Learn [sustainable] architecture - FA CTU publication

Rather than a statement, one can sense a question mark in the title. Just as architecture is a multi-layered discipline, the publication works with many ingredients. The authors leave the synthesis to the readers themselves.
“We do not believe in straightforward solutions and unequivocal answers. Being an architect and a teacher of architecture is a lifelong journey,” introduce the authors who work at the Faculty of Architecture CTU in Prague. It is precisely the responsibility for shaping future architects that leads them to two questions they ask in the book. What is sustainable architecture? How should sustainability be taught in architecture schools?
They then approach the answers from several perspectives. As reviewer Petr Kratochvíl states: “The authors draw from a justified conviction that sustainable architecture cannot be defined by a few—only quantitative—parameters, but lies in the realization of a work that, from conceptual beginnings, connects respect for environmental, social, and economic demands in a holistic and simultaneously creative way, without neglecting the aesthetic aspect.”
Unlike the search for a general definition of sustainability, the second question, which seeks the ideal way to teach sustainability, is personal and pertains to the authors' roles as educators. “Our motivation was to develop the traditional model of studio teaching to better prepare students for the complexity of an architect's work and the challenges related to sustainable architecture,” they explain in the introduction.
In seeking the right teaching model, they were inspired, among other experiences, by the Solar Decathlon competition, in which they competed with their team at CTU with the solar house AIR House. AIR House was the first so-called design-build project realized at the Faculty of Architecture CTU. In the book, the authors present this teaching method, where students design and build the construction, as one of the paths that lead to sustainability ceasing to be a theoretical concept on paper. In the conclusion of the book, they illustrate their method with five projects that were created under their guidance.
Before that, Dalibor Hlaváček and Martin Čeňek give space to their colleagues. In this part of the book, they record how sustainability resonates among Czech and foreign architects, educators, and theorists. Their answers to the questions of what sustainability means to them, how it manifests in their work, and what significance it should hold in the teaching of the profession show the theme of the book in its true complexity.
In the last chapter, the authors select design-build projects of various scales that originated in their studio at the Faculty of Architecture CTU. They describe the process of creation, offer reflections, and share student experiences. In the projects, the previously repeated concepts materialize into the specific form of realized buildings. Whether they are shelters or a footbridge for the Krkonošsko National Park, a flagpole for Libčice nad Vltavou, or AIR House for the Solar Decathlon, these are implementations that from the first sketches strive to connect respect for environmental, social, and economic demands in a creative way.
The book is published at a time when the European Union is launching the environmental, economic, and cultural project New European Bauhaus. “The New European Bauhaus is a project of hope for a better shared life after the pandemic. It is about aligning sustainability with style, bringing the ideas of the Green Deal closer to citizens, and projecting these ideas into their lives,” promises Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, similar dynamics from the new Bauhaus, which was evoked by the old Bauhaus 100 years ago.
The New European Bauhaus aims to become a new European aesthetic that combines good design with sustainability. On specialized websites, artists, designers, engineers, scientists, entrepreneurs, architects, and students can share examples of inspiring solutions. Organizations can become partners of the new European Bauhaus. “The Faculty of Architecture CTU should be among them. The ideas of the Bauhaus are close to us; we also realize that a hundred years later, we have different possibilities and resources. The academic ground should come up with new formulations,” comments Dalibor Hlaváček on the new European initiative.

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