Urban Topographies

3 units

This digital seminar introduces students to the basics of Geospatial modeling at both regional and local scales, with an emphasis on the creative application of GIS data towards design thinking, site analysis, and speculative urban design. The course explores the potential for GIS data as more than just for inventory and mapmaking, but also as an invaluable creative design tool. A series of digital workshops will touch on a range of cross-platform workflows, from digital cartography to parametric modeling to 3D animation. Tying this together will be a speculative urban landscape project that the students will model and visualize utilizing the software introduced. This year's iteration will lean more towards an experimental and explorative use of GIS for design, art, and visualization. This course is intended to give students the flexibility to approach the syllabus as an independent study or as a supplement to their studio work. Software that will be covered includes ArcGIS, Autodesk Infraworks, 3DSMax, and Grasshopper.