Abstract

Architecture and traveling always have a close and meaningful relationship. As architecture is a part of our ordinary environment it is difficult to overlook it, particularly assuming that it has recorded historical, social, cultural and artistic values. Traveling plays an important role in the architectural education. Early travelers appreciated marvels of their antiquated world, Grand Tour travelers ventured to the far corners of the planet to get well versed with architectural masterpieces. Recently traveling confronted with another peculiarity where traveling in education for the students is not only as a part of destination but also as a part of education. It helps to know about relation between environments, architecture, its principles and philosophies which will help in understanding that how traveling impacts the architecture student’s experience. The aim of this paper is to study role that traveling has in architecture education and how educational excursions contribute to the growth of student’s learning experience. In this paper, empirical data collected from four architectural institutions have been analyzed. The study proves that traveling has an important role in the architectural education and it should be considered as part of the architectural curriculum and professional experience, which can make a significant contribution to the visual learning of an architect’s field exposure depending on the needs, expectations and preferences.

1. Introduction

Architecture generally had an extraordinary importance in traveling. Architecture and traveling have always had a close relationship. Traveling plays an important role in architecture education. Traveling helps a student to know about relation between environment and architecture. As architecture is a part of our everyday environment it is impossible to ignore it, especially if it has historical, cultural and artistic meaning. Most of the visible aspects in cultural landscape is generally architecture of the place ¹ which implies that how travelers will perceive to its termination with respect to the visual experiences majorly depends on how appealing is the architecture of the destination. While discussing about traveling in architecture it is not mainly focused in theoretical domain but also the cultural, artistic flows and the practical experiences ². Today, traveling became more demanding as it is for something quite refreshing and new. Thus, traveling became a trend in understanding, learning and pursuing architecture education. Therefore, the aim of this topic is to study the role that traveling has in architecture education and how educational excursions contribute to the growth of student experience.

2. Research Objectives

The following are the research objectives of this paper:

1. To study the need and demands of educational excursions with respect to theoretical knowledge.

2. To observe why different regions with respect to their academic semester/year have been chosen for the students of architecture to travel with the perspective of architecture education.

3. To observe what exercise students are doing while traveling.

3. Research Methodology

In this paper, the study is not limited to theoretical understanding but it is an empirical investigation that how students visualize and reflect their perspectives in academics. Initially the basics and fundamentals are explored through online and social media. The literature review has been explored through internet and secondary data from the research papers, journals articles and blogs. The data collection in the study comes from the number of case studies and its examples across different regions in India that are elaborated descriptively and attached with illustrations and photographs and therefore reinforcing the study to go on. The empirical data collected from four architectural institutions have been analyzed in this paper.

4. Background Study

Ever since Herodotus admired ancient pyramids in Egypt and made an analysis of ancient wonders of the world, traveling has always been an attraction factor when blended with architecture which represents history, culture, tradition and art of a place. During the period of Grand Tours, members of high society undertook traveling or sent their children on a journey for educational excursions. Kourelis noted that Grand Tour travelers invented a new chapter in architectural history, describing them as a diverse group of amateurs, professionals, diplomats, military men, doctors, artists and architects as well as adventure seeking travelers ³. Renowned architectural wonders of antiquated, medieval times or times closer to the time they lived in, were their rationale of traveling, later which they use to document with their experiences in the form of writings and paintings. Places known for their glorious history as well as glorious artists, architects and philosophers were destinations to those early tourists. Afterwards, as movements advanced to the travel industry as far as we might be concerned today, intentions, length of stay as well as discernments have changed radically and it is thus, quite surprising to consider the importance of experiential and observational learning that practitioners and academics have historically considered ‘Traveling’ to be an important part of an architect’s education.

5. Literature Review

Traveling has foremost implications in studying architecture. As probably the most outstanding forms of human creative and social articulation, architecture is both an art and science that can differ significantly starting with one culture to another and from one noteworthy period to another ⁴. Indeed the best method for shuttling a design idea is to experience that space with regards to the specific time and culture. The most significant method for understanding the impact of culture on the development of architecture is to sink oneself within that particular culture. So, for this reason traveling plays an integral part in the architectural education. Some of the most compelling pioneers and post-modernist architects, such as Le Corbusier and Tadao Ando, lacked formal architecture schooling and instead based their architectural education and their own empirical observations of cities and buildings while traveling abroad ⁵.

