In the beginning of the 21st century, architectural designs require a "green" narrative to be considered credible. We draft building plans with colored lines into the black model space of the computer; then we render images resembling color photos in the Red-Green-Blue mode of the screen, before we print them with the Cyan-Magenta-Yellow-Key cartridges of the plotter. But the abundant use of color in our language and tools is not reciprocated by conceptual meaning and spatial experience. Although color had been of vital importance for the architecture of the Modern Movement, it is hardly mentioned in the contemporary discourse.

The Modern Spectrum seminar analyzed various conceptual approaches to color as a tool of design and element of construction. It examined color theory, the role of color in representation, the relation of color to materiality and program, as well as application techniques ranging from the urban to the domestic scales. Thematic case studies were accompanied by guest lectures and field trips. The students were required to design an apparatus that utilizes and records color for a specific spatial experience and programmatic purpose.

Student work: The Chromascope, Diego Salazar and Controlled Environment Agriculture, Evan Shirley
Category: Teaching
Location: New York
Year: 2015
Authorship: Professor Georg Windeck