2025/2026
The Social Life of Architecture in Historical Perspective
Type:
Mago-Lego
Delivered by:
Department of History
When:
4 module
Open to:
students of one campus
Instructors:
Ekaterina Kalemeneva
Language:
English
ECTS credits:
3
Contact hours:
30
Course Syllabus
Abstract
Architecture is not just mute product of human design, it reflects a dynamic spatio-cultural context and plays key role in shaping, constructing, mediating individual and collective identities. The goal of the course “Social life of Architecture in Historical Perspective” is to examine the social, ideological and cultural implications of various categories of human-build environment in different historical contexts. By focusing on various topics — ‘architecture of power’, ‘national and colonial imaginaries in architecture’, ‘architecture and cultural memory’, ‘planning the public places and private spaces in historical perspective’ and some other, this course is largely grounded in the study of relationships between buildings and society. During the course we will unpack the symbolism that is invested in diverse kinds of buildings in order to discuss how specific architectural decisions structured people’s lives and movements, and how different buildings reflect the historical contexts in which they were initially built and subsequently modified over time.