Kay Bea Jones in the study ‘Unpacking the Suitcase: Travel as Process and Paradigm in Constructing Architectural Knowledge’ claimed the need to articulate a ‘travel pedagogy’ in order to resituate traveling from basic to professional developments of architectural recognition ⁶. Jones likewise presents the historical traditions of traveling and architecture, and the impact it made on the education of an architect. This is a significant idea in light of the fact that architects were not only educated within the restricted dividers of a studio or atelier, but on the other hand were presented to the real works of ancient times and the contemporary indications of architecture through traveling and educational excursions. Traveling reveals innovative ideas and physical, social and climatic conditions, cultures and traditions of different places, which are very important for the interpersonal skills of the architect.

As travelers opt to take specified routes and method of traveling to get a much better experience, researchers utilize explicit interpretative ideal models or techniques for exploration to comprehend the significance of their studies ⁷.

These techniques additionally assist the researcher with fostering a method of request and a way to comprehend the implications of the research. Kolb's experiential learning provides a theoretical framework to comprehend the pertinence and meaning of experiential learning while traveling. The first and foremost part in experiential learning cycle is the underlying exposure to the environment ⁸.

The core and the paramount part of the cycle is the conceptualization stage. Here the student interprets and sums up the occasions while simultaneously scrutinizing the significance of the experience. The last stage is the most critical because the student has the chance to change practices or thinking and apply these progressions to another situation. These progressions are intentionally planned and thus, the knowledge is subsequently transferred into substantial activities.

6. Primary Data Collection

The influence of traveling on architecture expresses and contributes in gaining a tendency towards opening and splitting creative and innovative ideas as architecture cannot be learnt by sitting in an enclosed space. The research has proved that how traveling in architecture reflects history, culture and tradition but the degree of learning always rely on personal needs and preferences. So, conducting the study on traveling that how important can traveling be that benefits architecture can be carried out by reviewing the curriculum of the following colleges and concluding their analysis with respect to national and international context. The national context comprises of the following schools:

• Faculty of Architecture and Ekistics, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India.

• LS Raheja School of Architecture, University of Mumbai, India.

The International context comprises of the following schools:

• University of Virginia, USA (Yamuna River Project)

• School of Architecture and Community Design, University of South Florida, Florida, USA.

7. Case Studies

The Case Studies are worked out to fulfil the objectives of study documenting the implications of traveling with respect to the institutes in native country and abroad observing the conclusions made by the students by means of sketches, documentaries, photography and activities etc. So it focuses on the areas of the student’s personal and professional experiences examining that how the students used their imagination, creativity to document their sketch journals, memories and impressions.

Complementing to the mission of Jamia Millia Islamia i.e. ‘Social concern & Innovation’, The Faculty of Architecture and Ekistics has a vision to train the students to create Architecture with soul, not Architecture just wearing cosmetic faces. Following the guidelines specified by the Council of Architecture every year every batch is taken to educational tour to study the Architectural and Planning aspects of the buildings and the cities. Depending upon objectives of Design Studio exercises, North zone for First years, West zone for Second years, South zone for Third years and East zone for Fourth years. So, the exercises done by the students and what they explored there etc. are presented by the following Report of B.Arch 3^rd year students who visited Kerala in 2015-16.

Aim: Documentation in the form of sketches, photographs, graphics and texts.

Format: Report A4 size.

Maximum Marks: 50

The tour will be covering five major cities of Kerala namely Ernakulam, Munnar, Thekkedy, Allepey and Thiruvananthapuram. The Exercise includes by documenting the complete tour extending from Ernakulam to Thiruvananthapuram. So, primarily it was a kind of architectural documentation. However nature and colours (graphics) can also be explored.

Aim: Documentation in the form of sketches, photographs, graphics and texts.

Format: PowerPoint Presentation

Maximum Marks: 50

The Exercise includes studying and documenting the Jew Town Street which leads to the Jew Town Road and then to the Synagogue (Paradesi Synagogue) and the Jew Cemetery. The architectural scene of Kerala was influenced by many socio-cultural groups and religious contemplations from foreign lands. For example: the cultural contact of Jews with Kerala originates before the time of Solomon and by fifteenth century there were Jewish settlements in Kodungallur, Kochi and other coastal towns. The main Jewish settlement is seen at Kochi close to the Mattancherry castle. Their residential building resembles Kerala’s architecture typology externally; nevertheless they are of a different plan concept.

