worship |
1.0 |
| ARTH 310 | Seminar: The Extraordinary Interior |
1.0 |
| ARTH 317 | Seminar: Historic Preservation: Theory and Practice |
1.0 |
| ARTH 318 | Seminar: New England Arts and Architecture |
1.0 |
| ARTH 320 | Seminar: Frank Lloyd Wright: Modern Architecture and New Ways of Living |
1.0 |
| ARTH 321 | Seminar. Making Space: Gender, Sexuality and the Design of Houses |
1.0 |
| ARTH 322 | Seminar: The Bauhaus |
1.0 |
| ARTH 345 | House and Home: Domestic Architecture, Interiors, and Material Life in North America, 1600-1900 |
1.0 |
| ARTH 376 | Seminar: Local Stories: Research in Boston-Area Museums and Libraries |
1.0 |
Studio Art
| ARTS 105 | Drawing I | 1.0 |
| ARTS 109 | Two-Dimensional Design | 1.0 |
| ARTS 113 | Three-Dimensional Design | 1.0 |
| ARTS 205 | The Graphic Impulse: Mediated Drawing | 1.0 |
| ARTS 207 | Sculpture I | 1.0 |
| ARTS 216 | Spatial Investigations | 1.0 |
| ARTS 217 | Life Drawing | 1.0 |
| ARTS 219 | Introductory Print Methods: Lithography/Screenprint | 1.0 |
| ARTS 220 | Introductory Print Methods: Intaglio/Relief | 1.0 |
| ARTS 221 / CAMS 239 | Digital Imaging | 1.0 |
| ARTS 222 | Introductory Print Methods: Typography/Book Arts | 1.0 |
| ARTS 255 / CAMS 255 | Dynamic Interface Design | 1.0 |
| ARTS 307 | Advanced Sculptural Practices | 1.0 |
| ARTS 314 | Advanced Drawing | 1.0 |
| ARTS 317H | Advanced Independent Senior Projects | 0.5 |
| ARTS 318H | Advanced Independent Senior Projects | 0.5 |
| ARTS 321 / CAMS 321 | Advanced New Media | 1.0 |
| ARTS 322 | Advanced Print Concepts | 1.0 |
| ARTS 336 / MUS 336 | From Mark to Sound, From Sound to Mark: Music, Drawing, and Architecture | 1.0 |
| ARTS 366 / CAMS 366 | Advanced Projects in Film and Architecture | 1.0 |
MIT
The following introductory courses (200-level) may be taken for credit toward the major:
4.021* Design Studio: How to Design or 4.02A (an IAP version of the same course)
4.022* Design Studio: Introduction to Design Techniques and Technologies
4.401 Environmental Technologies in Building
4.500 Design Computation: Art, Objects and Space
The following advanced courses (300-level) may be taken for credit toward the major (one unit only):
4.023 Architecture Design Studio I
4.024 Architecture Design Studio II
4.411 D-Lab Schools: Building Technology Laboratory
4.440J Introduction to Structural Design
*Note: courses marked with * are counted “within the Department of Art”; all others are counted as courses outside the department.
Other MIT Course 4 (Architecture) and Course 11 (Urban Studies & Planning) courses may be approved for credit in the major. Students should speak with their advisor and petition the Co-Directors of Architecture for approval.
Olin
ENGR 2141 Engineering for Humanity
Mathematics
| MATH 115 | Calculus I |
1.0 |
| MATH 116 | Calculus II |
1.0 |
| MATH 120 | Calculus IIA |
1.0 |
| MATH 205 | Multivariable Calculus |
1.0 |
Note: More advanced courses may also be counted toward the major.
Physics
| PHYS 104 | Fundamentals of Mechanics with Laboratory |
1.25 |
| PHYS 107 | Principles and Applications of Mechanics with Laboratory |
1.25 |
Theatre Studies
| THST 209 | Scenic Design |
1.0 |