The ground floor rooms are used as shops or warehouses and the living rooms are planned on the first floor. The facade of the structure about the roads and the sides are persistent with abutting structures in the pattern of the row houses. A significant historic monument of the Jew town is the Synagogue. It is a simple tall structure with a sloping tile rooftop yet it has a rich interior with hand painted tiles from Canton, China and ancient chandeliers from Europe ⁹.

a. The visitor movement is almost linear, slightly curvilinear.

b. The double height storey buildings have residential clusters on the top and commercial outlets on the ground level.

c. Amalgamation of two different architectural styles were found, the cluster of trusses and trabeated forms.

d. Keeping in mind the commercial considerations, large span structures were made, covered with truss roofing and Mangalore tiles.

Aim: Documentation in the form of sketches, photographs, graphics and texts.

Format: PowerPoint Presentation

Maximum Marks: 50

The Exercise includes studying and documenting the Dutch Palace. It is located in the western part of Fort Kochi and was once the capital of the Hindu rulers of Kochi. It has long been an important Centre for trade and has attracted, by the lure of its spices and other priced commodities, Portuguese, Dutch and British traders to set up businesses and built settlements over the centuries. Unlike the bustling Ernakulum, the twin cities of Fort Cochin and Mattancherry have preserved an extraordinary wealth of early colonial architecture spanning the Portuguese, Dutch and the British eras- a crop unparalleled in India. ¹⁰.

a. The Palace is a two-storeyed building, built in traditional Kerala architecture naalukettu (quadrangular) model with four separate wings and then opening into a central courtyard.

b. The ceilings of various halls are decorated with wood carved floral designs including the design of an inverted lotus. Even brass cups are used to embellish the ceiling of the dining hall.

c. The exteriors of the Mattancherry Palace are barren with stark white walls and sloping brown roofs.

d. Outside, the palace looks simple, but elegant with the white walls.

e. Long and spacious halls, arches etc. are another characteristics of the palace.

Aim: Documentation in the form of sketches, photographs, graphics and texts.

Format: PowerPoint Presentation

Maximum Marks: 50

The Exercise includes the understanding philosophy of Baker Architecture and studying and documenting buildings designed by Laurie Baker such as Indian Coffee House, Loyola Chapel, Hamlet (his own residence), and Centre for Development Studies, Laurie Baker Centre etc.

Laurie Baker was a renowned British-born Indian architect who is extremely popular for his compositional standards of cost-ampleness, use of locally accessible materials, regard for nature, abhorrence of energy heightened materials and wastage minimization to make insignificant cost, brilliant, fantastic constructions which long pre-empted current ideas, for example, eco-kind disposition and vernacular engineering. Life and work are seldom too adjusted as on account of the British-conceived Baker, who made India his home during the 1940s. The ability and imagination with which he planned and constructed strong, low-energy, cost-effective, context-aware architecture for the poor and elite alike attests to that. He internalized and along these lines his structures will generally accentuate productive-on occasion virtuosic-workmanship development, giving security and for a scope to down to earth reasons, particularly for natural ventilation, he deployed internal courtyards where possible, while extensively relying on perforated external brick walls (Jali) which welcomes a characteristic wind stream to cool the structures from inside, as well as making complex examples of light and shadow ¹¹.

Following the vision and mission alongside the standard academic programme, the school encourages the students to have hands-on experience by conduction various site visits/study tours to manufacturing units, constructions sites, heritage sites etc. related to the architecture industry. Site visits to various scales of continuous tasks connected with the field are directed through colleagues to assist students gain practical knowledge.

Students of the first, second and third years are additionally taken on compulsory study tours, one to two weeks long, to places of cultural and historical value. Students are made to comprehend fundamental underlying fabricated structure in a documentation trip held in a documentation trip held in the first year and are taught architectural history in the tours conducted in the second and third years ¹².

The National study tours conducted in the year 2012-2013 includes:

• 1st Year B.Arch - Sawantwadi Documentation Tour.

• 2nd Year B.Arch - Orcha, Datia, Jhansi, Khajuraho, Bhopal, Indore.

• 3rd Year B.Arch - Delhi, Agra, Chandigarh, Amritsar, Dalhousie.

Study tours are compulsory and an integral part of the academics. Students are awarded credit points for active participation in these tours.

The International study tours conducted from the year 2011-2013 includes the countries viz. Malaysia and UAE which further goes on to the places like:

a. Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur, Genting Highlands, Penang, Lankawi, Putrajaya.

Students with faculty, visited buildings of Architectural and Interior importance. During the tour, the students also visited Modular Furniture factory with a Lec-Dem sessions. Students also visited USCI, university; to exchange and compare the educational curriculum.

b. U.A.E (Dubai and Abu Dhabi): In the year 2012-13, the college had organized its International Study tour to 'Dubai and Abu-Dhabi'.

During the tour students had opportunity to visit five star hotels and Malls like J.W. Marriot, Taj Exotica on Palm Islands, Governor House, Dubai Mall, Ibn Batuta Mall, Mall of Emirates and Burj Khalifa-World’s Tallest building.

Every year, professors at the University of Virginia run a one-semester studio focused on an alternate urban planning challenge in New Delhi. The latest course looked at the city’s main river, the Yamuna. After extensive research and a weeklong trip to the region, students created individual tasks around the river, which were then incorporated into a single master plan.

The University of Virginia’s Yamuna River Project is an inter-disciplinary research program whose objective is to revitalize the ecology of the Yamuna River in New Delhi, subsequently reconnecting India's capital city back to the water. Involving the students, focused on a 24-kilometer stretch of the Yamuna River, which separates the city and gives the two its drinking water and its sewage channel. The students divided into teams to explore various parts of the river, including its utilizations, its effect on wellbeing, and the lodging stock encompassing it ¹³.

Type: Group Exercise (max 13 students)

New Delhi - as the capital city of the world’s largest democracy, with a population of almost twenty million - faces an unprecedented challenge: its sacred river, the Yamuna, is one of the most polluted in the world.

The whole quantum of new water streaming into New Delhi is diverted to satisfy the new water necessities of the city. From the Wazirabad barrage where it enters the capital city, to the Okhla barrage where it exits in the south, the Yamuna consists of only treated and untreated sewage and other toxic effluent.

The students work involves Mixed-use social housing for the Yamuna River with the following proposals:

a. Katherine Rush’s proposal rethinks high-density residential typologies in the region, proposing a user-controlled "inclination of protection" that can alter over the direction of every day.

b. An analysis of existing low-income housing in New Delhi showed that numerous inhabitants of thick ghettos live with simply 1 to 5 square meters of room per individual.

c. With stackable furnishings, mobile segments, and porches and yards shared by neighbors, this model gives 8 to 10 square meters for every individual, while giving occupants more organization over their surroundings.

d. Additionally when comes to the sterilization, the absence of washroom framework implies that one of the principle toxins of the Yamuna River is fecal matter.

e. Students analyzed the bathroom infrastructure in the region (opposite), comparing population density with the percentage of homes with toilet access to determine areas that most need intervention.

f. With that information, Darcy Engle developed proposals going from housetop offices, to local area towers that oblige latrines and regions for washing and clothing (above and right), to huge public offices that fill in as local area impetuses, joining retail and kid care.

g. Each of the individual student proposals were combined into a single master plan, or piece of the city, that tends to bigger provincial framework questions connected with nature, urbanism, infrastructure, and social welfare.

The architectural studies range across the world. From historical and traditional architecture, to present day and contemporary structures, drawing in with the networks and fabricated conditions of assorted places bears the cost of understudies a worldwide viewpoint of plan and urbanism. With opportunities to travel both within the United States and to other countries, the students at the USF School of Architecture and Community Design grow their basic system and enhance their learning. SACD's Graduate Core and Advanced Design studios incorporate a field trip consolidating the curriculum of that specific semester. All first-year students signed up for Graduate Core 2 studios take an interest in a field trip and related plan project in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The Current Graduate Core Design Trips are Savannah Georgia and Charleston, South Carolina, San Juan, Puerto Rico and New York City. The advance design studios travel to various locations and occasionally even to international places for one to two weeks. Recent Domestic Trips comprises of Chicago- Illinois, San Francisco-California, Seattle-Washington, Miami-Florida, and Atlanta-Georgia. The International Trips includes London-United Kingdom, Tokyo-Japan, Hong Kong, Cyprus, Thailand, Quito Ecuador and Havana Cuba ¹⁴.

8. Conclusion

The study tours are intended to make the students familiar with the various facets of the world. So, it should be explored academically and professionally to achieve the desired output from the students. The study tried to bring out the answer to the research objectives as well as the aim. The analysis and comparison showed a tendency to certain levels of importance that traveling has in architectural education and student’s learning experience. Also it depends upon the respondents and it varies from medium to high. So from the analysis it shows two main aspects of architecture i.e. visual and learning experience, which can also contribute to overall travellers experience.

However, to comprehend significance of design in traveling from student’s perspective, current findings were enough. This intends that, as indicated by respondents, their insight was impacted by both the live and online mode. Regardless of whether they had a positive or negative impression, impact was as yet communicated. To sum up, Architecture can hardly be ignored not as a part of profession but also as a part of education and can have a visual and learning contribution to student’s experience depending upon the needs, expectations and preferences.

References